originally wanted to become a botanist, but his high school teacher advised him to
first study chemistry, the basis of plant and animal life, which we now call the “life
sciences.” I remember that at Easter time, when the daffodils and tulips surrounding
a small pond in the upper part of the garden were in bloom and smelling wonderfully, we strolled around the garden and I listened to my grandfather’s stories.
These were inspired by Nature, most of them dealing with wild animals of the
jungles and savannas: lions, giraffes, elephants, etc. They talked to each other and
to the people around them, like in the stories of Doctor Doolittle. A follow-up came
Fig. 1 Hermann Staudinger with grandson Urs in Zurich in 1948
vi
Foreword: Memories of Hermann Staudinger by one of his grandchildren
first study chemistry, the basis of plant and animal life, which we now call the “life
sciences.” I remember that at Easter time, when the daffodils and tulips surrounding
a small pond in the upper part of the garden were in bloom and smelling wonderfully, we strolled around the garden and I listened to my grandfather’s stories.
These were inspired by Nature, most of them dealing with wild animals of the
jungles and savannas: lions, giraffes, elephants, etc. They talked to each other and
to the people around them, like in the stories of Doctor Doolittle. A follow-up came
Fig. 1 Hermann Staudinger with grandson Urs in Zurich in 1948
vi
Foreword: Memories of Hermann Staudinger by one of his grandchildren