Committee of Public Safety

Scientists volunteered en masse to help the revolutionary government. Eager for France to modernize and reform, many served on the wartime Committee of Public Safety. An astronomer became the first mayor of rev-... 

After Orleans execution in November 1793, his vast properties became state property and Leblanc s factory was seized. Three months later, Leblanc faced even more distressing news. With war threatening, the Committee of Public Safety called for patent holders of soda processes to publish their methods A true republican does not hesitate to relinquish the ownership of even the fruits of his mind when he hears the voice of his... 

The last letter written by Lavoisier seems to have been a letter to a cousin Augez de Yillers, probably written after the mock trial before the committee of public safety. 

Fourcroy was ultimately disappointed in his ambitions, not achieving the academic rank to which he aspired (a decision based on politics rather than qualifications), and his health failed. He died at the age of 54, probably from a stroke. De Morveau remained an active revolutionary and voted for the execution of Louis XVI. In fact he served as president of the first Committee of Public Safety, but he was too moderate by some standards and was replaced. Away fighting the Austrians at the time of Lavoisier s trial (de Morveau helped to organize the first military air force in the form of crew-carrying reconnaissance balloons), he may not have known of Lavoisier s arrest until too late, or had he known he may not have been able to return in time to protest. After the Terror his scientific career, like Fourcroy s, continued to prosper. De Morveau also worked well with Napoleon and under Napoleon was administrator of the mints, retiring finally only after Waterloo. Even when the Bourbon monarchy was restored and many of those responsible for the execution of Louis XVI were exiled, de Morveau was allowed to remain in France where he died 6 months later. 

The Academy paper on iron was rewritten in a shorter, more popular version and published in a large edition by the Committee of Public Safety in the War Department. 

The Commission of Powder and Arms , a subdivision of The Committee of Public Safety , was given power over all materials related to the production of munitions. Guyton de Morveau, the famous scientist, was the leading member of the Commission. It was decreed ... 

Citizen The Committee of Public Safety is now concerned with securing a large-scale production of soda. It desires to collect all the knowledge possessed by those who have worked on this commodity, particularly on its production from common salt. I know that you have been in a position to contribute to the formation of this new art, whose product will free potash for the manufacture of saltpeter. Accordingly I request that you present yourself to this Commission, to confer on this topic. 

The discovery was only part of the importance of Leblanc s contribution. He also commercialized the technology. Leblanc built his leading-edge technology facility at the La Franciade works in St. Denis, outside of Paris in 1791. Partners in the venture were Louis Philip 11, the Duke of Orleans (1743 - 1793), Michel Jean Jerome Dize (1764 - 1852) and Henri Shee. The small facility, measuring 10 X 15 meters, produced 0.25 tonnes per day of soda ash. Unfortunately for the inventor and his partners, France was soon in the turmoil of the Revolution, and the major investor was on the wrong side. By the order of the Committee of Public Safety, the facility was confiscated by the state in 1794, not because of Leblanc,... 

Joseph F. Louvar retired as director of BASF s Chemical Engineering Department to become a professor at Wayne State University, specializing in chemical process safety, risk assessment, and the design of experiments. He has authored many publications on process safety and chairs the Undergraduate Education Committee of the CCPS. 

Guide for the Identification and Control of Exothermic Chemical Reactions" (TAA-GS-05 1994). A document in German by the Technischer Ausschuss fur Anlagensicherheit (Technical Committee for Plant Safety) of the Federal Ministry of the Environment, Nature Conservation and Reactor Safety. Addresses safety assessment of reactions during both normal operations and excursions, as well as selection and extent of measures to be adopted. An English translation of this document is provided on the CD-ROM included with this publication. 

Other offices within CDER may become involved in the review process via consults. For example, the Office of Epidemiology and Biostatistics analyzes statistical data, the Office of Research Resources provides bioavailability reviews, and the Office of Compliance determines from the results of inspections whether the firms meet FDA s Current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) regulations. Advisory committees composed of independent experts are often asked to meet and further analyze the data. Often they also advise as to what additional data and information may be needed. After FDA s review is completed, FDA issues either a Summary Basis of Approval (SBA) for the dmg or a recommendation against approval. If approved, FDA releases the SBA and a summary of the safety and effectiveness data to the general public. 

To address its task, the committee held four public sessions in which it heard presentations from officials of EPA s Office of Research and Development CDC s National Center for Environmental Health, National Center for Health Statistics, and National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health the Washington State Department of Health the International Life Sciences biomonitoring committee the American Chemistry Council Crop-Life America the Association of Public Health Laboratories Environmental Defense and academe. 

Ms Valerie Rolland (during development of the public review draft of the document) Assistant Scientific Co-ordinator, Scientific Committee, European Food Safety Authority, Parma, Italy... 

Wilkinson, S. Proceeding of the Advisory Committee on Blood Safety and Availability US Public Health Service, 1999 58-64. 

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