Jaqueline Kiplinger was recognized this week with the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry 2017 Distinguished Women in Chemistry or Chemical Engineering award. Courtesy/LANL

LANL News:

Los Alamos chemist is only US scientist thus honored

Los Alamos National Laboratory Fellow Jaqueline Kiplinger was recognized this week with the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) 2017 Distinguished Women in Chemistry or Chemical Engineering award. Kiplinger was one of 12 women recognized this year internationally and the only recipient of this honor from the United States.

The IUPAC Award recognizes Kiplingers outstanding scientific achievements. Sheis a pioneer in uranium and thorium chemistry, and her research has significantly expanded thebroad understanding of actinide and lanthanide chemical bonding and reactivity, said Alan Bishop, Principal Associate Director for Science, Technology and Engineering at Los Alamos. Her workprovides scientific underpinning that supports the Laboratorys national security mission as well as advancing the fundamental understanding of actinide chemistry.

The IUPAC awards program, initiated as part of the 2011 International Year of Chemistry celebrations, was created to acknowledge and promote the work of women chemists/chemical engineers worldwide. These 12 awardees have been selected based on excellence in basic or applied research, distinguished accomplishments in teaching or education, or demonstrated leadership or managerial excellence in the chemical sciences. The focus is particularly on nominees with a history of leadership and/or community service during their careers.

Kiplinger was recognized by IUPAC for her extensive contributions in three areas of inorganic chemistry. Her work has focused on the organometallic chemistry of pentavalent uranium, the realization of a terminal nitride complex of uranium, and non-aqueous uranium and thorium precursors for use in subsequent inorganic and organometallic synthetic efforts.

To be nominated and selected for the IUPAC Distinguished Woman in Chemistry Award by my colleagues is such an extraordinary honor, Kiplinger said. I have found much joy in actinide chemistry research, both in advancing fundamental knowledge for the nation, and in training many next generation of scientists. Collaborations have been critical to my success, and I have been privileged to work with many talented and motivated staff, postdocs and students who have helped me advance this experimentally challenging area of chemistry. None of these discoveries would have been made without them, she said.

Kiplinger acknowledged her work with the DOE Basic Energy Sciences, Heavy Element Program, the Los Alamos G.T. Seaborg Institute for Transactinium Science, and Los Alamos Laboratory Directed Research and Development Program that provided the continuity, exposure, and interactions with first-class researchers, which she said made possible her contributions to the field of actinide chemistry.

In addition to her research contributions, Kiplinger has for years dedicated time to the American Chemical Society (ACS), serving on journal editorial boards and holding different positions in the ACSs division of Inorganic Chemistry.

Dr. Kiplinger has inarguably made a huge impact on the inorganic chemistry community beginning with her graduate work under Tom Richmond at Utah for which they received the ACS Nobel Laureate Signature Award, and continuing unabated as she moved into the challenging area of early actinide organometallic chemistry at Los Alamos, said coworker and former Los Alamos Chemistry Division Leader David Morris. She has made transformative research contributions that have already influenced synthetic actinide chemistry on an international scale.

Kiplinger is an internationally recognized leader in f-element chemistry. Kiplinger came to Los Alamos as the first Frederick Reines Postdoctoral Fellow in 1999 and became a Technical Staff Member within Chemistry Division in July 2002. She is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the Royal Society of Chemistry, and the American Institute of Chemists.

The breadth and depth of her accomplishments are reflected by her peer-reviewed publications, granted patents, invitations to contribute to prestigious monographs and review articles, and plenary lectures delivered at international conferences in the field. Her scientific achievements have been recognized by a Los Alamos Fellowship, a Fellows Prize for Research, two R&D 100 Awards, three mentoring awards and several Los Alamos/NNSA Best-in-Class Pollution Prevention Awards. In 2015 Kiplinger was selected as the first woman to receive the F. Albert Cotton Award in Synthetic Inorganic Chemistry from the American Chemical Society.She is also the first scientist at Los Alamos to have been honored with two national-level ACS awards, the first being the 1998 Nobel Laureate Signature Award in Chemistry.

About Los Alamos National Laboratory (www.lanl.gov)

Los Alamos National Laboratory, a multidisciplinary research institution engaged in strategic science on behalf of national security, is operated by Los Alamos National Security, LLC, a team composed of Bechtel National, the University of California, BWX Technologies, Inc. and URS Corporation for the Department of Energys National Nuclear Security Administration.

Los Alamos enhances national security by ensuring the safety and reliability of the U.S. nuclear stockpile, developing technologies to reduce threats from weapons of mass destruction, and solving problems related to energy, environment, infrastructure, health and global security concerns.

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LANL's Jaqueline L. Kiplinger Receives IUPAC 2017 Distinguished Women In Chemistry Award - Los Alamos Daily Post

Redmond High goalkeeper Pedro Menchaca spins around after punching a shot away during the Mustangs 3-0 boys soccer victory over Woodinville High on Tuesday night at Pop Keeney Stadium in Bothell. Andy Nystrom, Redmond Reporter

Things are starting to gel for the Redmond High boys soccer team and coach Lacy Wilkinson especially liked what his Mustangs brought to the pitch on Tuesday night.

The now-3A KingCo Redmond squad strung together copious passes, charged after every ball and tallied three first-half goals in its 3-0 victory over a strong 4A KingCo Woodinville team at Pop Keeney Stadium in Bothell.

Sophomore midfielder Jacen Stein scored the first two goals and junior midfielder Mike Snook supplied the last one. Senior forward Jake Ferry and junior midfielder Victor Araujo had assists and tough senior goalkeepers Pedro Menchaca and Cole Benton kept Woodinvilles scoresheet clean.

We want to play a more possession-style of soccer, which requires players to use their heads as much as their feet. Last night, I could see them starting to get some of the things weve been working on for the last couple of weeks, said second-year coach Wilkinson, whos confident that with hard work, his players can make better decisions, play faster and execute more consistently as each game unfolds.

Redmond sports five returning varsity players in Ferry and fellow seniors Sergio Jimenez-Ramirez (forward) and Alex Kim (midfielder) along with junior midfielders Takanabu Suzuki and Kieran Wharton. Other key players are junior midifielders Kane Stark, Snook and Araujo and sophomore defender Reece Wiyrick.

Ferry and Jimenez-Ramirez are strong up front and the crew of midfielders are solid playmakers, a key component that their teammates soak up to step up their own games.

Its a team effort the whole way, Wilkinson said, and the players are driven to succeed.

The cool thing about the team this year is there are some outstanding players, but theres no showboaters. They work for each other and they play for each other, the coach said.

Fourth-year varsity player Jimenez-Ramirez said it should be an interesting season playing on the 3A KingCo scene.

This is our first time in 3A, so Im wondering how good the other teams are. Ive never seen them play, he said.

Two of the key attributes that Redmond has on its side, he added, is that we all get along together and we have a lot of good chemistry.

