CENTC Participates in AAAS Family Science Days

CENTC faculty, staff and students are spreading the news of the importance of catalysis as part of the National Science Foundation exhibit at Family Science Days during the Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Family Science Days takes place on Saturday and Sunday, 18-19 February at the Vancouver Convention Centre, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.

This community science showcase—featuring hands-on demonstrations and other family and kid-friendly activities—shines a spotlight on a broad range of educators working to promote an interest in science among the general public. The AAAS Annual Meeting is one of the most widely recognized global science events, with broad global media coverage. The theme of the 2012 meeting is “Flattening the World: Building a Global Knowledge Society”. Visit the AAAS meeting website to learn more.

Rutgers graduate student David Laviska explains how to use catalysis
to make "Elephant's Toothpaste".

Alan Goldman Selected for Inaugural ACS Catalysis Lectureship

Prof. Alan Goldman.
Photograph by Leo Goldman.

CENTC investigator Alan Goldman has been selected as the inaugural winner of the ACS Catalysis Lectureship for the Advancement of Catalytic Science. This new annual lectureship honors contributions of groundbreaking research that strengthens connections between catalysis subdisciplines and has a profound impact on catalysis as a whole. The award is co-sponsored by the American Chemical Society journal, ACS Catalysis, and the Division of Catalysis Science and Technology of ACS.

The inaugural ACS Catalysis Lectureship for the Advancement of Catalytic Science will be presented at the Fall 2012 ACS National Meeting in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Division of Catalysis Science and Technology will organize a symposium at this meeting to honor Alan.

The Catalysis Lectureship will be awarded to Prof. Goldman in recognition of his work on the activation of hydrocarbons and other small molecules, and contributions to mechanistic understanding of oxidative addition and reductive elimination processes at late metal centers. In particular, Alan’s recent research on catalytic dehydrogenation and aromatization using Ir pincer catalysts has provided both novel catalytic methodologies for C-H activation as well as new insights into the elementary steps involved in such processes.

Alan Goldman is Professor of Chemistry at Rutgers University. Visit his group's website to learn more about their research.

Karen Goldberg Elected AAAS Fellow

Prof. Karen Goldberg

CENTC Director Karen Goldberg has been elected as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). The 2012 Fellows will be recognized for their contributions to science and technology at the Fellows Forum to be held on Feb 18, 2012 during the AAAS Annual Meeting in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Karen Goldberg is Nicole A. Board endowed professor of Chemistry at the University of Washington. Her AAAS citation is for distinguished contributions to the field of organometallic chemistry, particularly for comprehensive studies of bond-making and bond-breaking reactions. Prof. Goldberg's election brings to 10 the number of AAAS Fellows in CENTC.

Read the full list of new AAAS Fellows here.

CENTC Undergraduate Summer Research Program Accepting Applications

Get practical experience in Chemical Sciences this summer. CENTC invites college students with an interest in chemistry to apply for a unique summer research program as part of our NSF-funded, collaborative distributed center.

The online application is now available for the CENTC Undergraduate Summer Research Program. Undergraduate fellowships are available to conduct research at a choice of CENTC’s 14 locations during the summer of 2012. The program is 10 weeks long, running from June 11, 2012 through August 17, 2012. Fellows will receive a stipend and compensation for travel and housing. For more information and to complete an application, visit:
http://depts.washington.edu/centc/education_ur.htm

CENTC Sponsors Events at SACNAS National Conference

In recognition of the International Year of Chemistry, CENTC sponsored two events at the 2011 National Conference of the Society for the Advancement of Chicano and Native American Scientists (SACNAS) in San Jose California, October 27-30, 2011. The symposium, “An Energy Future with Cleaner, Sustainable Fuels,” highlighted the role of chemistry research in the development of alternative energy sources and featured speakers Daniel Mindiola (Indiana University), Judith Gomez (Colorado School of Mines) and Alan Goldman (Rutgers University). Luis Martinez (Rollins College) chaired the session and also moderated a panel discussion “Research Careers in Academia and Beyond” with five early career chemists from industry, national laboratories and clinical research.

SACNAS is a society of scientists dedicated to advancing Hispanics/Chicanos and Native Americans in science. The 2011 National Conference attracted over 4,000 attendees. Seattle will be the site for the 2012 SACNAS National Conference. To learn more about SACNAS visit http://sacnas.org.

"Chemists - Catalysts for Change" opening at Pacific Science Center

CENTC is pleased to announce the public opening of our new exhibit at Seattle’s Pacific Science Center on Sunday, October 23, 2011. The exhibit celebrates the International Year of Chemistry by highlighting current CENTC research and the importance of developing new catalytic processes to make the chemicals society depends on. “Chemists – Catalysts for Change” will occupy the science center’s newest exhibit space, the Portal to Current Research, from October 23, 2011 to February 11, 2012.

The Pacific Science Center opened during the 1962 Seattle World’s Fair, becoming the first U.S. museum founded as a science and technology center. The Science Center welcomes nearly one million children and adult visitors each year. To learn more about the Science Center visit http://www.pacsci.org/.

CENTC Research Highlighted on Cover of Angewandte Chemie International Edition

A paper by CENTC investigator Melanie Sanford and coworkers is featured on the back cover of this week’s issue of Angewandte Chemie International Edition. The paper, “Remarkably High Reactivity of Pd(OAc)2/Pyridine Catalysts: Nondirected C-H Oxygenation of Arenes”, describes a new catalyst developed by the CENTC electrophilic oxidation team that shows excellent reactivity in the C-H oxygenation of simple aromatic substances. The Pd/pyridine ratio is critical to both reactivity and site selectivity.

The cover art was designed by Dr. Marion Emmert, now Assistant Professor of Chemistry at Worcester Polytechnic Institute.  Read the paper on the journal website.