Chemformation

The Weekly Newsletter of the MIT Chemistry Department

Volume 14, Number 10

Friday, March 13, 1998

Next issue: Friday, March 20th. Chemformation is published by the Office of the Department Chairman. The deadline for the next issue is Tuesday, March 17th. 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

Monday, March 16, 1998 12:00 Noon in Room 68-181 Macromolecular Structure/Function Seminar Series	Steve Raso Dept of Biology, MIT "A Structural Analysis of Bacterial Luciferase"
Tuesday, March 17, 1998 4:00 p.m. in Room 6-120 Refreshments @ 3:30 p.m. in 18-490 Seminar in Organic Chemistry	Professor Shinji Murai Osaka University "The Ru-Catalyzed C-H/Olefin Coupling for Synthesis"
Tuesday, March 17, 1998 4:00 p.m. in Room 2-105 Refreshments @ 3:30 p.m. in 6-233 Seminar in Physical Chemistry	Professor Victor Romero-Rochin National University of Mexico Visiting Professor, MIT "Stochastic Ratchest with Colored Thermal Noise"
Wednesday, March 18, 1998 4:00 p.m. in Room 6-120 Refreshments @ 3:30 p.m, in Room 6-321 Seminar in Inorganic Chemistry	Professor Gregory Hillhouse University of Chicago "Atom and Group Transfer Reactions to Nickel-Carbon Bonds" Cancelled
Thursday, March 19, 1998 5:00 MB23 at Harvard Harvard-MIT Joint Physical Chemistry Seminar Series Refreshments @ 4:30 in MB23	Professor John Polyanyi University of Toronto "Torturing Molecules for Pleasure and Profit: The Photochemistry of Adsorbates and Complexes"
Friday, March 20, 1998 4:00 p.m. in Room 6-120 Reception @ 3:30 p.m. outside of 6-120	Dr. Christian Greisenger Frankfurt University "NMR-Spectroscopy for the Determination of Structure and Dynamics of Biomolecules"

Visit the new Chemistry Seminar Page!

The following URL will show you a semester's worth of seminars at a glance!

http://web.mit.edu/chemistry/www/master_calendar.html

A SYMPOSIUM ON

RECENT ADVANCES IN

ORGANIC SYNTHESIS METHODOLOGY

Thursday, March 19, 1998

2:00 P. M. Bartos Theater (E15-070)

Gregory C. Fu Massachusetts Institute of Technology	"Asymmetric Catalysis with Planar-Chiral Heterocycles"
Eric N. Jacobsen Harvard University	"Synthetic and Mechanistic Directions in Asymmetric Catalysis"
* * * * Refreshments * * * *
Peter A. Beak University of Illinois	"Asymmetric Synthesis by Enantioselective Lithiation-Substitution Sequences"

National Science Foundation Hosting Inorgaometallic Workshop

The organizing committee for the 1998 NSF Sponsored Inorganometallic Workshop invites applications from interested individuals for attendance. The workshop will cover all areas of Inorganic Chemistry including organometallic, bioinorganic, main group, catalysis, and materials chemistry. The workshop will be limited to ~ 28 participants (academic, industrial, and government labs) and will focus on the newest non-published results from the participant's research programs. Talks will be short with extensive discussion time. Academic participants are limited to tenure-track faculty members. One page applications should include your name, rank, business address, phone # fax #, e-mail, and an abstract of your research you wish to discuss at the workshop. Applications are due by April 10 to: Professor George G. Stanley, Dept. of Chemistry, Lousiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA 70803-1804, phone:504-388-3471, fax: 504-388-3458, email:mailto:george.stanley@chem.lsu.edu

Bayer AG Offering Postdoc Workshop

The pharmaceutical division of Bayer AG, Germany would like to invite German/European scientists in the US, who are currently doing postdoctoral research in synthetic organic chemistry, to participate in a workshop from May 29-31 in West Haven, CT. Over the next two years, Bayer AG will offer several challenging positions in its Medicinal Chemistry Departments in Wuppertal and intends to recruit organic chemists with a particularly profound synthetic background. Interested individuals with an excellent background in synthetic chemistry should send their resumes to one of the following addresses: In Germany: Dr. Stephen Schneider, Head of Medicinal Chemistry III, Bayer AG, D-42096 Wuppertal, Phone: 49-202-368230 in the United States: Dr. Bernd Riedl, Staff Scientist, Bayer Corporation, 400 Morgan Lane, West Haven, CT, 06510, Phone (203) 8125202 and fax is: (203) 8122650.