Ferry, a third-year varsity Stang and a team captain, said that the players are excited to work hard and produce a successful season.

Theres definitely a lot of potential with us, just a lot of great talent overall, he said.

As a captain, Ferry aims to try and keep that chemistry intact and cement that work ethic into the players all season long.

Read more:
Redmond's hat trick: ball possession, drive and chemistry - Redmond Reporter

for USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin 11:05 a.m. CT March 3, 2017

Chancellor Bernie Patterson, with guidance from Miron Construction Co. crane operator Jerry Laird lifts the final beam to the top of the new Chemistry Biology Building at UW-Stevens Point. Faculty, staff, students, community members and legislators signed the bean and attended a topping out ceremony Feb. 27. It marked the four-story, 176,500 square-foot building reaching its tallest point.(Photo: Courtesy of UW-Stevens Point)

STEVENS POINT - Construction of the four-story Chemistry Biology Building at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point has reached its tallest point.

A topping-out ceremony marks completion of the highest point in a building project. The final beam was signed by Chancellor Bernie Patterson, legislators and others Feb. 27, then placed on top of the building. More than 100 students, faculty and staff signed the UW-Stevens Point-branded beam.

The final beam was lifted to the top of the new Chemistry Biology Building at UW-Stevens Point Feb. 27. Faculty, staff, students, community members and legislators joined a topping out ceremony marking the four-story building reaching its tallest point.(Photo: Courtesy of UW-Stevens Point)

The 176,500 square-foot building now dominates the campus skyline on what used to be parking lot X east of the current Science Building.

This is one symbol of all the great things going on at this campus, Patterson said.

Miron Construction Co., Inc., of Neenah is the general contractor and has up to 150 workers and subcontractors onsite each week. They are installing roofing, interior walls, piping, mechanical, electrical, plumbing and fire protection work. The exterior concrete block is completed, and brick veneer will follow, said Gerald David, Miron project superintendent.

The projects economic impact is estimated at $144 million, Patterson noted. Thats based on a formula cited by C3 Statistical Solutions to calculate construction industry impact. The project generates work for hundreds of people in construction trades, boosting jobs in other sectors that service them throughout central Wisconsin. From hotels and restaurants to hardware and office supply stores, from rental equipment to crane repair, the uptick in local business is noticeable because of the Chemistry Biology Building.

The $75.18 million project is on schedule. Work began in April 2016, and is targeted for completion in late spring 2018 for class in fall 2018.

This is the first major, free-standing academic facility built on campus since 1971. It is the largest single construction project in UW-Stevens Points 123-history, said Carl Rasmussen, facilities planning director at UW-Stevens Point. Other campus buildings have more total square footage, but were built with subsequent additions.

Given the level of complexity and size of our project, were pleased to have Miron on the job, Rasmussen said.

The Chemistry Biology Building will contain three 48-seat classrooms, two 55-seat classrooms, two 24-seat classrooms, two 96-seat lecture halls plus research and teaching labs for biology and chemistry on each floor. Flexible room configurations combined with modern technology will support hands-on learning and student research, hallmarks of a UW-Stevens Point education.

Design work is being done by Potter Lawson, Inc., Madison; and HOK, St. Louis, Mo., to meet sustainable LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) standards.

Those interested can watch progress on a live video stream from the UW-Stevens Point website. Go to http://www.uwsp.edu/cols and select Chemistry Biology Building.

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UWSP Chemistry Biology building 'tops out' - Stevens Point Journal

NEW ORLEANS Anthony Davis and DeMarcus Cousins have provided plenty of fireworks but no winning chemistry for the New Orleans Pelicans in their first three games together since a blockbuster trade moved Cousins from Sacramento.

The NBAs newest version of the Twin Towers gets a fourth chance for a breakthrough win on Friday night at the Smoothie King Center, but it will be a very tall order because the 24-37 Pelicans will host the 46-13 San Antonio Spurs, the team with the second-best record in the NBA, in a nationally televised game.

The Pelicans have lost two of three to the Spurs this season, but in their most recent contest on Jan. 27, New Orleans spanked San Antonio 119-103. The Spurs had entered the game having won five straight, but San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich waved the white flag and emptied his bench with 3:34 left.

We just ran out of gas, Popovich said.

Jrue Holiday led the Pelicans with 23 points and had 11 assists, and Davis scored 16 points and grabbed 22 rebounds, tying his career high on the boards.

The Pelicans would love nothing more than to have Holiday repeat that performance. Holiday broke out of a mini-slump on Wednesday night with 22 points in a 109-86 victory over the Detroit Pistons.

Im still excited (about the Cousins trade), but I dont think were as good as weve shown, Holiday said Thursday after practice. Weve added DeMarcus and seen bits and pieces of him and AD getting 30 and nobody else helping them out. When we put a whole game together, itll be a lot more fun.

In his three games as a Pelicans, Cousins has averaged 23.3 points and 12.7 rebounds, but hes also picked up 14 fouls, some of them early in games to limit his effectiveness. Cousins sat out the victory over Detroit on Wednesday while serving a one-game suspension for having picked up his 18th technical foul of the season in the previous game.

On Thursday, the Pelicans scrimmaged a little more than we do on regular practice days to find out what will work best in essentially a double-post offense, said coach Alvin Gentry.

Were just trying to get (Cousins) and everybody else into a flow where were beginning to understand where guys want the ball or where guys are going to be in certain situations, Gentry said. Thats the biggest thing putting them out there and letting them play.

Davis has averaged 31.4 points on 50 percent shooting and 10.2 rebounds over his last five games, and he had 33 points in the victory over Detroit. Holiday said he hopes to get both big men going and have a good game himself.

Once the offense starts to click, Holiday believes Davis will really benefit from having more space to operate.

I think hell get a lot more shots because you really cant double-team him, Holiday said. If you do it with a guard, its a mismatch. Hes playing against fours now, and fours cant handle him in the perimeter or in the post.

The Spurs are coming off a challenging 100-99 home victory against the Indiana Pacers in a game which had its share of controversy down the stretch. Kawhi Leonard hit the game-winning, fallaway jumper over Paul George with 2.4 seconds left, but the NBA admitted Thursday that the shot should not have counted because officials missed a traveling call against Leonard before the shot.

Leonard led the Spurs with 31 points on 11-of-22 shooting.

He does that every night, Popovich said.

Leonard has averaged 18.7 points and 4.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.3 steals in three games against New Orleans, while forward LaMarcus Aldridge has averaged 16.0 points and 8.7 rebounds.

Rookie point guard Dejounte Murray started in place of Tony Parker (quad contusion) against the Pacers and played well down the stretch, contributing four assists and three points in the fourth quarter.

He didnt start that well, but he hung in there and made some big plays, San Antonio guard Manu Ginobili said

The Spurs have won five of the last six games against New Orleans.

