Fischer

Fischer, Bobby (Robert James Fischer), 1943-2008, American chess player, b. Chicago. In 1958, he became a grandmaster, the youngest to that time. In the Interzonal and Candidates' matches in 1970 and 1971 he won an unprecedented 20 straight games to qualify to challenge Boris Spassky for the world championship. When he overwhelmed Spassky in 1972, he became the only American world titlist and, according to a consensus of contemporary grandmasters, the strongest chess player in history. From then until 1992, Fischer did not play a single game of chess in public. He forfeited his world title in 1975 after a rules dispute with the International Federation of Chess, and turned down lucrative offers to play again. In 1992 he was indicted after participating in a exhibition match with Spassky in Yugoslavia, against which the United States had an economic boycott. He subsequently lived abroad as a fugitive and was arrested (2004) in Japan for traveling on a revoked passport. Threatened with deportation to the United States, he was allowed to leave (2005) for Iceland after that nation granted him citizenship.

Fischer, Edmond Henri, 1920-, American biochemist, b. Shanghai, China. As researchers at the Univ. of Washington in Seattle, Fischer and Edwin G. Krebs discovered a biological regulatory mechanism, reversible protein phosphorylation, that affects nearly all human cells. The mechanism, which because of its reversibility can occur repeatedly, regulates cell processes and functions and triggers the release of hormones and amplifies their effects. For their work, Krebs and Fischer shared the 1992 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

Fischer, Emil, 1852-1919, German organic chemist. He is especially noted for his researches on the structure and synthesis of sugars and of purines and purine base derivatives, e.g., caffeine; for this work he received the 1902 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. His many other valuable discoveries include a method of synthesizing polypeptides. He was an assistant of Adolf von Baeyer and was professor at the universities of Erlangen (1882-85), Würzburg (1885-92), and Berlin (from 1892).

Fischer, Ernst Otto, 1918-2007, German chemist, Ph.D. Technical Univ. of Munich (TUM), 1952. Fischer was a professor at TUM (1954-57) and the Univ. of Munich (1957-64). He returned to TUM in 1964 and then spent the period from 1969 to 1973 as a visiting lecturer at a number of schools in the United States, including the universities of Wisconsin, Florida, and Rochester as well as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Fischer won the 1973 Nobel Prize in Chemistry jointly with Geoffrey Wilkinson. Independently, the two chemists identified a completely new way in which metals and organic substances can combine. The resulting materials, known as organometallic compounds, have practical applications as catalysts in industry and are also found in biological systems.

Fischer, Fritz, 1908-99, German historian. Appointed professor at the Univ. of Hamburg in 1948 (emeritus after 1973), he became famous as the result of his book Griff nach der Weltmacht (1961; tr. Germany's Aims in the First World War, 1967). His controversial thesis held that Germany's bid for world power before and during World War I was the main cause of the conflict in 1914. Fischer's unflattering picture of imperial Germany led to sharp criticism by German conservatives. In 1969 he published Krieg der Illusionen, a reinforcement of his earlier work that covered in greater detail the period before 1914.

Fischer, Hans, 1881-1945, German organic chemist, Ph.D. Univ. of Marburg, 1904; M.D. Univ. of Munich, 1908. Fischer was a professor at the Univ. of Innsbruck from 1916 to 1918 and at the Univ. of Vienna from 1918 to 1921. He then joined the faculty at the Technical Univ. of Munich, where he remained until his death in 1945. Fischer received the 1930 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his research on biological pigments, in particular, hemin, the red pigment in blood, and chlorophyll, the green pigment in plants. His work enabled the artificial synthesis of hemin from simpler organic compounds with known structures.

(born May 28, 1925, Berlin, Ger.) German baritone and conductor. He had his first extensive performance experience as a prisoner of war in Italy, and he made his professional debut in 1947. One of the most remarkable singers of his time, he was equally successful in the often mutually exclusive realms of opera and lied. His lyrical voice was supported by his commanding presence, intelligent musicianship, and superb artistry. He recorded most of the standard art-song repertoire, as well as numerous unusual and contemporary works; his many premieres included Benjamin Britten's War Requiem (1962).

