News & Events | University of Maryland Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry

Tue, Jan 24, 2012

Millard Alexander named President of the Telluride Science Research Center

Millard Alexander has been named President of the Telluride Science Research Center (TSRC). Located in the historic town of Telluride in Colorado's Rocky Mountains, TSRC is dedicated to providing workshop and conference services for scientists. TSRC's mission is to inspire substantive scientific inquiry, breakthroughs, and discoveries by hosting scientific meetings in an open environment conducive to productive collaboration, and to effect positive contributions to research, policy, and education. TSRC meetings set new directions for scientific research. Nearly 1000 scientists attend TSRC workshops annually, which historically have had a molecular emphasis (be it chemistry, physics or biology). Additionally, TSRC sponsors a biannual advanced school in theoretical chemistry and has been the site of the American Conference on Theoretical Chemistry. The town of Telluride is rich in history, is located in a breath-taking setting, and offers a wide range of activities. For more information on TSRC and its activities visit the web site www.telluridescience.org. Dr. Alexander's term as President runs from January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2014.

Tue, Jan 10, 2012

John Weeks among the 539 new Fellows named by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

Professor John Weeks is one of 11 CMNS faculty among the 539 new Fellows named by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Election as a Fellow of AAAS, the world's largest general federation of scientists and the publisher of the journal Science, is an honor bestowed upon members by their peers because of their scientifically or socially distinguished efforts to advance science or its applications. New Fellows will be presented with an official certificate and a gold and blue rosette pin on Saturday, 18 February during the 2012 AAAS Annual Meeting in Vancouver, B.C., Canada.
Weeks is recognized for his seminal contributions to the statistical physics of liquids, interfaces and other condensed-phase systems.

Tue, Jan 3, 2012

Chemistry and Biochemistry December 2011 Graduates

Ph.D. Recipients:

Derrick Lucas - CHEM; advisor Lyle Isaacs, thesis - "Templated Synthesis of Glycoluril Oligomers and Monofunctionalized CB6 Derivatives"
Deana Jaber - CHEM; advisor Michael Doyle, thesis - "Rh(II)-Catalyzed Reactions of C-H Insertion and Oxonium Ylide Generation"
Vatsala Sagar - BCHM; advisor Nicole LaRonde-LeBlanc, thesis - "Structural Studies of the Atypical RI02 Kinases and N-Acetyl-l-Glutamate Sythase"
Kristine Crawford - CHEM; advisor Frederick Khachik, thesis - "Total Synthesis of an Oxidation Product & Gamma-Carotene-a Pro-Vitamin A Food Carotenoid"
Irene Kiburu - CHEM; advisor Nicole LaRonde-LeBlanc, thesis - "Structural and Biochemical Studies of Atypical Riol Kinase"
Yang Liu - CHEM; advisor Steven Rokita, thesis - "Target Alkylation of Single and Double Strand DNA by Peptide Nucleic Acids"
Kathy Goodson - BCHM; advisor Jason Kahn, thesis - "Lacl-DNA-IPTG Loops: Equilibria among Conformations by Single-Molecule FRET"

M.S. Recipients:

Sonja Gamby - CHEM; advisor Herman Sintim, thesis - "Structural Variants of AI-2 to Probe Bacterial Quorum Sensing in Diverse Bacteria"
Andrea Andrews - CHEM; advisor Neil Blough; remaining in the program to enter Ph.D
Ed Sisco - CHEM; advisor Alice Mignerey; remaining in the program to enter Ph.D

B.S. Recipients:
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Ehab Abdeldayem - CHEM
Jesse Aplin - CHEM
Jonathan Bickerstaff - CHEM
Allison Dennis - BCHM
Kimberly Huber - BCHM
So Mee Jung - CHEM
Elliot Mattson - CHEM
Tanu Mia - BCHM
Eliot Molling - BCHM
Laetitia N'dri - CHEM
Hwan Hee Park - CHEM
Laura Reed - BCHM
Louie Sun - CHEM
Mary Walker - CHEM
Daniel Yi - CHEM

Tue, Dec 20, 2011

Department Cited as "Blueprint for Boosting Diversity" of Ph.D. Grads by C&EN

Those Ph.D.s were the result of a coordinated effort by the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Maryland to boost the quality and diversity of its graduate population. Maryland aims to join the ranks of top producer Louisiana State University (LSU), which has awarded 9.0% of the black chemistry Ph.D.s in the U.S. in the past 10 years. On the basis of Maryland's success so far, chemistry department chair Michael P. Doyle thinks he has the right formula for reaching that goal.

Fri, Dec 16, 2011

Atmospheric Research conducted by Ross Salawitch quoted in Chemical & Engineering News

Atmospheric research in the Arctic conducted by Ross Salawitch, Tim Canty (Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Science, University of Maryland) and others was quoted in a Chemical & Engineering News article titled "Connecting Ice And Air: Scientists Probe the Role of Sea Ice in Atmospheric Chemistry as the Arctic Warms" December 5, 2011. Read on line at http://cen.acs.org/articles/89/i49/Connecting-Ice-Air.html. Dr. Salawitch's research which studies bromine and its effects on atmospheric composition was originally published in an article titled "A New Interpretation of Total Column BrO during Arctic Spring" November 3, 2010, in GEOPHYSICAL RESEARCH LETTERS, VOL. 37, L21805, 9 PP., 2010. Read on-line at http://www.agu.org/pubs/crossref/2010/2010GL043798.shtml. Since publication, this paper has been cited ten times in peer-reviewed literature according to Thomas Reuters Web of Knowledge.