Read more:
Cousins, Davis still seeking winning chemistry with Pelicans (Mar 03, 2017) - FOXSports.com

March 3, 2017 by Ingrid Sderbergh

Chemists and molecular biologists have made an unexpected discovery in infection biology. The researchers can now show that two proteins that bind to one another slow down a chemical reaction central to the course of the disease in the bacteria Yersinia pseudotuberculosis. The results have been published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

"The discovery paves way for new insights in the regulation of bacterial virulence. The results have given us a new opportunity to study the pathogenic ability in bacteria," says Magnus Wolf-Watz, researcher at the Department of Chemistry at Ume University, who led the study together with Hans Wolf-Watz, professor at the Department of Molecular Biology.

Yersinia pseudotuberculosis and many similar bacteria infect humans by injecting toxins, so-called effector proteins, through a needle-like organelle called injectisome. Previous research has already shown that the protein YscU plays an important part in the regulation of effector protein transportation. YscU is unique in its ability to cleave itself in two parts, as a consequence, one of these parts is then transported out through the injectisome.

By combining biological experiments with studies on atomic level, the research team discovered that another protein, YscP, binds to YscU and regulates its self-cleaving abilities. When the proteins bound to one another, the speed of the self-cleaving was greatly reduced.

"The chemical process behind the self-cleaving was cooled down by the interaction and was hence slowed down. The result is a good example of how biology and chemistry nearly always go hand in hand and is a huge step forward. This gives us new opportunities to study the regulation of the course of diseases," says Hans Wolf-Watz.

The studies on atomic level were conducted using magnetic resonance spectroscopy at the Department of Chemistry at the NMR for Life platform, which is a national infrastructure for NMR in Sweden.

"The initial investment to fund an NMR instrument that the Kempe Foundations facilitated paved way for further funding from both the Wallenberg Foundations and SciLifeLab. Also, the protein expertise platform in our labs was of crucial importance for undertaking the research project," says Magnus Wolf-Watz.

Explore further: Key pathological mechanism found in plague bacterium

More information: Oanh Ho et al. Characterization of the Ruler Protein Interaction Interface on the Substrate Specificity Switch Protein in theType III Secretion System, Journal of Biological Chemistry (2017). DOI: 10.1074/jbc.M116.770255

(Phys.org)A more than 50-year-old question has now been answered. Chemists and microbiologists at the Biological Chemistry Center at Ume University in Sweden are now able to describe in detail the role of calcium in ...

A research group at Ume University in Sweden has managed to capture and describe a protein structure that, until now, has been impossible to study. The discovery lays the base for developing designed enzymes as catalysts ...

Researchers at Ume University are first to discover that bacteria can multiply disease-inducing genes which are needed to rapidly cause infection. The results were published in Science on 30 June 2016.

Thanks to their unique properties, ionic liquids are all in the rage as solvents as, for instance, "green" sustainable chemical processes. Recently, two research teams at Ume University discovered how enzymes can perform ...

Adhesins are surface structures of bacteria that facilitate their attachment to host cells or non-living materials. Most adhesins do not just bind to any surface; rather, they recognize specific molecules or receptors on ...

(PhysOrg.com) -- The same substance that hampers the infection capability of bacteria can hasten the fiber formation of the protein that is involved in the development of Parkinsons disease. The study shows how important ...

For centuries, cellulose has formed the basis of the world's most abundantly printed-on material: paper. Now, thanks to new research at MIT, it may also become an abundant material to print withpotentially providing a ...

Researchers with the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Texas A&M University are making the best use of our energy wasteturning one of our most potent pollutants and greenhouse gasses, carbon dioxide (CO2), into hydrocarbon ...

Biophysicists at JILA have measured protein folding in more detail than ever before, revealing behavior that is surprisingly more complex than previously known. The results suggest that, until now, much about protein behavior ...

One major mystery about life's origin is how phosphate became an essential building block of genetic and metabolic machinery in cells, given its poor accessibility on early Earth. In a study published on March 9 in the journal ...

(Phys.org)A team of researchers affiliated with several institutions in China has found that adding a certain type of salt to liquid pesticides greatly reduces waste due to splashing. In their paper published in the journal ...

The chemical industry can learn a lot from the common mussel. Not only are the mollusc's mother of pearl and tough threads with which it clings to the seafloor remarkable, but the way in which these materials are produced ...

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Frozen chemistry controls bacterial infections - Phys.Org

Caption + Doherty's Mykiaa Minniss rushes the ball up the court during the Doherty and Mountain Vista girls basketball game at Doherty High School on Thursday, December 15, 2016. Photo by Stacie Scott, The Gazette

Despite the fact that there are no ropes involved in basketball, holding onto one means an awful lot to the Doherty girls' basketball team.

Hold the Rope is a story, introduced last year by coach Pat McKiernan, that emphasizes team. If a teammate is hanging off the edge of a cliff, would you hold the rope? Would you hold it until your hands bled?

Doherty has utilized stellar team chemistry - created in part by Hold the Rope - to advance to the quarterfinals of the 5A state tournament. The No. 7 Spartans (24-1) face No. 2 Grandview (24-1) on Friday at the Denver Coliseum.

"We get along, we work together, and we know each other's games," said senior forward Aubriana Noti.

McKiernan thinks this edition of the Spartans - who got a first round playoff bye, and then beat No. 26 Rampart and No. 23 Fairview - is the closest-knit group he's ever had.

"The kids have really bought into this idea that we preach - we before me," he said. "There can be three, four, five, six passes to get it to the girl that's hot or to get a wide open shot. They have a lot of love for each other."

In close games, that team chemistry comes into play. Senior guard Kalani Poloa, Noti said, will look at the team and say: "This is where we hold the rope."

Doherty last advanced to the final eight in 2011-12, McKiernan's first season at the helm. One thing the 2012 team didn't have, McKiernan said, was a true post presence. This team has it in a big way courtesy of Noti, who averages over 14 points and 11 rebounds per game.

She's had 20 double-doubles in the Spartans' 25 games.

"That allows us more options on offense - we can work the ball inside, which opens up the perimeter," McKiernan said.

For Noti, it's about positioning, so she or a teammate like Poloa - who averages 14.6 points per game and reached the 1,000-point plateau this season - can score.

"Teams will double-team me," Noti said. "I expect to be able to pass it back out. I have to create space to help us score."

In February, Doherty saw several injured players return.

"It gives us more options off the bench," McKiernan said.

"It's made us into a team that's nine (players) deep, and we can give some players breaks that weren't there before."

Doherty and Grandview haven't played this season, but did face off twice in fall league.

"Both teams had all their kids. Things were still pretty raw as far as the offenses we were running, but that gave us a look at what we're up against," said McKiernan, who got his 100th win against Fairview.

The verdict? Grandview is good.

The Wolves' lone loss came against Florida's Miami Country Day, which went 29-1 and cruised to a state title.

"Without RPI, Grandview would be the No. 1 team in the state," McKiernan said. "We're going to have to play really, really well."

