The Rowland Institute for Science was founded by Edwin H. Land

Edwin H. Land

Edwin Herbert Land was an American scientist and inventor, best known as the co-founder of the Polaroid Corporation. Among other things, he invented inexpensive filters for polarizing light, a practical system of in-camera instant photography, and his retinex theory of color vision...

, founder of Polaroid Corporation

Polaroid Corporation

Polaroid Corporation is an American-based international consumer electronics and eyewear company, originally founded in 1937 by Edwin H. Land. It is most famous for its instant film cameras, which reached the market in 1948, and continued to be the company's flagship product line until the February...

, as a nonprofit basic research organization in 1980. The Rowland, as it is commonly referred to, is dedicated to experimental science across a wide range of disciplines. Ongoing research at the institute involves the fields of Chemistry, Physics, and Biology to name a few, and focuses on interdisciplinary work.

The institute merged with Harvard University

Harvard University

Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...

on July 1, 2002, and is now called The 'Rowland Institute at Harvard. It is located near Kendall square in Cambridge, MA, and is a few miles away from the main campus. The institute is currently the location for the Physics and Applied Physics research seminar for Harvard College freshmen.