Peter D. Mitchell was awarded the 1978 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his chemiosmotic theory, which explained how organisms use and synthesize energy. In his Nobel Prize address, Mitchell honored his long association with Professor David Keilin of Cambridge University, whose work provided the takeoff point for Mitchell's discoveries. Keilin had discovered cytochromes--electron-carrier proteins that assist in energy transfer via a respiratory chain. Mitchell's revolutionary chemiosmotic hypothesis changed the way scientists view energy transformation, and though it was initially viewed as controversial, it eventually won almost universal acceptance.

In 1961, when Mitchell's idea was first introduced, it was greeted by some in the scientific community with skepticism: what he was proposing was radically different than the prevailing thought on energy conversion at that time, and those opposing his conclusions questioned the validity of his research. Also, although Mitchell viewed his small research staff and unconventional laboratory at Glynn House mansion...