Chemformation

The Weekly Newsletter of the MIT Chemistry Department

Volume 13, Number 26

September 5, 1997

Next issue: The next issue is September 12, 1997. Deadline for submission of material is Tuesday, September 8. Chemformation is published by the Office of the Department Chairman. Please convey items of interest (or mailing list changes) to Linda Earle Room 18-390, Department of Chemistry, MIT, Cambridge, MA 02139, 617/253-1803; 617/258-7500 (fax) or e-mail to lkn@mit.edu Back issues of Chemformation can be accessed via the Chemistry Department Website.

Visit the Chemistry Department Website at http://web.mit.edu/chemistry/www/

SEMINAR CALENDAR

Professor John Caradonna: Yale University; "Probing Old Sites With New Protein by Rational Protein Design Methods"; Thursday, September 11, 1997; 4:00 in Room 6-120; Seminar in Biological Chemsitry
Professor Jean Fréchet: University of California at Berkeley; "The Chemistry of Dendrimers"; Wednesday, September 17, 1997; 4:00 p.m. in Room 54-100; 1997 Karl Pfister Lecturer in Organic Chemistry; Reception immediately following in the Norris Room 18-490
Professor Jean Fréchet: University of California at Berkeley; "Organic Imaging and the Design of Materials for Microlithography"; Thursday, September 18, 1997; 3:00 p.m. in Room 4-370; 1997 Karl Pfister Lecturer in Organic Chemistry; Refreshments @ 2:30 in the Moore Room 6-321
Professor Alois Fürstner: Max Planck Institüte für Kohlenforschung; "Some Steps Along the Organometallic Avenue Towards Bioactive Natural Products"; Monday, September 22, 1997; 4:00 in Room 6-120; Lecture in Organic Chemistry; Refreshments @ 3:30 p.m. in the Norris Room (18-490)

Welcome Professor Lynda Jordan

Professor Lynda Jordan has been appointed Martin Luther King Junior Visiting Associate Professor of Chemistry for the 1997-98 academic year. Professor Jordan received her Ph.D. in biological chemistry at MIT in 1985. She is a native Bostonian, born in Roxbury Massachusetts.

During her year at MIT, Professor Jordan will be conducting experiments on the human placental phospholipase A2 and teaching the 5.017J Biochemistry Laboratory course. In addition to these activities, Professor Jordan is interested in stablishing collaborations with faculty, and developing new research-teaching strategies for undergraduate chemistry education.

Welcome Professor John Hazeltine

A welcome to Professor John Hazeltine who has joined the department as Visiting Assistant Professor for 1997-1998. Dr. Haseltine is an organic chemist who will be teaching 5.47 and 5.511 in the fall and undergraduate organic chemistry in the spring. John received his B.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Pennsylvania in 1981 and 1988 respectively. His research interests include the synthesis of complex natural products, molecular recognition of sugars, and dynamic molecular electronics in common biochemical contexts (currently serine protease action, sugar/lectin binding, and protein folding). John is a passable chess player and devoted recreational runner.

Graduate Students, Postdocs, Faculty, Please Mark Your Calendars!!
"Careers in Education at Principally Undergraduate Institutions"

This one-day conference will feature talks and panel-discussions involving faculty from prominent "PUIs". A detailed program will be available next week. For more information, contact Professor Rick Danheiser at (danheisr@mit.edu).

The Manhattan Poster Project

The Manhattan Poster Project is a poster session held to promote interaction between experimental and theoretical physical chemistry graduate students and postdocs in the Northeast. Due to the immense success of last year's meeting at the University of Delaware, we are excited to host the seventh annual Manhattan Poster Project at Northeastern University here in Boston on November 1, 1997. Other professors at more than 20 universities throughout the northeast have received this informal informational emailing. We hope that as many graduate students and post-docs as possible can attend to represent your department and research. This year, we are striving to promote an interdisciplinary atmosphere as opposed to strict physical chemistry guidelines. Thus, feel free to distribute the enclosed information to studentsand professors engaged in research related to physical chemistry, such as materials science, biochemistry, physics, and engineering.

The building to host the Manhattan Poster Project, the Egan Science and Engineering Research Center, affords a unique opportunity to broaden the scope of the Poster Project to include such interdisciplinary research and interests. The new building is host to a variety of prominent scientific and engineering ventures, as well as corporate research institutes. Certain labs have generously set aside some time during the day for an open house, tours, and demonstrations. Included during the day is a light lunch, snacks in the afternnon, and a talk from a prominent researcher.

There are two convenient ways to register. You may visit the MPP97 web page, which may still be under construction when you receive this letter (http://www.chem.neu.edu/mpp97) and fill out the electronic registration, or you may fill out the mailable registration form that is being sent to your department. The web page should be fully completed by August 25. The web page will have more extensive information regarding the day's events, accomodations, and various links to some of Boston's numerous places of interest. Free accomodations are limited by the number of Northeastern's graduate students. We encourage early registration as the poster project is limited to 100 posters. We look forward to your participation in this exciting event! Please feel free to contact any of the persons listed for questions. Carl Eisenbiegler , Paul Anderson and Betsy Engel at (617)373 5909 paanders@lynx.neu.edu, eengel@lynx.neu.edu

Academic Year 1996-1997 Awards

Outstanding Teaching by Chemistry Graduate Students

Keith Broekhuizen: 5.310, Spring 1997

Timothy Crimmins: 5.33, Fall 1996

Evan Freiberg: 5.311, Fall 1996

Marcus Hansen: 5.11, Fall 1996

Judith Klein: 5.07, Fall 1996

Dan Mindiola: 5.03, Spring 1997

Joseph Sadighi: 5.12, Fall 1996

Kevin Shea: 5.13, Spring 1997

Jennifer Tweddell: 5.32, Spring 1997

Help Get Organized!

