Answer:

agent ORANGE

Explanation:

Answer:

Arthur W. Galston studied plant hormones in the United States during the late-twentieth century. His dissertation on the flowering process of soybean plants led others to develop Agent Orange, the most widely employed herbicide during the Vietnam War, used to defoliate forests and eliminate enemy cover and food sources. Galston protested the spraying of those defoliants in Vietnam, as they could be harmful to humans, animals, and the environment. Toxicological research conducted in 1967 revealed that Agent Orange contained a synthetic compound called dioxin, an accidental pollutant that caused birth defects, which led to the discontinuation of Agent Orange in Vietnam in 1971. Galston’s predictions of Agent Orange’s toxicity were confirmed in the 1980s when studies linked Agent Orange to the illnesses of Vietnam veterans and to their children.

Galston was born on 21 April 1920 in Brooklyn, New York, to Freda and Hyman Galston. Galston planned to pursue a career in medicine, citing his motivation as his parents’ expectations and his reading of Paul de Kruif’s Microbe Hunters, a 1926 book on scientists and physicians of the early twentieth century. However, when Galston’s father lost his job in the Great Depression, Galston instead chose to study in Ithaca, New York, at the veterinary and agriculture schools at Cornell University, which provided free tuition for in-state residents. Galston later credited Loren Petry, his botany professor, as the man who influenced him to change his career path from veterinary medicine to botany. Galston stated that Petry’s teaching style, lifestyle, and academic career were very appealing, and when he received an offer letter from the School of Veterinary Medicine, he declined it to major in botany. In 1940, Galston graduated from Cornell University with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in botany.

Galston continued his graduate studies in botany and biochemistry at the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois, where he worked with plant physiologist Harry Fuller. However, Fuller was sent to South America after the Japanese captured Malaysia during World War II. The conquest resulted in a rubber shortage in the US, and the government assigned scientists like Fuller to develop alternative sources of rubber. Additionally, the US government mandated that young men finish school early and become available for military service, so Galston finished his degree program in three years.

on a two-month long trip, working two weeks on an agriculture commune, then a requirement for Chinese scientists. He detailed his experiences in his 1973 book, Daily Life in People’s China. Throughout the 1970s, Galston maintained an interest in US Vietnam relations, writing newspaper articles and letters to the editor in the Hartford Courant, and lecturing about the topic at local universities.