St Louis Chemists
in the News
George GokelDecember 16, 2011— George Gokel, Professor of Chemistry at University of Missouri–St Louis, was interviewed by KWMU science reporter Véronique LaCapra today. Gokel, recently named Director of UMSL’s Center for Nanoscience, described some of the research being done at the Center: Eric Mazjoub, physicist and Associate Director of CFN, is focusing on development of small, light, high-capacity batteries for electric cars. Thomas George, professor of chemistry and Chancellor of UMSL, works on “nanobombs”, which are targeted to tumors and destroy them without adversely affecting surrounding tissue. Gokel also got to talk a little about nanosensors for environmental pollutants, and about the theoretical risks that are particular to nanomaterials, and the challenges involved in regulating them. What he didn’t get a chance to mention is his own research in synthetic ion channels and nanotubes as drug delivery vehicles, so we’re mentioning it here.
You can read a transcript of the interview or link to the audio file here.
Shri Thanedar and ChemirAugust 29, 2011— Chemical & Engineering News takes another featured look (login required) at entrepreneurial St Louis chemist Shri Thanedar and the company he founded here, Chemir Analytical Services. At the time of their last look in 2006, Chemir was growing at a healthy pace. But acquisitions just before the 2008 recession and venture capital drought spelled trouble for the financial position of the company. Chemir was now owned by Bank of America. Rather than dismantle it, though, BoA decided to sell it, a credit to the value Thanedar and his employees had created. It is now owned by Evans Analytical Group, and is again in excellent health. Chemir’s workforce is up 9% and sales up 30% from pre-sale levels, and EAG has targeted Chemir to grow 50% per year through 2016. The whole story is an eye-opener about a part of the chemistry enterprise most of us never think about: chemical entrepreneurship.
Full disclosure: Chemir has been a long-standing advertiser in the Chemical Bond.
Ted GastMay 15, 2011— As part of the ongoing celebration of IYC2011, national ACS is compiling short essays on chemical topics, one for each day of the year. Our own Ted Gast contributed a brief history of paper-making for Day 135, which is/was May 15. You can see his essay here.
Vincent SpazianoNovember 24, 2010— Vincent Spaziano had retired just last month! He had been a member of the faculty at Saint Louis University since 1973, rising to the rank of professor in 1986. He was chair of the department of chemistry from 1987 to 2002, and associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences from 2002 until his retirement. The notice published on the SLU website includes heartfelt tributes from his colleagues in chemistry and around the university.
Jai NagarkattiNovember 13, 2010— Jai Nagarkatti, CEO of Sigma-Aldrich Corporation, died quite unexpectedly of an apparent heart attack on November 13. He had worked for Aldrich Chemical Company and Sigma-Aldrich Corporation his whole professional life, starting as a bench chemist in 1976 and assuming the CEO position in 2006.
Sigma-Aldrich has posted a memorial notice describing Jai’s role in the company and the community. Jai was a good friend to us here in the local ACS section and to the whole St Louis chemistry community. Obituary notices were also published by the Post-Dispatch and Chemical & Engineering News (login required).
Bart Bartlett and William BuhroSeptember 27, 2010— St Louis public schools don’t get a lot of respect. But, at least at Gateway Academic and Classical High, they are doing something right. Bart Bartlett graduated from this top-ranked high school in 1996, going on to Washington University for his bachelors degree in chemistry and to MIT for his Ph D.
The progression cemented what Bartlett already knew in elementary school: that science was for him, and vice versa. Chemistry was his favorite subject in high school. He participated in the Young Scientists Program at Wash U, working one summer in a genetics lab. Then, at Wash U as an undergraduate, he did research with William Buhro (this year’s St Louis Award winner). Buhro suggested he apply to the ACS Scholars Program, and he won a grant that helped support him through his junior and senior years.
Bartlett went on to do his doctoral research under Daniel Nocera at MIT, and landed a faculty position at University of Michigan in 2008. “I love this job,&rdquo says Bartlett about his teaching and research.
You can read the full story here.
Robert BeckerSeptember 1, 2010— Robert Becker, chemistry teacher at Kirkwood High School, has advanced from Kirkwood District teacher-of-the-year to Missouri teacher-of-the-year. And the field is not just chemistry, but all subjects!
