   alan graham macdiarmid, onz (14 april 1927 â 7 february 2007) was a chemist, and one of three recipients of the nobel prize for chemistry in 2000. ==early life== he was born in masterton, new zealand as one of five children â three brothers and two sisters. his family was relatively poor, and the great depression made life difficult in masterton, due to which his family shifted to lower hutt, a few miles from wellington, new zealand. at around age ten, he developed an interest in chemistry from one of his father's old textbooks, and he taught himself from this book and from library books. he was educated at hutt valley high school and victoria university of wellington. ==career== in 1943, macdiarmid passed the university of new zealand's university entrance exam and its medical preliminary exam. he then took up a part-time job as a "lab boy" or janitor in victoria university of wellington, during his studies for a bsc degree, which he completed in 1947. he was then appointed demonstrator in the undergraduate laboratories. after completing an msc in chemistry from the same university, he later worked as an assistant in its chemistry department. it was here that he had his first publication in 1949, in the scientific journal nature. he graduated in 1951 with first class honours, and won a [[fulbright progra
1927_births 2007_deaths Academics_of_the_University_of_St_Andrews Accidental_deaths_from_falls Accidental_deaths_in_Pennsylvania Alumni_of_Sidney_Sussex_College,_Cambridge American_people_of_New_Zealand_descent Fellows_of_the_Royal_Society Members_of_the_Order_of_New_Zealand Members_of_the_United_States_National_Academy_of_Sciences New_Zealand_Nobel_laureates New_Zealand_chemists Nobel_laureates_in_Chemistry People_educated_at_Hutt_Valley_High_School People_from_Masterton Polymer_scientists_and_engineers Recipients_of_the_Rutherford_Medal University_of_Pennsylvania_faculty University_of_Texas_at_Dallas_faculty University_of_WisconsinaMadison_alumni Victoria_University_of_Wellington_alumni