science

J. D. Hanawalt

J. D. Hanawalt is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand J. D. Hanawalt rather than just read about it. In short: J. Donald "Don" Hanawalt (c. 1903 – June 26, 1987) was an American physicist who joined The Dow Chemical Company in 1931 and became a Corporate Vice President by 1953.

Key takeaways

J. D. Hanawalt belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect J. D. Hanawalt to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of J. D. Hanawalt from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

J. Donald "Don" Hanawalt (c. 1903 – June 26, 1987) was an American physicist who joined The Dow Chemical Company in 1931 and became a Corporate Vice President by 1953. He co-authored (with Harold W. "Sid" Rinn) an article titled, "The Identification of Crystalline Materials" which, along with a 1938 publication titled, Chemical Analysis by X-Ray Diffraction: Classification and Use of X-Ray Diffraction Patterns, are considered the foundations of powder X-ray diffraction as an analytical technique. The work is still in use today as part of the powder diffraction file (PDF) published by the International Centre for Diffraction Data (ICDD), a non-profit scientific organization dedicated to collecting, editing, publishing, and distributing powder diffraction data for the identification of materials. The membership of the ICDD consists of worldwide representation from academe, government, and industry. The ICDD presents an award bearing Hanawalt's name every three years to recognize distinguished, recent work in the field of powder diffraction in honor of his contributions.

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with J. D. Hanawalt

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what J. D. Hanawalt claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to J. D. Hanawalt before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about J. D. Hanawalt ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of J. D. Hanawalt

In research: J. D. Hanawalt appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses J. D. Hanawalt in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: J. D. Hanawalt is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1900s births, 1987 deaths, Crystallographers, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for J. D. Hanawalt outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study J. D. Hanawalt in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what J. D. Hanawalt means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain J. D. Hanawalt out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is J. D. Hanawalt in simple terms?

J. Donald "Don" Hanawalt (c. 1903 – June 26, 1987) was an American physicist who joined The Dow Chemical Company in 1931 and became a Corporate Vice President by 1953.

Why does J. D. Hanawalt matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study J. D. Hanawalt?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on J. D. Hanawalt.