Categories: Biographical notes
John Desmond Bernal (1901-1971), often known as J. D. Bernal, was an Irish scientist – a physicist who applied physical methods in the new science of molecular biology. He also wrote about science – its history and place in society – for a wider audience. he was known to be a communist who admired the Soviet Union (at a time during the 'cold war' when this was often looked on suspiciously).
He worked at the Royal Institution, the University of Cambridge (Cavendish Laboratory) and Birkbeck College (University of London), and undertook structural studies of various substances using X-ray crystallography.