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Team chemistry critical to Doherty girls' playoff run - Colorado Springs Gazette

First-year Department of Chemistry student Julia Trowbridges film, The Chemist, was chosen to be on display at the 2017 Art and Science Exhibition at the Curfman Galley in the Lory Student Center.

Students as well as faculty and staff were encouraged to submit their best science-inspired art and art-inspired science to this years event. The Chemist, along with more than two dozen other pieces, will be on display until March 24.

Julia Trowbridge

Trowbridge is originally from Austin, Texas, and at a young age was interested in art and science. She discovered her passion for photography during middle school and currently shoots photography for the Collegian.

Chemistry became an interest when Trowbridge took an AP chemistry class her senior year in high school. After working with two different teachers, she was convinced that chemistry was what she wanted to study in college.

At Colorado State University, Trowbridge began her study of chemistry through solar cells and pursued her interests in photography and film making. She also participates in slam poetry and wanted to combine all of her passions in art and science, so she produced a spoken word poem with video to create her film, The Chemist.

She melded the science of different chemical reactions from thermite to glassblowing with an artistically written poem. Trowbridge said, I see film as an art, and so filming chemical reactions was easy to put together and is aesthetically pleasing. Trowbridge submitted three pieces to this years exhibition and plans to do more collaborations in the future.

Trowbridge was encouraged by Professor Nancy Levinger to enter her work into the exhibition. She was able to produce her film in 11 days, and her recent involvement in the CSU film club helped her polish the piece. She said, It was fun in terms of running around to different labs to capture chemical reactions and learning about different things along the way.

This years exhibition shows the talents of members of the CSU community, just like Trowbridge, from disciplines around campus. Everything from film, photography, printmaking, and poetry are on display for the public to view.

The rest is here:
Chemistry-inspired film on display at Art and Science Exhibition - Colorado State News

This is the second part of my gift list posts, and this one is perhaps more useful for general gift-giving! These will be chemistry-themed books (and related subjects) for a more general readership no $200 monographs on biophysical methods this time around, although if you think you can give someone one of those without getting things thrown at you, theres always Mondays post.

I will start off, naturally enough, by plugging my own The Chemistry Book. Unlike the rest of the links in this post, that one is not an Amazon affiliate link; they frown on people affiliate-linking their own books. But I did get another royalty check just last week, which is always a nice surprise, and that one featured some revenues coming in from the French, German, Spanish, Dutch, Russian, and (most recently) Chinese editions of the book. I have of course absolutely no idea how I come across in most of those; its hard enough for me to judge that in English sometimes. But the book will take even a non-technical reader through 250 separate (but often linked) moments in chemical and scientific history Ive had it described to me as a great bathroom book, and I have no problem with that at all!

In other books of this type, one of the best out there remains Theodore GraysThe Elements, an excellentgift for anyones whos interested in science or chemistry. Ive enjoyed my own copy greatly, partly because of its (very high) production values, partly because of the wealth of odd information in it (much of which I didnt know), and even more because Grays personality comes through on nearly every page. Having been through the copy-editing process myself, I salute him for getting away with it (if you think my books sounds like me as it is, you should have seen the first draft!) His follow-up book,Molecules, continues the high standard, and will teach any lay reader a good deal of chemistry without them even realizing it, and hes added a third to the series, Reactions.I havent personally seen hisearlier follow-up, the Elements Vault, since I sort of work in an elements vault, but it could also be a unique gift for a younger recipient interested in chemistry.

These have expanded into a whole set ofcompanion gifts. A few years ago, I got theElements Jigsaw Puzzle, which I did with my son and daughter during January and February. Being the sort of person I am, I didnt miss the chance to teach a bit of chemistry along the way, based on personal experiences with quite a few of the elements themselves. Gray also has a deck of element cards and a calendar, for your decorating needs. And this year he put out two books for young children, My First Elements and ABC Elements, which I feel certain I would have been unable to resist inflicting on sharing with my kids if these had been available at the time. And it looks like theres a magnet set on the way, too. (See the home-experiments section below for more from Gray).

There are, of course, a number of other popular chemistry books out there. Sticking with the elements themselves,The Disappearing Spoon is an entertaining book on their various odd properties (chemists will have said gallium! by now just fromthe title). In the same category isPeriodic Tales, whichcomes well recommended. The Periodic Table: A Visual Guide is a less idiosyncratic version of Grays sort of book above, as is another photographic guide, The Periodic Table. Update: I certainly need to mention the new Superheavy, on the transuranic elements. Another tour through the table is The Element in the Room. Readers here have also recommended Napoleons Buttons: How 17 Molecules Changed History(the more nerdy readers, like me, will have said tin! by now just from the title) and the (out of print) 1959 The Romance of Chemistry by Keith Irwin.

Its only partially concerned with chemistry, but I have to mention Randall Munroes What If?, which is very entertaining, and will also teach a good deal about science and scientific thinking to a lay reader. I was very glad to serve as one source for the question of what would happen if you stacked up hefty physical samples of each element into a big periodic table. In case youre wondering, the answer is nothing good. He now has a similar follow-up, How To, which continues the mayhem (!)

A reader pointed out in the comments to this post that John Clarks (in)famous Ignition! is back in print, courtesy of Rutgers University Press. This is quite a read for anyone who knows some chemistry, as its a first-hand look at the early days of rocket propellant research and features a great number of experiments that no one should ever contemplate doing ever again. Your eyebrow-raising muscles will get a workout.

Thomas Hager has written several books of interest on chemical history:The Alchemy of Air, on the Haber-Bosch process which simultaneously was of great use to the Third Reich and has subsequently helped to feed the world,The Demon Under the Microscope, on the discovery of sulfanilamide (another tangled tale), and a biography of Linus Pauling, Force of Nature. His latest is Ten Drugs, which should be of interest! Similarly, there is Miracle Cure by William Rosen, on the early days of antibiotic discovery. Fellow chem-blogger Wavefunction has recommendedStuff Matters, on materials science, and I reviewed its follow-up Liquid Mattersfor Nature here.And theres an inevitable subset of books on chemistry that concentrate on the poisons. Readers here have recommended books by John Emsley, Molecules of Murder and The Elements of Murder. Deborah Blums The Poisoners Handbook has also been very popular. Her follow-up, The Poison Squad, is on the alarming early days of food safety in the US.

On the other end of that scale, another inevitable category is the intersection of cooking with chemistry and the other sciences. The forthcoming Chemistry in Your Kitchen looks like it will address this pretty directly, and there are others in this space already: Culinary Reactions, as well as The Science of Good Cooking (from the reliable, and reliably nerdy and detail-oriented Cooks Illustrated people). That one has a new followup, Cooks Science, which I havent seen yet. Theres also The Food Lab, What Einstein Told His Cookand its first andsecond sequels, as well as The Science of Cooking, and of course theclassic book in this category,On Food and Cooking, by Harold McGee. His own follow-up to that one, The Curious Cook, is more of a grab-bag, but it contains a valuable bit of empirical research: the finest and most comprehensive table of proportions for sorbet-making that has ever been published, along with insights into the physics and chemistry of that whole process. I have put several of those recipes to the test.

