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Small effusive leaks into vacuum systems, as in Knudsen cells and classical molecular beam machines, made many contributions to science in the twentieth century. They have continued to serve both science and technology in the early years of the twenty first. Beginning in the 1950s, big convective leaks have turned out to be even more powerful and versatile tools. The supersonic free jets produced by these big leaks have greatly extended molecular beam methods, become a corner-stone of cluster science and technology, and rewritten the book on molecular spectroscopy. Those jets are now adding new dimensions to the techniques of mass spectrometry by making possible the production of intact ions from the large, complex and fragile species that play such vital roles in living systems. The path from the first crude experiments of Dunoyer into the groves of atomic and molecular physics followed along the trail blazed by Otto Stern and his disciples. That trail was then extended into the fertile fields of chemistry, by the likes of Herschbach, Lee, Polanyi, Smalley, Zare and Zewail, five of whom received Nobel Prizes for their contributions. More recently that trail entered the lush gardens of biology where mass spectrometry is providing bumper crops of information and understanding. This travelogue will describe some of the landmarks along what has been a fascinating journey.

John B. Fenn earned his A.B. from Berea College and his Ph.D. from Yale University. After distinguished professorial careers at Princeton and Yale Universities, he joined Virginia Commonwealth University as Research Professor in 1994. He has published 112 papers in refereed journals and holds 22 patents. Among his many awards are the Humboldt Foundation U.S. Senior Scientist Award (1982), American Society for Mass Spectroscopy Award for Distinguished Contributions in Mass Spectroscopy (1992), American Chemical Society Award (2000), Thomson Medal from the International Society of Mass Spectrometry (2000), and Yale University's Wilbur Cross Medal (2003). He is a member of the National Academy of Science and Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2002 for his work in the development of methods for identification and structure analyses of biological macromolecules.