George Svihla :::
George Svihla
Graduated in 1933
Inducted in 1997
George Svihla is a 1933 graduate and an accomplished biologist having devised an instrument to study the interior of yeast cells using wavelengths of ultraviolet light. His research was sought after by biologists around the globe, and he was considered the top researcher in ultraviolet microscopy. He began his career as a biologist after earning a bachelor's degree and a master's degree in Biology from the University of Illinois. He worked as a Research Assistant at the University of Illinois from 1937-1943 studying genetics, embryology, endocrinology and comparative anatomy. In 1943, he joined the Chicago Metallurgical Laboratory at the University of Chicago, a code name for a part of the Manhattan District Project (Atom Bomb Project) where he produced radioautographs, or images produced on film by radiation from radioactive substances in biological materials In 1946, he took part in Operation Crossroads, the Bikini Bomb tests. In 1947 he joined Argonne National Laboratory where he worked as a biologist for 35 years. A contributing author of six books, he has also presented at numerous international symposiums and been invited to contribute research papers. Svihla extends his scientific approach to life outside his laboratory by building computers from surplus parts and giving them to students who cannot afford them. In addition, he is a recognized authority on the Indiana Dunes, where he built his home. As curator for the Historical Society of Ogden Dunes, he records and transcribes the oral history of the area, produces exhibits, and edits a monthly publication concerned with local history.