In the same do-it-yourself category, but less edibly, there are a number of books out there on home experiments with chemistry, and these could make good gifts for the right people. I believe that theres a good audience out there of people who are interested in science, but have no particular training in it, either because theyre young enough not to have encountered much (or much that was any good), or because they missed out on it while they were in school themselves. And there are always curious kids and teenagers

A few years ago I mentionedRobert Bruce (and Barbara) Thompsons Illustrated Guide to Home Chemistry Experiments along with its sequels, the Illustrated Guide to Home Biology Experiments and the Illustrated Guide to Home Forensic Science Experiments. I have one of the Thompsons earlier books for my own home-science hobby, Astronomy Hacks its full of sensible advice, and I have no doubt that the above guides are as well. Similar books are Hands-On Chemistry Activities and its companion Hands-On Physics Activities.Slightly off kilter from these aretwo from Theodore Gray: Theo Grays Mad Science, and its sequel, Mad Science 2. Both of these are subtitled Experiments that you can do at home but probably shouldnt, and Id say thats pretty accurate. Many of these use equipment and materials that most people probably wont have sitting around, and so
me of the experiments are on the hazardous side (which, I should mention, is something thats fully noted in the book). But theyre well-illustrated from Grays own demonstration runs, so you can at least see what they look like, and learn about the concepts behind them. More practical, but less eye-openingis the series of books by Bassam Shakhashiri, whose web site is here. These are aimed at people teaching chemistry who would like clear, tested demonstrations for their students, but if you know someone whos seriously into home science experimentation, theyll find a lot here. The most recent, Chemical Demonstrations, Volume 5, concentrates on colors and light. The previous ones are also available, and cover a range of topics in each book: Volume 4, Volume 3, Volume 2, and Volume 1.

A couple of coffee-table books that land on each side of chemistry (the physics side and the biology side!) have appeared in the last few years from MIT Press: The Atom: A Visual Tour and The Cell, and both have high production values.

Finally,we get to a couple of personal-tinged books on the science, both of which Ive long recommended. First comes Oliver Sacks Uncle Tungsten, which is a memoir as well as a meditation on chemistry (and the love of chemistry). I did not enjoy Sacks more recent (posthumous) memoir, which struck me as rather flat and not adding to his legacy very much, but this one is much better. Another memoir of sorts, an episodic one, is of course the late Primo Levis The Periodic Table. Its somber at times, but also amusing, and when I read in it the phrase Chlorides are rabble, I knew I was in the presence of a good writer, a good chemist, and a good translator. (As Wavefunction noted oncewhen I mentioned this book, Levis text is not without mistakes, either, such as stating that Neil Bartlett won the Nobel for his noble gas fluoride discovery. He should have, and Id bet that most people who know about it think that he did, but. . .)

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Chemistry-Themed Books, 2019 - Science Magazine

Stephen Betts | BDN

Stephen Betts | BDN

FMC Corp. previously operated the carrageenan plant located on Rockland's waterfront. The plant is now owned by DowDuPont Chemical.

ROCKLAND, Maine FMC Corp. has agreed to pay a group of former employees $695,000 for wages they say the company failed to pay when its Rockland carrageenan plant was sold to DowDupont Chemical more than two years ago.

The settlement resolves the federal lawsuit filed by five longtime FMC employees last year and provides closure to an issue that has festered since the November 2017 sale of the plant. The terms of the settlement agreement, which was filed Friday, must still be approved by a judge.

The lawsuit claimed that FMC, a Pennsylvania-based chemical manufacturing company, violated a company policy and Maine law by failing to pay employees for accrued vacation time in 2017 when their employment with FMC was terminated.

When FMC sold the Rockland plant, its employees became DowDuPont employees.

FMC denied any wrongdoing, but settled the case because further litigation would be protracted, expensive and would divert management and employee time and attention, according to the agreement.

The lawsuit was initially filed on behalf of five former FMC employees: Thomas Ames of Owls Head, Todd Conant of Rockport, Gregory Gould of Rockland, Rodney Mason of Owls Head and Karen Migliore of Union.

It is being treated as a class-action case and about 107 former FMC employees qualify to receive a share of the $695,000 settlement.

The plant itself has been a fixture on Rocklands Tillson Avenue also known as Crockett Point since the 1930s, when Align Corp. began extracting carrageenan from red seaweed. Carrageenan is a thickening agent used in a range of products from ice cream to toothpaste.

FMC operated the plant from the 1970s until the 2017 sale, according to court documents.

The Rockland plant is again expected to change hands, as DuPont Nutrition and Bioscience the division of DowDupont that operates the plant plans to merge with International Flavors and Fragrances, which the companies announced in December of last year.

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Chemical company will pay former Rockland employees $695k for lost benefits - Bangor Daily News

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A chemistry experiment injured three students and triggered an evacuation at Somers High School Tuesday afternoon, emergency officials said.

Tolland County Mutual Aid dispatchers received a report of a flash fire at the school at about 12:30 p.m., executive director Tyler Millix said. Somers Fire Chief John Roache later said firefighters responded to smoke in one of the chemistry labs and found that a student was working on an experiment when something went wrong "and it reacted similar to a small smoke bomb."

Three students reported minor injuries either burns smoke inhalation and were all released to their parents, Roache said. The fire department also turned off all equipment in the area and ventilated the building, he said.

State troopers also responded, but had cleared by 2:30 p.m. Workers from the state Department of Energy & Environmental Protection also went to the school, located at 5 Vision Blvd., to check the air quality with their metering equipment, Roache said.

Students left school at the regular dismissal time, 2:15 p.m., according to an email administrators sent to parents.

Nearly all after-school activities were canceled and students, faculty and staff were not allowed back in the building following dismissal, the email said.

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Chemistry Experiment Injures Students, Forces Evacuation At ... - Hartford Courant

It takes a special formula to win a Super Bowl.

Balls have to bounce a certain way, difficult decisions need to be made, and sometimes it boils down to plain luck.

The Broncos discovered that their team chemistry, especially on the defensive side of the ball, was a main component in the formula that led them to their Super Bowl 50 victory in 2015.

As with any Super Bowl champion, key components of the Super Bowl team were scavenged by other teams looking for a piece of the Super Bowl pie.When linebacker Danny Trevathan was plucked by the Chicago Bears, Todd Davis was tasked with filling the voidTrevathan left in the Broncos linebacking corps.

While Davis had a fine first season as a starter, finishing with 97 tackles and a forced fumble, Brandon Marshall, who started alongside Trevathan at inside linebacker in Super Bowl 50, did admit that it was different not having Trevathan around.

Its very underrated, Marshall said of the importance of adjusting to his new teammates. When I was in there with Danny sometimes, we should have communicated when we didnt. But it was almost like I knew what he was thinking and he knew what I was thinking.

As the duo of Marshall and Davis entertheirsecond season together, both know that the chemistry is there.

