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Chair’s Comments July 2008
As I write this, the year is half over and a good time to review what has happened and look forward to the events planned for the second half. Dr. Loretta Jones, the Section Award winner started off the year in January with her presentation at UNC in Greeley about the difficulty of creating accurate molecular visualizations for teaching chemistry. February was a joint meeting with the Wyoming Section in Ft. Collins where chemist Johnny Johnston entertained us with his music. Dr. Gerald Meyer gave a fascinating presentation about the new coal to liquids technology, an area in which he serves as consultant. In March, a number of teachers were present for Dr. Reef Morse’s presentation at DU. He spoke about his unique project at the Steppingstone Magnetic Resource Training Center in Michigan where he teaches spectroscopy to young scientists. Two programs were presented in April. The first was held at Regis University with a talk on “Glitter as Forensic Evidence” by Robert Blackledge who has had many years of experience in crime labs. He began in the Tallahassee Crime Lab in Florida, worked for the Army crime lab in Europe and the real NCIS in the Navy’s San Diego regional lab. About 185 people attended the Awards Banquet at the Colorado School of Mines in April. This was the largest crowd in recent memory. Dr. Richard Zare of Stanford University gave an impressive presentation and delighted students with his methane demonstration. Dr. Paul Jagodzinski did a great job of organizing this event. Ten 50-year ACS members were recognized for their many years of service to the American Chemical Society. The April National ACS meeting in New Orleans attended by Colorado’s councilors and members allowed them to exchanges ideas with colleagues as well as attend various meetings and presentations. In May the section enjoyed a tour of Array BioPharma’s facilities in Boulder followed by an informative talk by medicinal chemist, Dr. Eli Wallace. Dr. Wallace provided many details about drug discovery, clinical trials, and the development of a MEK inhibitor for the treatment of advanced cancer. During the summer months, ACS remained active. Project SEED students worked to learn more about chemistry. Two summer luncheons were held for our senior members, one in Lone Tree and the other in Longmont. Through career highlights, they reminded us of the vast reach of chemistry and indeed that chemistry is the central science. In June, the joint Northwest/Rocky Mountain Regions met in Park City, Utah, and the Rocky Mountain Conference on Analytical Chemistry was held in Colorado in July. The National ACS meeting in Philadelphia occurred in August. So, that brings us to September with four events scheduled as noted in the newsletter. Thank you! Thank you to all who have helped to make this a successful year for chemistry in Colorado. Remember that it is time to nominate a colleague for the annual Section Award. Also, elections are just around the corner; so, now is the time to put forth your nominations including self-nominations.
Super September
Super September is almost here. Three ACS meetings are scheduled during the month in different parts of the state. The first meeting is at Colorado College on Monday, Sept. 8 with a presentation entitled “Doing Chemistry at the Art/Archaeology Interface” by Dr. Mary Virginia Orna. Plan to spend the weekend of September 19 in Gunnison and hear Dr. Chris Tindall speak on “Current Issues in Forensic Science” at Western State College on Friday, Sept. 19. Nationally known presenters Dr. Marv Lang and Dr. Don Showalter will dazzle you with their “Boiling cold…Freezing hot” chemical demonstrations on Friday, September 26 at Metropolitan State College in the heart of Denver. All three events will begin with a social hour at 5:00 P.M., dinner at 6:00 P.M., and presentation at 7:00 P.M. Costs for the dinners will remain at $15/person. Students, there will be an opportunity for you to present your research at a poster session on Friday, Sept. 26 at the Metro meeting site. On Saturday, September 27, Dr. Marv Lang and Dr. Don Showalter will lead a day-long high school teacher workshop at Metropolitan State College of Denver.
Dr. Connie Gabel
ACS Colorado Section Chair
Metropolitan State College of Denver
Chemistry Dept.
Campus Box 52
P.O. Box 173362
Denver, Colorado 80217-3362
e-mail: cgabel@mscd.edu