BURKSER

BURKSER, Eugene Samoilovich, professor of inorganic chemistry and director of the Chemical-Radiological Institute in Odessa (born in 1887). After graduating from university, he founded in Odessa, with funds from the Technical Society, a radiological laboratory. A large series of works by B. on the examination of radioactivity of rocks, mineral springs, and salt lakes begins with his first studies of the radioactivity of the Odessa limans (1911), followed by, in the former Tiflis Province, Borzhom (together with geologist Tantar in 1912) and the entire Black Sea coast of the Caucasus (in particular, Gagra, together with geologist Dubyansky), rocks of the Perm Province (1915) and a detailed study of radio-elements in the former Kuban region (together with chemist V. I. Spitsyn during 1916-18). In the last decade, B. has been continuously engaged in studying the chemistry of salt lakes and the processes of mud formation. He has examined over 50 lakes in Ukraine, the North Caucasus, and other regions, with special attention given to the question of changes in therapeutic muds during their use and storage. In total, Burkser published 57 works, the majority of which are devoted to the study of natural therapeutic resources of the USSR. His public activities and continuous connection with resort affairs brought B. in 1917, as a member of the city council, to the position of head of Odessa resorts (until 1919). Here he organized hydrological and hydrogeological departments, which he also directed later. Since 1926, Burkser has been director of the Research Chemical-Radiological Institute of the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences in Odessa, which united a number of laboratories, including the radiological laboratory founded by Burkser in 1910. Since 1925, Burkser has been a corresponding member of the All-Ukrainian Academy of Sciences.