I think we have it down, Marshall said of his connection with Davis. Its just a different guy; thats just what it is. Youre not going to play the same with everybody. I think what Todd and I have going on is great. We work hard, we do extra stuff. We talk ball on the sidelines. Were going to be just fine.

Just playing together, I think we have a chemistry like nobody else, Davis said following Thursdays OTA practice. We read off of each other really well. Just the last year has given us more time to grow with each other.

The Broncos linebackers can hardly be considered one of their main problems in 2016, but another year together can only make them stronger. The transition from Trevathan to Davis wasnt one that threw Marshall off of his game, but one that didnt go unnoticed either.

Im thinking that no matter who is in there, Ill be fine, Marshall said after Thursdays OTA practice. But, I think its a transition period because you have different chemistry with different people. Me and Danny [Trevathan], I knew Danny for a little bit so the type of chemistry that we had, we developed it kind of quick. Todd [Davis] is just a different player mentally than Danny, so we had to get on the same page.

The core of the Broncos defense will enter the 2017 season relatively unchanged, which will only help the bond between Marshall and Davis grow. While the bond may differ from the one that Marshall shared with Trevathan, Marshall knows that something special is brewing between the two.

I think were going to play beautifully together this year, Marshall said. Its going to be beautiful.

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Bonds have changed, but chemistry among Broncos linebackers still exists - Mile High Sports

FORKS River Chemistry From Space, an Evening Talk by Catherine Kuhn, is set from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. today.

The presentation will be in the Hemlock Forest Room at the Olympic Natural Resources Center, 1455 S. Forks Ave.

Admission is free. Refreshments will be served, and a potluck of desserts is encouraged.

Kuhn, a doctoral student in the School of Forest Sciences at the University of Washington, is researching the human transformation of large river systems and explores the intersection of water resources, biogeochemistry and environmental change.

She specializes in satellite remote analysis of inland waters and is pioneering new methods to test optical models for quantifying changes in river chemistry from space.

After spending half a decade teaching environmental science in urban public schools, Kuhn returned to graduate school, where she earned a masters in environmental science from the Yale School of Forestry.

Rivers, lakes and streams are considered sentinels of environmental change, yet most research analyzing the impact of change occurs at the watershed scale, according to Kuhn.

While smaller-scale studies provide invaluable insight into physical processes, few studies describe the vulnerability of inland water quality to environmental change at larger scales, she said.

Both types of knowledge are crucial for informing policymaking, water resources management and conservation, she said, but few national scale studies exploring water quality exist.

Advances in cloud-based data analytics have created a new research landscape, making possible the rapid analysis of public datasets to monitor changes in surface waters at large spatial and temporal scales, she said.

Kuhn will explore some of these new tools for landscape analysis and share results from her research comparing satellite-retrieved estimates of water quality to field measurements for the Columbia River.

Evening Talks at ONRC is funded through the Rosmond Forestry Education Fund, an endowment that honors the contributions of Fred Rosmond and his family to forestry and the Forks community.

For more information, contact Frank Hanson at 360-374-4556 or fsh2@uw.edu.

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River chemistry from space topic of Forks talk tonight - Peninsula Daily News

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Port St. Lucie Police Department

PORT ST. LUCIE, Fla. Florida police say a 35-year-old high school teacher was unaware they were listening in when she confirmed that she had a sexual relationship with a student.

Tiffany Michelle Geliga, who will turn 36 on May 26, has been charged with two counts of sex assault by persons 24 years or older on a victim 16 or 17 year old.

The mother of a student contacted a school resource officer after she found several text messages between Geliga and her son. When officials questioned the boy, he allegedly told him that while he did not have a sexual relationship with Geliga, he believed another 17-year-old boy had.

55 Photos

Teachers accused of sex with their young students

"The school administration then called in the other student, a 17-year-old male, who said that he had sexual relations with Geliga on two separate occasions," Port St. Lucie police said in a press release.

The boy said in late April or early May he twice met Geliga off-campus, where they had sex in her car.

Detectives say they listened in while the student called Geliga on the phone and had a conversation with her in which she allegedly confirmed that they had sexual relations.

Geliga was booked into St. Lucie County jail.

2017 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved.

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A quantum microscope that uses a sensor built from diamonds could allow researchers to study such nanoscale mysteries as how DNA folds in a cell, why drugs work or how bacteria metabolize metals. Crucially, the microscope can image individual ions in a solution and reveal biochemical reactions as they occurwithout interfering in the process. The team behind the system described the results in a February 14 preprint on the arXiv server.

Researchers have long wanted an imaging system for molecular structures that works like hospital magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machines, which reveal structures inside the human body without harming them. The idea behind a quantum MRIwhich images at the quantum level using electron spinsis to do the same for chemical reactions including those involving metal ions. Current magnetic resonancetechniques can only reveal structures measuring 10 micrometres or more, and the only way to detect metal ions inside a cell is to add reactive chemicals or freeze the cell so it can be imaged under powerful microscopesprocedures that kill the cell.

A hospital MRI machine works by placing a patient inside a magnetic field, such that protons in the body's atoms align with the machine's magnet. The machine then sends radio pulses through the body area being imaged, which knocks the protons out of alignment. When these pulses are switched off, the protons realign and emit electromagnetic waves at a particular frequency. If the frequency emitted by the body's tissues matches that of sensors in the machine, the two frequencies will resonate like guitar strings tuned to the same note. The machine uses this resonance to reconstruct an image of the body.

A team led by physicists Lloyd Hollenberg and David Simpson at the University of Melbourne, Australia, wanted to use this technique to detect metal ions in cells. Some metal ions can be harmful to cells, whereas others are necessary for biochemical reactions, such as those involved in metabolism. The catch is that an MRI sensor needs to be about the same size as the item being imaged, which is currently impossible when trying to look at a single atom.

To make their quantum MRI microscope, the researchers used 2-millimetre-wide diamonds that containedatomic-sized flaws in their crystal structure. These flaws are sensitive to changes in magnetic fields and can be 'tuned' to resonate with the spin of the molecule or ion that is being detected. When the diamond's flaws are illuminated with a green laser, the diamond fluoresces red, and the brightness of that fluorescence depends on the strength and direction of an applied magnetic field.

Hollenberg, Simpson and their colleagues used a diamond that had an array of flaws in specific locations just below its surface and placed it at the end of a microscope next to a sample. The researchers tuned the defects to a frequency that resonated with the spin of an ionized form of copper that is missing two electrons (Cu2+). By touching the diamond probe to the surface of a sample containing copper ions, the resonance between the two stimulated fluorescence in the diamond flaws. The researchers used a computer program to examine the colour coming off the diamond flaws and to reconstruct an image of the sample, revealing the precise location of each copper ion.

Next, the researchers flooded the sample with an acid that adds an electron to Cu2+, turning it into Cu+. As they added the acid, they imaged the sample and watched the Cu2+spin pattern disappear. The pattern then reappeared over the course of an hour as the sample was oxidized to Cu2+on exposure to air. Such a method could one day allow researchers to watch biochemical reactions as they occur in cells.