Glass Blowing Services

Bob DiGiacomo will be coming in on Wednesdays or Thursdays 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.

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.

Postdoctoral Fellowships

• Postdoctoral position in the University of Helsinki: A postdoctoral position is available in the Laboratory of Physical Chemistry for one year. The monthly grant is about 2000 ECU (approx. 2175 USD) tax-free. The successful candidate who must be below 35 years old and who must of EU nationality (but not from Finland) is expected to perform theoretical and computational research in the field of overtone spectroscopy: local modes, Fermi resonances and potential energy surfaces. For recent publications from the Helsinki group see J. Chem. Phys. 101, 8380 (1994); 102, 3911 (1995); 102, 3945 (1995); 102, 5200 (1995); 103, 6861 (1995); 103, 6586 (1995); 104, 488 (1996); 106, 831 (1997); 106, 7931 (1997); 107, 1680 (1997). The Helsinki molecular spectroscopy group does both theoretical and experiment work and it consists of about 10 people. More information can be obtained from Prof. Lauri Halonen, tel. +358-9-19140280, fax +358-9-19140279, email lauri.halonen@csc.fi, http://fkmarilyn.pc.helsinki.fi/. Please send the applications to the address: Prof. Lauri Halonen, Laboratory of Physical Chemistry, P. O. Box 55 (A. I. Virtasen aukio 1), FIN-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland. The closing date is 20th March 1998.
• Postdoctoral Vacancy in Theoretical/Computational Chemistry at University College London. Improved understanding of interactions in molecular solids, complexes and proteins through anisotropic atomic charge distributions. Zeneca Strategic Research Fund are funding a three year postdoctoral research position for fundamental research into intermolecular interactions. The research will lead to the quantification of model anisotropic atom-atom model potentials using ab intio molecular charge distributions, and their use in studying molecular recognition and crystal structure prediction. The project requires a recently (or nearly) qualified PhD in theoretical/computational chemistry with experience in molecular modelling or ab initio calculations. For further information, please contact Dr Sally Price (s.l.price@ucl.ac.uk, or Centre for Theoretical and Computational Chemistry, University College London, 20 Gordon Street, London WC1H 0AJ, 0171-504-4622), preferably before March 18th. Dr S L Price (Dr S Price will be confused with Dr S D Price at same address) Centre of Theoretical and Computational Chemistry Department of Chemistry University College London Phone: 0171 504 4622 20 Gordon Street Fax: 0171 380 7463 London WC1H 0AJ
• Postdoctoral Position Available: Theoretical/Computational Dynamics Studies of Many-Atom Systems. Experience in molecular modeling, classical dynamics, and Monte Carlo is desired. The research may involve formulating PESs, theoretical studies of unimolecular reactions of large molecules, predictions of crystal structures, and simulations of processes in molecular crystals. The appointment will be for one year, but renewable depending on funds and by mutual agreement. Interested candidates should contact (before May 1, 1998): Professor Donald L. Thompson, Department of Chemistry, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078. Phone: (405) 744-5174. FAX: (405) 744-6007. Email: dlt@osuunx.ucc.okstate.edu.
• Postdoctoral Position in Theory of Atomic and Molecular Manipulation Department of Applied Physics, Chalmers/Gteborg University, Gteborg, Sweden. A postdoctoral position within the TMR network on "Atomic/Molecular Manipulation" is open in the theory group of Materials and Surface Physics. The successful applicant will work on the theoretical description and modeling of manipulation of individual atoms and molecules with the scanning tunneling microscope under supervision of S. Gao and M. Persson and in collaboration with the theory and experimental groups of the network. Candidates should have a Ph. D and a strong background in the theoretical and computational methods of condensed matter physics such as electronic structure methods based on density functional theory and many-body techniques. The post is up to three years and starting date will be as soon as possible. Further details about the position and other postdoc openings in the group can be obtained from Mats Persson. (See, e.g. http://fy.chalmers.se/ap/msp/ and http://fy.chalmers.se/ap/TMR/ for some information about our group and the network, respectively). Please note that this position is funded by the TMR program of the EU so only candidates from (non Swedish) European countries and associated members, that is, Iceland, Israel, Lichtenstein and Norway, can apply.Applicants should send a CV, a list of publications and names of a few reference persons with phone numbers to: Prof. Mats Persson, Department of Applied Physics, Chalmers/Gteborg University, S-412 96 Gteborg, SWEDEN e-mail: tfymp@fy.chalmers.sephone: +46-31-7723666

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