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43, xo. 2, 111'-113
Obituary
Michael
Ebert
(r9r4-r982)
Michael Ebert died suddenly on 28 Deceml:er 1982, while on holiday with his
wife, his daughter and his granddaughter, after a few days of sunshine and good
company in Seefeld, T'yrol. The cremation took place in St. Galien, Su'itzerland,
where some of Michael's family reside.
Michael Ebert had family links with several European countries and was, to an
unusual degree, a citizen of Europe. Born in St. Petersburg (as it then u'as called) on
5 November 191,t, he couid still, in later life, converse in Russian. The family moved
to Germany and Michaei was educated in Berlin in the years betr,veen the two world
wars. In !93'1., at the age of 1.7,he first visited Britain through a pupil exchange
arrangement and spent a term at Wallasey Grammar School, thus early acquiring
fluency in his third language, English. He matriculated at the University of Berlin in
1934 but had to spend the years 1935 to 1937 in military service. In11937 he enrolled
for chemistry studies at the Technische Hochschule in Berlin. In August 1939, he
.uvasrecalled to his regiment and served as an officer on various fronts during the lvar'
winning the Iron Cross (2.KI.). Before the end of the t'n'ar,however, he obtained leave
to pursue his studies in Professor Hahn's laboratory at the Kaiser Wilhelm Institute
for Chemistry and he remained in this group, then situated at Tailfingen near Mainz,
until he graduated Dr. rer.nat. from the University of Mainz in 1948'
In the immediate aftermath of the u'ar Michael experienced real hardship and
hunger, as did so many others in devasted Europe, and this he never forgot. He
recognized his own good fortune in surviving and being able to continue his scientific
work and as soon as he was in an established position he took every opportunity of
t12
Obituary
assisting scientific colleagues trapped in dilTicult political situations by his friendship
and hospitality and by enabling them to participate in advanced research projects.
Michael came to England again in the spring of 1949 and taught chemistry for
where the Headmaster, Mr.
some months at Latymer School in Hammersmith,
Wilkinson, had known him during his term at Wallasey Grammar School. Late in
1.949he was introduced to Dr. L. H. Gray who offered him a position as radiation
chemist in the basic radiobiology group that was being formed within the
Radiotherapeutic Research Unit of the Medical Research Council at Hammersmith
Hospital. Dr. Ebert's training in Professor Hahn's laboratory fitted him uniquely for
this poition and he at once took his place as a stimulating and productive member of
the group, feeding chemical ideas and expertise into the collaborative research with
physical and biological colleagues, and at the same time learning their special
problems and methods. To this period belongs his work on H2O2 formation in
aqueous solution and his contributions to the oxygen effect, which became a leading
theme in Dr. Gray's group. At this time, too, the collaboration with Dr. Alma
Howard began. Jointly, they discovered the 'rare gas effect', i.e. the inhibition of the
normal oxygen effect when an additional pressure of xenon, krypton or argon was
added to the aerobic system, an effect that has not yet been adequately explained.
Michael Ebert took British citizenship in 1954.In 1955 Dr. Howard moved to the
new B.E.C.C. Research Unit which Dr. Gray had established at Mount Vernon
Hospital, but Michael did not allow this to become a permanent separation and in
Januar-v 1958, to the delight of their friends, Alma and Michael married and found
near Rickmansworth a house and garden large enough to allow them full scope for
both hospitality and gardening, their principal leisure pursuits, for which they
rapidly established an international reputation.
Moving to Manchester in1.962 at the invitation of Dr. Laszlo Lajtha, they joined
the expanding radiobiology research group at the Paterson Laboratories and found a
spacious home at Chinley where they welcomed friends and scientific colleages from
many countries, allowing them to share in all the pleasures of country life. No one
was allowed to feel superfluous when Michael was about. One could generally
assume that the volunteer weeding the adjacent patch was distinguished in some
scientific discipline, and could confirm this in the long evening sessions before a log
fire.
Michael's first task at Manchester was to improve the facilities for the pulse
radiolysis research which John Keene had initiated there. The early work had all to
be done at great inconvenience during the night on a service linear accelerator at the
Traflord Park Works of the Metropolitan Vickers Company. Soon, however, funds
were authorized for a 10 MeV, 10 nanosecond pulsed linear accelerator to serve both
the Paterson Laboratories and the radiation chemistry group headed by Dr. J. H.
Baxendale at the lJniversity of Manchester. This machine, built by the Radiation
Engineering Division
of Vickers Ltd. was commissioned at the Paterson
Laboratories in December 1.967,and immediately justified itself as an indispensable
research tool. Dr. Ebert's efficient organization soon made it available to many
'deprived' (i.e. of pulse facilities) groups in this country and abroad. The annual lists
of publications from the Paterson Laboratories are sufficient testimony to the
breadth and continuity of the numerous collaborative research projects and to the
value of the published work. When Michael retired in 1977 he was presented with a
large framed picture composed of individual photographs of fifty-one of his major
collaborators during his 15 years at the Paterson Laboratory.
Obituary
113
In 1968 Michael Ebert and Alma Howard became joint editors with John
Wakefield of the International Journal of Radiation Biology. Pulled by this 'troika'
the Journal made rapid progress and the Eberts continued to edit it after their
retirement from active research at the end of 197 6. They had already planned to hand
it over in excellent shape to new editors early in 1983. During the years 1'96+to 1977
the Eberts also launched and edited the annual, and latterly quarterly, Current Topics
in Radiation Research which gave space for extensive accounts of new discoveries in
the field. They were able to attract contributions from many distinguished workers
and these volumes remain valuable for reference today.
Michael Ebert was a founder member of the Association for Radiation Research
He was Chairman of the L. H. Gray
and served as its Chairmanin1.976to1978.
Trustees during the years I976 to 1979. Distinguished as was his personal research
work, Michael's special genius lay in his ability to establish a creative and friendly
collaboration with colleagues from many countries and cultures, placing his
knowledge and experimental facilities at their disposal. In the same spirit he made
many lasting friendships in the village where he lived and among those he met in his
beekeeping, mountain walking. F{e was a link by which
leisure pursuits-gardening,
many subsidiary friendships were held together: such people arerare and invaluable.
Michael Ebert will be sadly missed and long remembered with affection by his many
friends'throughout the world.
Jacx Boec
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