Because the method is non-invasive, it could theoretically be used to image the interior of living cellssomething that Simpson and Hollenberg's team is working towards. The main obstacle is that the diamond probe needs to be physically close to the sample to produce a signal. But the team says that the current method will still be useful for understanding drug mechanisms and investigating proteins found on the cell membrane. The researchers are also trying to adapt the system so it can detect different metals, including iron.

Friedemann Reinhard, a physicist at the Technical University of Munich in Germany, praises the work. The innovations here bring it a lot closer to the application, he says. His group is also working with diamond microscopy, creating a system that could image molecules in 3D.

He adds that although the new technique still needs improvements, such as the ability to find copper ions in low-concentration solutions, it is definitely a great step ahead.

This article is reproduced with permission and wasfirst publishedon March 6, 2017.

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Quantum Microscope Spies on Chemical Reactions in Real Time - Scientific American

RU-N Professor is on the cutting-edge of chemical catalyst research.

Platinum. Palladium. Iridium. Ruthenium.

Reciting these names, youd be excused for thinking youre in ancient Rome. But these Latin derivatives have a more modern connection: They are all precious metals with vast industrial applicationsin everything from computers, electronics and plastics to pharmaceuticals, automobiles and fuel cells.

In the world of chemistry, theyre also known as excellent catalysts, capable of jump-starting chemical reactions in an instant when they might otherwise take years.

But if theres one glitch, its that these metals are rare, expensive and finite. Thats why chemists like Rutgers University-Newarks Huixin He are looking for environmentally sustainable alternatives to these metal catalysts.

The chemistry community has been working to develop greener catalytic processes, says He. Were going to run out of these metals, and they are also toxic when exposed to water sources. So, we have to come up with non-metal catalysts, or ones that use only a tiny bit of metal.

Catalysts can be thought of as homebreaker-matchmakers: They tear apart and bring together atoms from different molecules with minimal energy to produce chemical activity.

Some molecules are stubborn (or stable), refusing to relinquish their atoms so easily, while others are more amenable to lending their atoms to other molecules. The more efficient the catalyst, the more quickly it can shuffle and rebuild pairings, then get out of the way, with very little energy expended.

Platinum, for instance, has been instrumental in catalytic converters, removing pollutants from auto exhaust. It also plays a starring role in hydrogen fuel cells, reacting with hydrogen and oxygen to make water and electricity. We even have chemical catalysts in our bodies in the form of enzymes, which break food down into nutrients and help cells make energy.

In short, chemical catalysts are one of the engines of modern life, and scientists have taken different approaches in the push for greener versions.

Some are working with cheaper, more abundant non-metal materials such as carbon to make it behave more like these precious metals. Others are resorting to biology, repurposing natures enzymes to do the work of catalysts in more industrial applications. Others are rethinking how metals like platinum can be used more efficiently.

He and her team have been working with carbon, whose atoms can arrange themselves into flat sheets of hexagonal rings resembling chicken wire, called grapheme. When these are rolled into hollow tubes, they are stronger than steel for their weight. But pure grapheme is not catalytically active.

To fix that, many scientists have been changing its structure with nitrogen. He and her team have chosen a different route, using phosphorous instead.

The key, however, has been to find a cheap, abundant, sustainable source of phosphorous that is benignor safe and easy to work withand that can be simply and efficiently transformed into a high-quality catalyst.

In the course of their experiments, He and her team stumbled upon an answer: liquid phytic acid, a natural and benign substance found in food. Microwaving it for less than a minute transformed it into a black, sooty, flakey material that is catalytically active, much to their delight and surprise.

Under a microscope, the flakes have a wavy outer boundary and large, porous middle that enable molecules to enter and leave easily to create chemical reactions, says He. This is exciting because potentially it can be produced easily and sustainably in large quantities for industrial applications outside of fuel cells.

She also knows that theres much more research to be done.

Indeed, He and her team have also experimented with agents other than phosphorous, sprinkling bits of nitrogen, boron or sulfur to further change the carbon-grapheme structure and make the catalyst more efficient.

And recently, theyve been altering the structure with minute quantities of palladium, ruthenium, copper, nickel or tin, which has increased the carbons catalytic power dramatically. The results are promising. And while He is pleased with her teams progress, she is not one to rest on her laurels. In fact, her teams early success only motivates her more.

Its like digging for copper and getting diamonds instead, she says. It feels really good and is driving us to go further and further with our work.

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Chemistry Researcher's Search for New, Greener Catalysts Could Pay Big Dividends - Rutgers Newark

NEWS Brooks Pate wins Edlich-Henderson Innovator of the Year award by Yae Ji Cha | Mar 17 2017 | 5 hours ago

Chemistry Prof. Brooks Pate has won the Universitys highest award for faculty innovation. The Universitys Licensing & Ventures Group, which seeks to turn ideas and discoveries from the University into marketable products, has awarded Pate with the Edlich-Henderson Innovator of the Year award.

Pates research on molecular analysis has led to the creation of a new scientific instrument that significantly reduces the time and cost needed to perform complex chemical analysis. His research discovery on molecular rotational spectroscopy played an integral role in the founding of the local lab firm, BrightSpec, which helped turn the research into an instrument for scientists to use.

Pate said their research on molecular rotational spectroscopy measures how fast molecules rotate.

The idea is that the sensors become like a molecular ice skater, where the shape of the ice skater determines how fast they rotate, Pate said. We measure the frequency to very high accuracy, about eight digits of accuracy. From how fast they rotate, we can back out what their three dimensional geometry was.

Pates research opens new applications for scientists because it advances the ability of those measurements to get information on more challenging systems. The technique theyve developed, chirped pulse spectroscopy, allows measurements to be taken 10,000 times faster than theyve been made before.

The advantage of that is essentially going faster [which] means that at some level youre more sensitive, Pate said. And that really allowed us to open up the technique to look at some relatively challenging problems and how molecules clump together when they come together to form assemblies of molecules and thats been a very hard measurement to make.

Brightspec CEO Bob Lloyd helped to bring Pates research into the marketplace. Brightspecs clients include mostly research groups both federal and academic in the U.S. and Europe and is working to expand into the commercial pharmaceutical industry.

Lloyd said he wanted to work with Pate for several reasons, including the fact there were three graduate students working in Pates lab who were trained in the technique and were looking for a full-time career. Pates prototype was also a motivating factor for the partnership.

And that prototype, that working prototype, we were able to take around to conferences and gauge peoples reactions to it, Lloyd said.

Three patents were also established and they found people to use the product around the U.S.

At the end of that process we had all the components we needed to start a company, Lloyd said. We had a team, a prototype, IP and people who said they cared from the customer segment.

Pate credited his award to the involvement of the three graduate students in his work.

