Brown, Alexander Crum (1838-1922)

Scottish chemist. He worked on chemical nomenclature and the application of mathematics to chemistry. He published On the Theory of Chemical Combination (1861), in which he used graphical formulae for organic compounds, with bonds represented by lines between atoms; he also initiated the use of two lines to symbolize the double bond.

Brown was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. He studied medicine at Edinburgh University and chemistry at Heidelberg and Marburg universities. He was appointed lecturer in 1863 and then professor of chemistry at Edinburgh University (1869-1908). He was president of the Chemical Society (1891-93).