Becker, who has been teaching chemistry at Kirkwood since 1990, was previously recognized as the St Louis Section and the Midwest Region chemistry teacher-of-the-year in 1995, and went all the way to garner the national ACS James Bryant Conant teaching award in 1997. As a result of his selection by the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, he becomes Missouri’s nominee for the national teacher-of-the-year award.
“Chemistry is, of its own accord, inherently fascinating and infinitely applicable to so many aspects of our lives,” Becker said in his TotY application. He has a BA in biology from Yale University and an M Ed from Washington University.
Gabriel Hernandez and Keith StineJuly 21, 2010— St Louis high school student Gabriel Hernandez was featured in a Post-Dispatch article highlighting his involvement with Project SEED, the ACS program that helps economically disadvantaged students learn about and pursue careers in chemistry.
Hernandez is in his second summer as a Project SEED fellow, working in the lab of Professor Stephen Holmes at University of Missouri–St Louis. Though not particularly interested in science before, he applied for the fellowship because he needed a paying job, and because he thought it would beef up his résumé. Now he’s hooked. “I really fell in love with science,” he said. He’s planning to take three chemistry courses during his first year at Simpson College next year.
Professor Keith Stine is the Project SEED coordinator at UM–St Louis. He was quoted describing the program and the opportunities it provides to deserving but under-prepared students. But you already know about that.
You can read the article on the St Louis Post-Dispatch website here.
Ted GastMarch 22, 2010— Ted Gast, president of Arch Paper LLC, is featured in a video “conversation starter” that describes his chemistry job to a layman. The ACS project, part of the Chemistry Ambassadors program, is intended to show members how to engage non-chemists without the intimidating jargon and technical details that can make such communication impossible. Check out Ted’s video here.
Hal HarrisApril 22, 2010— At the St Louis Scientist Awards Dinner hosted by the Academy of Science–St Louis, Hal Harris (Professor of Chemistry, UM–SL) received the Science Educator Award, “recogniz[ing] a distinguished individual or organization on the basis of outstanding contributions to science education or to the public understanding of science, engineering, or technology.”
Walter SternNovember 21, 2009— On November 21, 2009, Walter Stern died. Walter was a chemical engineer who, in 1946, helped design the production process for saccharin, the first product of Sigma Chemical Company. When Monsanto entered the saccharin market, Sigma almost foundered. In searching for new opportunities, Sigma soon turned to ATP (adenosine triphosphate, the high-energy intermediate in almost all cellular processes), their first—and possibly the world’s first—commercial biochemical. The rest, as they say, is history.
Walter worked at Sigma for almost 60 years, from these earliest days until well after Sigma-Aldrich had surpassed $1 billion in annual sales. Even in retirement, Walter could often be found on site doing ... well, we aren’t quite sure what. His main energy during retirement was devoted to raising orchids. He was 94.
There will be a service in celebration of the life of Walter Stern at First Presbyterian Church of Kirkwood (map), 100 East Adams, on Friday, February 12, 2010 at 3:00 pm.
Marcel MadarasNovember 2, 2009— The cover story in the November 2, 2009, issue of Chemical & Engineering News focused on the job outlook for chemists, amid a bleak employment scene in almost all segments of the workforce. To put a human face on the statistics, the experiences of Marcel Madaras were featured: first as a research chemist for Kodak in Rochester, New York; laid off as photography transitioned from chemical to digital; pursuing an MBA to boost his marketability; and joining his wife in a move to St Louis, where she had taken a new position at Sensient Technologies.
Marcel put his networking skills to work, including attending St Louis Section board meetings and enlisting the help of career counselor Lisa Balbes, who was also quoted in the article. He has found, for now, a temporary contract position with Pepex Biomedical.
You can read the article on Marcel here.
William J SunApril 20, 2009— William J Sun, a senior at Parkway Central High School, took second place in the prestigious Intel Science Talent Search. His project, undertaken with David Haslam of Washington University School of Medicine, studied the effect of golgicide A on the Golgi secretory apparatus.