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(born Oct. 9, 1852, Euskirchen, Prussia—died July 15, 1919, Berlin, Ger.) German organic chemist. He received his Ph.D. in 1874. He determined the structures of uric acid, caffeine, and related compounds, showing that all are derivatives of a single compound he named purine. This led him to study protein structure and the ways in which amino acids are combined in proteins. He determined the molecular structures of glucose, fructose, and many other sugars, verifying his results by synthesizing each, and distinguished the 15 stereoisomers of glucose (see isomer; configuration; optical activity). His researches into the sugars were of unparalleled importance to organic chemistry and earned him in 1902 the second Nobel Prize for Chemistry. His investigations of fermentation laid the foundations of enzyme chemistry.

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orig. Robert James Fischer

(born March 9, 1943, Chicago, Ill., U.S.—died Jan. 17, 2008, Reykjavík, Ice.) U.S.-born chess master. He became a grandmaster at age 15, then a record. In 1972 Fischer defeated Boris Spassky to become the only American to win the world chess championship. An intense and eccentric personality, he was a devout Christian fundamentalist who frequently condemned the Soviet Union for godlessness; he was deprived of his h1 in 1975 after refusing to meet his Soviet challenger, Anatoly Karpov. He remained out of the game thereafter except for a victorious private rematch with Spassky in Yugoslavia in 1992; the game violated U.S. sanctions against Yugoslavia. Fischer stayed abroad, becoming an Icelandic citizen in 2005.

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(born Oct. 9, 1852, Euskirchen, Prussia—died July 15, 1919, Berlin, Ger.) German organic chemist. He received his Ph.D. in 1874. He determined the structures of uric acid, caffeine, and related compounds, showing that all are derivatives of a single compound he named purine. This led him to study protein structure and the ways in which amino acids are combined in proteins. He determined the molecular structures of glucose, fructose, and many other sugars, verifying his results by synthesizing each, and distinguished the 15 stereoisomers of glucose (see isomer; configuration; optical activity). His researches into the sugars were of unparalleled importance to organic chemistry and earned him in 1902 the second Nobel Prize for Chemistry. His investigations of fermentation laid the foundations of enzyme chemistry.

Learn more about Fischer, Emil (Hermann) with a free trial on Britannica.com.

(born May 28, 1925, Berlin, Ger.) German baritone and conductor. He had his first extensive performance experience as a prisoner of war in Italy, and he made his professional debut in 1947. One of the most remarkable singers of his time, he was equally successful in the often mutually exclusive realms of opera and lied. His lyrical voice was supported by his commanding presence, intelligent musicianship, and superb artistry. He recorded most of the standard art-song repertoire, as well as numerous unusual and contemporary works; his many premieres included Benjamin Britten's War Requiem (1962).

Learn more about Fischer-Dieskau, Dietrich with a free trial on Britannica.com.

orig. Robert James Fischer

(born March 9, 1943, Chicago, Ill., U.S.—died Jan. 17, 2008, Reykjavík, Ice.) U.S.-born chess master. He became a grandmaster at age 15, then a record. In 1972 Fischer defeated Boris Spassky to become the only American to win the world chess championship. An intense and eccentric personality, he was a devout Christian fundamentalist who frequently condemned the Soviet Union for godlessness; he was deprived of his h1 in 1975 after refusing to meet his Soviet challenger, Anatoly Karpov. He remained out of the game thereafter except for a victorious private rematch with Spassky in Yugoslavia in 1992; the game violated U.S. sanctions against Yugoslavia. Fischer stayed abroad, becoming an Icelandic citizen in 2005.

Learn more about Fischer, Bobby with a free trial on Britannica.com.

Not to be confused with Fisher

People

Fischer is a surname may refer to:

A - E

• Abraham Fischer (1850–1913) South African public official
• Ádám Fischer
• Alfred Fischer (judge) (1919–2004), German judge
• Alfred Fischer (architect) (1881–1950), German architect
• Annie Fischer (1914–1995), Hungarian pianist
• Andrea Fischer (born 1960), German politician
• Artur Fischer (born 1919), inventor of the Dowel
• Axel Fischer (politician) (born 1966), German politician (CDU)
• Bernd Fischer (born 1936), German mathematician
• Bobby Fischer (1943-2008), American world chess champion
• Abram "Bram" Fischer (1908–1975), South African lawyer
• Clare Fischer (born 1928), American Composer, arranger, pianist
• David Hackett Fischer, professor of history
• Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau
• Edmond Henri Fischer (born 1920)
• Edwin Fischer (1886–1960), Swiss pianist and conductor
• Emil Fischer (disambiguation)
• Ernst Fischer (disambiguation)
• Eugen Fischer (historian) (1899–1973), geologist and historian
• Eugen Fischer (1874–1967), anthropologist, doctor and member of the Nazi party