Call Ed Udas at 253-4505 or stop by room 6-026 if students, faculty or staff need help in organizing their MIT space.

Glass Blowing Services Available

Bob DiGiacomo will be coming in on Wednesdays or Thursdays after Labor Day to pick up any glass blowing work that you may have available. Please bring any work to room 6-031 or call Ed Udas or John Annese at 3-4505. Bob will do the work on a first-come, first-served basis.

Positions

BP Chemicals, Cleveland Ohio,: Offers many jobs and postdoctoral positions. Contact Ms. Lynn Moravckik at BP Chemicals, 4440 Warrensville Center Road, Cleveland, Ohio 44128. phone is (26) 586-5619 for information.
Michigan State University, East Lansing MI: Has need for analytical-physical laboratory coordinator. The specialist will have primary duties for coordination of the laboratory course on analytical and physical chemistry as well as daily management and supervision of the lab facilities. Duties include scheduling and coordination of the laboratory experiements and maintaining the instrumentation, computers, accessories and supplies and training, supervising and evaluating the teaching assistants. Must have Ph.D. in analytical or physical chemistry with experience in a wide area of instrumentation. Send materials to: Chairperson, Dept. of Chemistry, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824.

Faculty Positions

Please note, unless otherwise specified, most faculty positions require a resume, short description of research plans and arranging for three letters of recommendation to be sent directly to the specific university or college.

The University of Florida, Gainsville, Florida: The Department invites applications for a tenure-track position in Organic Chemistry at the Assistant Professor level beginning August of 1998. Strong commitment to teaching at both levels is expected. Please send materials to: Professor Lisa McElwee-White, Chair, Organic Search Committee Dept. of Chemistry, Box 117200, University of Florida, Gainsville, Florida 32611-7200 before October 15th.
Colorado State University, Ford Collins, CO: Seeking faculty member with research interests in mechanistic organic chemistry broadly defined. The appointment level is open, but preference will be given to those at the Assistant Professor level. Send materials to: Professor Marc M. Greenberg, Dept. of Chemistry, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523-1872. A description can be found on the web at http://www.chm.colostate.edu/jobs.html.
Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI: Two tenure-track positions in inorganic chemistry are open and the broadest possible view of inorganic chemistry will be taken by the Department. Please send materials to: Professor Gerald T. Babock, Chair, Department of Chemistry, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824-1322.
Haverford College, Haverford, PA: Seeks candidates for positions in organic or biochemistry beginning September 1998. They are especially interested in candidates who are able to teach introductory organic chemistry and the area of research is open and can range from organometallic to biochemical. Contact: Frances Rose Blase, Haverford College, 370 Lancaster Avewnue, Haverford, PA 19041-1392.
Virginia Tech, Dept. of Chemistry in Blacksburg, VA: Seeks applicants for a position in synthetic organic polymer chemistry beginning in August of 1998. Qualified candidates will have a Ph.D. in chemistry, materials science or polymer science and also possess experience in the synthesis and molecular characterization of organic macromolecules. Contact by October 1, Prof. Harry W. Gibson, Chair, Search Committee, Dept. of Chemistry, Virginia Tech., Blacksburg, VA 24061-0212.
University of California at Davis: will have three positions open i nthe fall of 1998. and they include: a synthetic chemist, an NMR spectroscopist and an analytical chemist. All positions are at the assistant professor level. Please sent all materials to: Faculty recruitment committee, Room 108, Dept. of Chemistry, University of California at Davis, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616-5295.

Postdoctoral Fellowships

The California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA: Opportunities exist for postdoctoral appointments in the areas of biochemistry, chemical physics, organic chemistyr, inorganic chemistry, theoretical chemistry, electrochemistry, and strucutural chemistry. Postdoctoral appointments are made with individual professors, you should write directly to the faculty member whose research is of interest to you. Direct inquiries to Chemical Laboratories, Mail Code: 164-30 California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125.
Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas: Michael B. Hall Professor of Chemistry writes to ask your assistance in finding recent PhD's who are interested in postdoctoral positions. The positions involve theoretical studies on transition metal structure and reactivity, especially catalysis in both organometallics and enzymes. I have one opening in January 1998and another in summer 1998. Please circulate this notice to anyone who might be interested or who might know of someone who is interested.Applicants should send a vita and arrange for two letters of reference. Michael B. Hall Professor of Chemistry Department of Chemistry 409-845-1843 (voice) Texas A&M University 409-845-4719 (fax) Spence and Ross Streets hall@chemvx.tamu.edu College Station, TX 77843-3255.
Ciba Speciality Chemicals Corp, Tarrytown, NY: Seeks a postdoctoral person with the possibility of full time. The area of research involves the use and development of asymmetric catalysts for the synthesis of chiral intermediates for the life sciences industry. Seeking candidates with experience using organometallic reagents (transition-metal-catalzyed reactions, in particular) for organic synthesis. Contact Stephen D. Pastor, Ph.D. Research Manager, at 914-785-4276 or fax 914, 785-3681 or e-mail steve.pastor@ustc.mhs.ciba.com

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