Each year, 40 finalists are chosen from a national pool of candidates to visit Washington, DC, where they present their projects to the general public and scientists at the National Academy of Sciences. They undergo wide-ranging interviews on science as part of the judging, and they meet top government leaders—this year, the very top: President Obama.
His 2nd place showing earned William a $75,000 scholarship, which he will use at either Harvard or Yale next year.
Milorad DudukovicMarch 24, 2009— Milorad P Dudukovic, chemical engineering professor at Washington University has been named 2009 winner of the E V Murphree Award in Industrial and Engineering Chemistry. The Saint Louis Section had previously recognized Dr Dudukovic withy the 1995 Saint Louis Award.
The Murphree Award is sponsored by ExxonMobil Research and Engineering. Dr Dudukovic was cited for his work in “developing practical new methods to quantify multiscale kinetic-transport interactions and new models and experimental tools to study multiphase reactor systems....”
In addition to his ground-breaking technical achievements, he is proud to have won the “engineering professor of the year” designation five times at Washington University. The University conferred the 1994 Founders’ Day Award on Dudukovic in recognition of his teaching and research.
Wes Harris and Chris SpillingFebruary 11, 2009— Scientists at the University of Missouri–St Louis and the University of Kentucky have developed a device to help protect premature infants from the toxic effects of aluminum in their intravenous feeding solutions. A small filter removes the metal by chelation. This technology could be in hospitals as early as 2010.
More than 12 percent of births in the United States are preterm, with most of those infants requiring intravenous feeding, called total parenternal nutrition, or TPN. Aluminum is commonly found in these TPN solutions, and can damage the skeletal system, brain and bone marrow. The federal Food and Drug Administration recognizes the problem of aluminum toxicity associated with TPN solutions. In 2004, the FDA began requiring parenterals used to prepare the solutions to contain less than 25 μg/L. However, manufacturers have difficulty meeting this requirement.
Chris Spilling and Wesley Harris at UMSL, and colleagues at the University of Kentucky, founded a private firm, ALKYMOS, to develop and market their technology. The venture has produced two patent applications. Spilling and Harris won the 2009 University of Missouri System-Wide Faculty Entrepreneur of the Year Award for their work. The award honors UM faculty members for entrepreneurial innovation that demonstrates commercial utility, contributes to the public welfare, and brings visibility to the University of Missouri. The award carries a stipend of $15,000.
Robert E KellerJanuary 11, 2009— Another long-standing member of the American Chemical Society and the Saint Louis Section has died. Robert E Keller had been a member of both since 1949. He was 86.
Keller served as a Pharmacist’s Mate in the Navy during WWII, then returned home to earn BS, MS, and PhD degrees in Chemistry from the University of Iowa. Following his education, he joined Monsanto in St Louis, where he worked for 32 years, retiring as Manager of Applied Sciences in 1984.
He was past chair of our Section’s Analytical Chemistry Discussion Group, and was honored as a 60-year member of ACS at Recognition Night in 2008.
Donald G LeavittJanuary 4, 2009— It is with sadness and sympathy for his surviving children and grandchildren that we note the passing of a 62-year member of the ACS. Donald G Leavitt died on December 31, 2008, at the age of 84. Don was a patent attorney specializing in chemical and pharmaceutical patents for the Senniger, Powers firm in St Louis.
Leavitt received a BS in Chemistry from Marquette University in 1946, MS in chemical engineering from University of Illinois in 1948, and JD from University of Michigan in 1951. His membership in the ACS and in the Saint Louis Section dates from 1946.
He was a past-chairman of the Missouri Bar Association's Patent, Trademark, and Copyright Committee and recipient of that organization's President's Award in 1983. He was also adjunct professor of patent law at Saint Louis University Law School from 1956 to 1993. For several decades, he also donated his services to the Saint Louis Section as Registered Agent of the Corporation.
Donald Leavitt’s obituary notice in the St Louis Post-Dispatch noted that he was an avid golfer. As a member of Greenbrier Hills Country Club, he has two holes-in-one on his lifetime scorecard.