F - J

• Franz Joseph Emil Fischer (1877–1948), chemist, famous for the Fischer-Tropsch process
• Friedrich Ernst Ludwig von Fischer, botanist
• Fritz Fischer (biathlete) (born 1956), biathlon-sportsman
• Fritz Fischer (1908-1999), German historian
• Georg Fischer (born 1960), West German cross country skier
• George R Fischer'', US underwater archaeologist, a pioneer of the field in the National Park Service
• Gerhard Fischer (1921–2006), German diplomat and Botschafter
• Gottfried Bermann Fischer, publisher of the S. Fischer Verlag
• Gustav Fischer (1854–1910), publisher
• Gustav Fischer (1848–1886), German physician and explorer of Africa
• Hans Fischer (1881–1945), German chemist, 1930 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
• Heike Fischer (born 1982), German diver
• Heinz Fischer (born 1938), Federal President of Austria
• Hermann Emil Fischer (1852–1919), German chemist, 1902 Nobel prizewiner, and inventor of the Fischer projection
• Howard Fischer, curator of the New York Jazz Museum
• Iván Fischer, Hungarian conductor
• James Fischer (1927-2004), American engineer
• Jenna Fischer (born 1974), American Actress
• Jiří Fischer (born 1980), Czech ice hockey player
• Johann Fischer (disambiguation)
• John Fischer (disambiguation)
• John Fischer (Christian musician), a musician
• John Fischer (pianist) (born 1930), a musician
• Joschka Fischer (born 1948), former foreign minister of Germany
• Joseph Fischer (disambiguation)
• Julia Fischer (born 1983), German violinist

K - O

• Karl Fischer (1881–1941, Berlin), founder of a German Youth Movement (Wandervogelbewegung)
• Karl von Fischer (1782–1820), German architect
• Kate Fischer (born 1973), Australian model and actress
• Klaus Fischer (born 1949), German football (soccer) player and coach
• Kuno Fischer (1824–1907), German philosopher
• Kurt Rudolf Fischer (born 1922), Jewish-Austrian philosopher
• Lothar Fischer (1933–2004), German sculptor
• Ludwig Fischer, German racing driver
• Ludwig Fischer (1745–1825), German Operasinger (bass)
• Marcel Fischer (born 1978), Swiss fencer
• Martin Fischer (1867–1947), Swiss automobile designer
• Móric Farkasházi Fischer
• Ottfried Fischer (born 1953), German actor and cabaret artist
• O. W. Fischer (1915–2004), Austrian actor

P - Z

• Paul Gustave Fischer (1860–1934), Danish painter
• Rainer Fischer (born 1949), German-Canadian judoka
• Robert Fischer (1911–1983), German judge, President of the Bundesgerichtshof
• Ruth Fischer, Communist
• Samuel von Fischer (1859–1934), German publisher
• Scott Fischer (1956–1996), American mountain guide
• Stewart "Dirk" Fischer (born 1924), American Composer, Jazz Educator
• Sven Fischer (born 1971), German biathlon-sportsman
• Theodor Fischer (1862–1938), German architect
• Thierry Fischer (born 1957), Swiss conductor and flautist
• Tim Fischer (born 1946), Australian politician
• Werner Fischer (born 1939), German professor
• Wild Man Fischer (born 1945), Outsider musician
• Wilhelm Fischer ("Willy" Fischer) (born 1972), German boxer

Other

Fischer may also refer to:

• Fischer, an Austrian company that produces Nordic skiing, Alpine skiing, Tennis and Hockey equipment
• Fischer, Behar, Chen, Well, Orion & Co., a law firm in Israel
• Fischer's Lovebird
• Fischer Brewery, an Alsatian brewery
• Fischer Motor Company, a U.S. motorcycle manufacturer
• Fischerspooner, a New York based electronica band
• Fischer-Z, British rock band