Saltman, Paul

Biography

Born in Los Angeles, California, on April 11, 1928, Paul Saltman received a B.S. in chemistry (1949) and Ph.D. in biochemistry (1953) from the California Institute of Technology. He taught biochemistry at the University of Southern California from 1953 until 1967, when he accepted the position of provost of Revelle College at the University of California, San Diego. In 1972 Saltman was appointed Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs. In 1980, he returned to full time research and teaching at UCSD.

Saltman's research interests focused on the basic chemistry of metal ions in biological systems and the nutritional role of trace metals--copper, iron, manganese, and zinc--in a healthy diet. His findings were of interest to the food industry and he was a consultant to Procter and Gamble, Mars and other food manufacturers.

Paul Saltman won awards as a classroom teacher at USC and UCSD and often wrote and spoke about effective teaching. He was interested in expanding the context for science education, participating in radio and television programs and a "Course by Newspaper" project. He wrote books on nutrition for the general public, and prepared a course for the World Wide Web.

Paul Saltman died on August 27, 1999.