Peter Mazur

Mazur was a cryobiologist at Oak Ridge National Laboratory who worked out the physics of how cells survive or die when frozen, formulating the influential 'two-factor' hypothesis that injury arises from both intracellular ice and solution effects. His analysis of optimal cooling rates made reliable cryopreservation possible and led to the successful freezing and thawing of mammalian embryos. He is documented as Jewish in Jewish biographical references.