Month: October 2015
Organic/Inorganic Chemistry Seminar ~ Ilya Zharov
Physical Chemistry Seminar ~ Rebecca Jockusch
Alum Khalifa’s UG Research Could Lead to New Drug Treatments
An article in the fall 2015 issue of Cascade magazine profiles research conducted by Muhammad Khalifa, class of 2014, while earning his BS degree in Biochemistry at the University of Oregon. Khalifa worked for three years in the Haley lab and was listed as first author on a paper published this past July, an honor that identifies the person who made the greatest contributions to the project.
While at the UO, Muhammad was awarded the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department’s Kuntz-Swinehart Memorial Scholarship, which recognizes academic excellence in our majors. He is currently pursuing his doctoral degree in pharmaceutical sciences at the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
Read more at http://bit.ly/1kI0Mk0
Physical Chemistry Seminar ~ October 26th
News from the Jasti Lab
UO chemist Jasti aims to put his nanohoops into future devices
When Ramesh Jasti set out to make tiny organic circular structures using carbon atoms, the idea was to improve carbon nanotubes for use in electronics or optical devices. He quickly realized, however, that his technique might also roll solo.
Read more at AroundtheO
Alum Brian Coombs on Brewing Beer in Peru
photo: Brewpublic.com
UO Chemistry and Biochemistry alumnus Brian Coombs, Class of 2011, recently shared his experiences brewing beer in Peru on Brewpublic.com’s blog of all things beer- and brewing-related.
Brian traveled this past spring to the Sacred Valley region of Peru to lend his brewing expertise to a friend, Joe Giammatteo, who had opened a craft brewery in the town of Ollantaytambo.
Read about Brian’s brewing adventures in his blog post, So You Wanna Be a Brewer
Brian is now back in the Northwest, working at King Estates Winery and expanding his knowledge of fermentation and barrel aging.
Product from Professor Hutchison’s Startup Takes the Stink out of Athletic Clothing
DeFUNKit, a laundry product designed to keep athleticwear smelling fresh through multiple workouts, is making a big splash in the media.
DeFUNKit was developed by Dune Sciences, a nanotechnology and UO spinoff company co-founded by Chemistry and Biochemistry faculty Jim Hutchison and scientist John Miller.
See more video coverage and read more articles at: https://www.facebook.com/defunkit
In Memoriam, Marion Hill, Class of 1948 and 1950
UO Chemistry and Biochemistry alumnus Marion Hill passed away on August 2, 2015, in Portland, Oregon.
Marion Hill received his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Chemistry from the University of Oregon in 1948 and 1950, respectively. He then began his professional career at the National Bureau of Standards as a physical chemist engaged in thermochemistry.
Shortly thereafter he joined the U.S. Naval Ordnance Laboratory to do basic research on the synthesis of high energy organic compounds. While working at the Naval Ordnance Laboratory, Mr. Hill developed a process for making the nitroplasticizer used in the Polaris missile rocket motor. He received twenty-three patents for his work in this area.
In 1960, Marion Hill joined the Stanford Research Institute where he became Director of the Institute’s Chemical Laboratory which employed more than 100 chemists. Under his leadership this Laboratory produced outstanding accomplishments including orthoester based polymers for controlled drug release, new dyes for polyester/cotton blends, and polymers providing fibers with extremely high tensile strength and high modulus.
Mr. Hill was selected by the department for the 1996 Alumni Achievement Award in Chemistry, in recognition of his outstanding career both as a research chemist and as a research director.
At the 2014 department commencement ceremony, he presented the American Institute of Chemists Foundation Outstanding Senior award to Phi Beta Kappa nominee, Matthew Tanner. Mr. Hill was also a recipient of both honors when he graduated with his bachelor’s degree in 1948.
Read more about Marion Hill in his obituary at MercuryNews.com
Jim Hutchison co-authors article on Green Chemistry Education for C&EN
UO Chemistry and Biochemistry faculty Jim Hutchison has published an article on green chemistry and education for the September 28, 2015, issue of Chemical and Engineering News (C&EN). The article’s co-author, Kent Voorhees, is the Chair of the American Chemical Society’s Green Chemistry Institute (GCI) Governing Board, and Professor Hutchison serves as Co-Lead for Green Chemistry Education Roadmap Leadership Team.
The article addresses the challenge of integrating green and sustainable chemistry education into the curriculum at a fast enough pace to support this growing field.
Read more at http://bit.ly/1VBrPIX