Arch Paper CompanyDecember 4, 2008— Ted Gast, president of Arch Paper Company in St Louis and former Chair of St Louis Section–ACS, told St Louis News 4 today about making paper entirely from discarded cotton garments: “no trees, no chlorine, no bleach, no dyes” ... and of course, reduced demand for landfill volume. Does anyone else remember when “20% rag content” was the mark of fine writing or typing paper?
A brief video clip is available here.
Andrew Liu, Parkway Central High SchoolAndrew Liu, a top finisher in the Advanced Division of the local high school chemistry contest for two straight years, has gone all the way. He is one of the four-chemist team who will represent the USA at the International Chemistry Olympiad in Budapest, July 12–21.
The road to the final four is an arduous one. Around the country, about 10,000 students participated in local contests; 900 qualified for the national exam; only 20 were invited to the Olympiad “boot camp” organized by national ACS at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. Finally, the four primary representatives and two alternates were chosen to represent the USA in Budapest.
Andrew graduated from Parkway Central High School this year, and will attend Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the fall.
Update July 22, 2008— Results just in. A total of 172 students from around the world competed. The four members of Team USA scored three Bronze Medals and one Silver in the competition.
| Name | Home | Score | Place | Award |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andrew Liu | Chesterfield, MO | 46.0161 | 137 | Bronze Medal |
| Jenny Lu | East Brunswick, NJ | 46.9420 | 132 | Bronze Medal |
| Yuxin Xie | Southbury, CT | 55.4705 | 89 | Bronze Medal |
| Jonathan Lee | Northridge, CA | 57.9731 | 70 | Silver Medal |
Full results for all competitors are available here (xls, 40 kb). Our heartfelt congratulations to Andrew and his high school chemistry teacher, Ken Greathouse, and to the three other Team USA members.
Shelley Minteer, Saint Louis UniversityThe award citation refers to Dr Minteer’s research on immobilized dehydrogenase enzymes at the anode of biofuel cells. Her work has resulted in enzymes stable at the bioanode for over a year, but she and her research group are working on improved immobilization membranes that can tolerate higher concentrations of biofuels such as glucose, methanol, and ethanol.
Further projects are under way on direct electron transfer involving electropolymerized dyes (methylene green, methylene blue, azure C, etc.) as mediators, along with binding of the mediator dye to polymeric backbones.
The award will be presented formally at the Pittcon Young Investigator Award Symposium, Wednesday, March 5, 2008, at Morial Convention Center, New Orleans, LA. The full citation and a brief professional bio are posted on the Pittcon Awards page.
Saint Louis University ACS Student AffiliateThe Saint Louis University ACS student affiliate group has been declared an “Outstanding” chapter by National ACS, one of only 28 chapters nationwide to be so honored. The section was cited for its activities during the 2006-2007 academic year. Congratulations to faculty advisor Brent Znosko and then-chapter officers Anne Blackwell and Michelle Watt.
Shri Thanedar, Chemir Analytical ServicesThe November 13, 2006, edition of Chemical & Engineering News featured a very complimentary full-page write-up (login required) on the entrepreneurial success of Shri Thanedar. It’s a story of ambition, hard work, and likely not just a little talent. From 18-year-old Bachelor’s chemist in India, he is now CEO of Chemir Analytical Services in St Louis, now at $24M/yr in revenues.
It’s an interesting and satisfying story of “local” chemist makes good. Worth a read if you didn’t catch it in the hardcopy.
Shelley Minteer, Saint Louis UniversityShelley Minteer, professor of chemistry at Saint Louis University, is the winner of the 2005 Innovation Award, presented by the Academy of Sciences of St Louis. The award recognizes a scientist or engineer under age 40 who has demonstrated unusual potential for future accomplishments in a branch of science or engineering based on exceptional initial contributions. Shelley was recognized for her research in alternative energy sources.
From the award citation: “Over just four years, Dr. Minteer’s research in biofuel cells has resulted in the formation of a start-up company in St Louis, while at the same time her research in magnetically-modified electrodes has resulted in the development of several industrial partnerships with outside companies. Her new biofuel cells can produce energy densities nearly 100 times larger than any previously reported systems, making these systems the first viable biocell replacements for currently-used chemical batteries.”
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