They were able to perfect the instrument and start filling the instruments to companies who were looking for new ways to do chemical analysis, Pate said. The award really comes from the effort of my students company, and the fact that theyve been able to take these ideas and create instruments that people can use to solve problems that they couldnt solve before.

In the future, Pate will be working more with the concept of isotopic abundances, which might have the potential to explain the origins of molecules.

Were now really focused on trying to bring new solutions to the problem of being able to measure isotopic abundances in molecules the high accuracy, Pate said. [This isotopic signature] is something that people think will be very important in identifying where molecules come from.

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GameTime: Pelicans' Chemistry - NBA.com NBA.com (blog) Rick Kamla and Gregg Anthony discuss the Pelicans' chemistry with the recent addition of DeMarcus Cousins. GameTime. 2:35. Rick Kamla and Gregg Anthony ... and more »

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The Welch Foundation, one of the largest funding resources for chemical research, recognized associate professor Delia Milliron for her contribution to controlling sunlight from entering buildings, according to the foundations website.

Last Wednesday, The Welch Foundation announced Milliron as one of the two recipients of the 2017 Norman Hackerman Award in Chemical Research. The award was established to honor Norman Hackerman, the foundations scientific advisory board member, with the purpose of supporting Texas scientists who are dedicated to increasing the fundamental understanding of chemistry.

Milliron said it is a great honor to be recognized by The Welch Foundation, and she is very proud to receive this award.

(The Welch Foundation is) a very important supporter of chemistry across the state of Texas, and they found some of the research in my lab and in many others across campus and around the state, Milliron said over the phone. Its a really important driver of innovation in Texas to have the Welch foundation supporting us with grants and with awards like this one.

Milliron is also an associate editor of Nano Letters, a journal of the American Chemical Society, which includes publications related to nanomaterial chemistry.

Thomas Truskett, chair of the McKetta Department of Chemical Engineering, said Milliron is a rising star in the chemical sciences, and she is well-deserved of the award.

The Hackerman Award is a fiercely competitive prize, Truskett said in an email. The fact that Dr. Milliron was chosen for it this year, as well as another colleague from our Department last year, points toward the excellence of our young faculty, who represent the future of the Department.

The Welch Foundation is based in Houston and has contributed to the advancement of chemistry by supporting institutions in Texas with research grants and special projects, according to the foundations website.

Chemistry freshman Andrea Torres said its inspiring to see Millirons recogniton, because she represents a strong female leader in the scientific community.

For a long time chemistry and sciences in general were predominantly male, and to have a woman win an award like that its a pretty big deal, Torres said. It shows that we have a program thatpushes innovation.

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Associate chemical engineering professor recognized by The Welch ... - UT The Daily Texan

With the NHL Trade Deadline a week and a half away, the Minnesota Wild have every reason to feel comfortable. After all, theyre sitting comfortably atop the Western Conference, one point behind the Washington Capitals in the Presidents Trophy race.

With a +62 goal differential, this season doesnt appear to be a fluke where they happen to win a ton of one-goal games. Their dominance in the standings suggests a top-tier team thats rolling right now.

And indeed, things are going very smoothly, especially compared to last season. A year ago today, the Wild were trying to salvage a lost season, eventually limping into the last Wild Card spot in the West with 87 points.

Whats changed? A ton of credit has to go to Bruce Boudreau, who has removed all doubts as to his being an elite coach this season. Hes got Minnesota playing the kind of lock-down defense they were known for in the peak of the Mike Yeo era. But more importantly, Boudreau is able to get the Wild to use that defense to create opportunities off the rush, which was sorely lacking in previous years.

But another reason for this is that everything is just... clicking. It just feels right. This is best exemplified in how Mikko Koivu, Jason Zucker, and Mikael Granlund have combined forces to create one of the leagues scariest lines. But everyone else seems to play well together, no matter where they happen to be in the lineup on a given night.

Again, this is a markedly different change from previous seasons. Not only was this easy chemistry hard to come by, thered long been rumors of a rift in the locker room between the older veterans and younger, less established players. That dynamic threatened to collapse the team last February prior to Yeos firing.

So with this team being perfectly in sync, and on top of the Western Conference as is, theres the possibility Minnesota could largely sit out this trade deadline.

After all, if its going this well, why change things? Dont disrupt the locker room, keep this good group of guys together and take your chances at a Stanley Cup.

Its a fair impulse, but even though the West is weaker than last season, theres no doubt itll be difficult to make it out. The San Jose Sharks are still fantastic. The Chicago Blackhawks are weaker, but theyve got a great goaltender and star power. Even the Wild Card teams (as of now, Los Angeles and Nashville) boast strong squads, with impact forwards and defensemen.

Are the Wild the clear-cut best team in the West? Its debatable. But with the right move(s?), they could drastically boost their chances at post-season success.

And even better, they could set themselves up for the remainder of their Stanley Cup window. Last season at this time, Minnesota was grasping at anything that could bring them a Number One Center. Like, anything. They struck out on Ryan Johansen, and were linked to Jonathan Drouin. The reason they were unsuccessful? Their younger NHL players werent at a high enough level to entice teams to surrender a player who could be a top pivot.

Why should the Wild end this pursuit now? After all, most of these players who struggled last season have considerably raised their stock. And with Las Vegas poised to take out a chunk of their assets in the upcoming expansion draft, they may never be better equipped to bring in the kind of center theyve been desperately seeking.

But the reason why Minnesota is being linked to centers like Martin Hanzal and Brian Boyle, rather than Matt Duchene or Alex Galchenyuk is likely chemistry. A player like Hanzal or Boyle would slot in the bottom of the lineup, not upset the status quo, not disrupt the locker room. A star center would instead bump people down the lineup. All of a sudden, a player like Eric Staal is playing third-line minutes. And then who knows what happens? Youve injected potential chaos into your locker room.

But if the Wild were to get such an opportunity to fill a historical need, they cant worry about that. Why not? Because teams dont win because their locker room is great. Locker rooms are great because teams win.

And what better example of this than the Minnesota Wild? Look at where their room was last season, and compare it to this? What changed?

Perhaps you could argue its the coach, and that probably helps, but even a coach probably cant fix a locker room rift by himself. Its not the calming presence of former captain Eric Staal- remember, most of the established veterans in Minnesota were captains at some point. You didnt hear many stories of the different age groups on the Wild bonding over the summer.

When things are going poorly, its easy to get a bad attitude towards your job and your co-workers. You and I know this, and hockey players arent an exception. The inverse is true. When things are going perfectly, its so much easier to get along with everyone.

And thats why Minnesota shouldnt rest on their laurels this trade deadline, and take advantage of any opportunity* to significantly improve their roster, locker room chemistry be damned.

Things are going well right now, but this team can get better. And if they can get better, they should continue to win. And if they continue to win, the rest will take care of itself.

*With the exception of players whove had significant off-ice issues, such as Mike Riberio or Evander Kane.

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Chemistry can't concern the Wild at the trade deadline - Hockey Wilderness (blog)