Ray H. Crist

Noted Scientist Ray H. Crist, Ph.D. Dies at age 105
Ray H. Crist, of Devonshire Drive, Carlisle, PA, passed away in Carlisle on Saturday, July 23, 2005.
He was born March 8, 1900 on a farm near Shepherdstown, PA. He was a graduate of the former Messiah School (1916), now known as Messiah College, Dickinson College (B.A., 1920) and Columbia University (Ph.D., 1925).
Dr. Crist joined the faculty at Columbia University where he was a teacher and researcher from 1925 to 1941. He joined the Manhattan Project in 1941 and was among the leading scientists who developed the critical initial step of the separation of Uranium isotopes. He was director of the Manhattan Project, Columbia University Group, 1945-1946, after which he joined the Union Carbide Corporation in Charleston, WV, first as Manager of the Coal Hydrogenation Plant, and then as Director of Research of the Olefins Division.
Between 1959 and 1963, he was Director of the Union Carbide Research Institute at Tarrytown, NY. Dr. Crist turned to volunteer teaching in 1963, following the death of his beloved wife, Dorothy Lenhart Crist, formerly of New Cumberland. As a voluntary educator, Dr. Crist pursued his mission of introducing today's students, especially non-science majors, to the impact of science and technology on culture and the environment.
He taught the history of science at Dickinson College (1963-1970) and environmental chemistry at Messiah College (1974-2004), where he was a major force behind the development of the Environmental Sciences program. During the final two decades of his work at Messiah, up to the age of 104, he worked innovatively on experiments involving adsorption of toxic metals by plant material and the use of living plants for purifying the environment (phytoremediation). The results of these experiments appeared in twenty -seven journal articles and were reported at ten international conferences. Scientists in his field believe that he was the oldest publishing research scientist in history.
His academic achievements and his overcoming the challenges of aging were recognized by numerous events and awards such as America's Outstanding Older Worker (2002), the PBS feature The Living Century: Ray H. Crist, a Teacher and Student for Life, and the editorial "Phytoremediation's Centenarian" (International Journal of Phytoremediation, 2002), as well as extensive additional press and television coverage both in the United States and abroad. His memoir - Listening to Nature: My Century in Science (Seaburn Publications) - appeared in 2005.
Dr. Crist is survived by three sons, Robert L. Crist, Ph.D. of Athens, Greece and Carlisle, PA, Henry S. Crist, M.D. of Harrisburg, DeLanson R. Crist, Ph.D. of Chevy Chase, MD; 9 grandchildren and 15 great grandchildren; his brother, Guy C. Crist, M.D. preceded him in death.
Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Malpezzi Funeral Home, 8 Market Plaza Way, Mechanicsburg. There will be a viewing from 6 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at the funeral home.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Ray H. Crist Scholarship Fund, c/o Messiah College, Grantham, PA 17027. www.pennlive.com/obits