Spring 2008 Vol.1 No.1
THE
SCOPE
a publication for friends and alumni of the college of chemical & Life Sciences, University of Maryland
The Future of Biofuels A University of Maryland Professor’s New Technology Converts Plant and Paper Waste to Ethanol
INSIDE New Partnership Seeks More African American Participation in Chemical Sciences New Core Facilities Give College Competitive Edge and more!
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Message from Dean allewell Dear alumni and friends,
This is the first issue of The Scope, a publication of the University of Maryland College of Chemical and Life Sciences. It will be published twice a year, in the spring and fall. The Scope welcomes input from alumni, supporters, and friends on articles and content. Please send all correspondence to the editor, Kelly Blake, at kellyb@umd.edu. College of Chemical & Life Sciences Leadership Deans and Directors
Dean Norma Allewell Associate Dean Robert Infantino Associate Dean Arthur N. Popper Assistant Dean Lisa Bradley, Student Services Assistant Dean Joelle Presson, Undergraduate Academic Programs Assistant Dean Andrea E. Morris, Development & Corporate Relations Assistant Dean Nancy K. Lapanne, Finance Office Kelly E. Blake, Director, Communications David Dalo, Director, Facilities Mike Landavere, Director, Information Technology Gili Marbach-Ad, Director, Center for Teaching and Learning Katerina (Kaci) Thompson, Director, Undergraduate Research & Internships Department Chairs
Michael P. Doyle, Chair, Chemistry & Biochemistry Richard Payne, Chair, Biology Charles Mitter, Chair, Entomology Jonathan D. Dinman, Interim Chair, Cell Biology & Molecular Genetics Cover photos top right, bottom right, and bottom center by John Consoli. Photos opposite page (left) – l to r: Clark School of Engineering Interim Dean Herb Rabin, Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development Secretary David Edgerley, MD Governor Martin O’Malley, Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics Professor Steven Hutcheson, and UM President Mote. Photo by John Consoli. (right) – Associate Professor Kevin McIver with undergraduate students in the General Microbiology lab. Photo by Cynthia Mitchel.
College of Chemical and Life Sciences Office of Communications 2313A Symons Hall University of Maryland College Park, MD 20742 Tel: 301-405-8203 Fax: 301-314-9949 www.chemlife.umd.edu Copyright © 2008 College of Chemical and Life Sciences.
Greetings and welcome to the inaugural issue of The Scope, a publication for friends and alumni of the College of Chemical and Life Sciences. We’re celebrating our 15th anniversary as a College, a period of dynamic growth and development across all areas of our mission. The opening of the Bioscience Research Building in September 2007 was a transformational event. Its superb research and meeting space has helped us to recruit outstanding scientists at all levels, and experiments in its sophisticated labs are advancing the frontiers of 21st century biomedical science. New core instrumentation facilities (see page 3) will support innovative research across the College. The College’s research programs continue to grow in scope and excellence. External funding for research was up 18%, with nineteen faculty members receiving major new research grants. Our faculty members have active field research or collaborations in more than 60 countries, and they continue to produce high impact research published in major international journals. Many are also engaging in entrepreneurial pursuits and turning research discoveries into viable business ventures. “Fuel from Trash, Not From Food” (page 6) highlights the work of Dr. Steve Hutcheson, whose promising bacterial-based biofuel technology is being developed and marketed through his start-up company Zymetis, Inc. Our academic programs continue to grow in size and quality. Undergraduate teaching and learning efforts are featured in this edition. We have developed a Teaching and Learning Center in the College with ongoing support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. New initiatives are empowering faculty to collaborate in new ways to bring current host-pathogen research into the classroom and teaching laboratory (see “Ahead on the Learning Curve”, page 12). An earlier HHMI-supported effort, MathBench, that integrates math and biology education through computer-based teaching modules, has now been extended with NSF funding
(featured on page 5). In graduate education, we have laid the groundwork this year for fundamental changes in the organization and structure of our graduate programs in the biological sciences. Our faculty will continue to work this year to develop programs that are highly competitive nationally, attract the best students from around the world, and support students with a research and training environment that is truly outstanding. New approaches to attract Ph.D. students from under-represented groups are highlighted on page 3 of this edition. This year’s total for the College’s Great Expectations development campaign will exceed $5 million – our best year ever and 80% above our goal. This includes a seven-figure planned gift to support Organic Chemistry (for more on new gifts to the College, see page 15). We are grateful for the support of our alumni and friends, and welcome their continued assistance in mentoring, networking, and as benefactors. We hope that The Scope allows you to explore more deeply the range of our activities, and fosters pride in the continued impact and momentum of the College, its people, and its programs.
Norma Allewell, Professor and Dean
Contents
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6 12 6
COVER STORY
Regular Features
Fuel from Trash, Not from Food:
What’s New 2 Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Forges Partnership to Support African American Scientists
How Professor Steven Hutcheson is using a rare bacterium to turn plant waste and paper trash into ethanol.
3 Technology Gives College Competitive Edge 5 Math and Biology as Soulmates:
Special Features
10
ChemLife at a Glance:
Quick Facts on the College as it Turns 15 Maryland Pathogen Research Institute Tackles Global Disease Threats
12
Ahead on the Learning Curve:
Faculty Initiatives Elevate Importance of Teaching & Learning
New Program Breaks Down Barriers to Math Literacy
Development update 15 College Surpasses Fundraising Goals for 2007-2008 Faculty & Research 16 Faculty Honors 17 Commencement Speaker Geerat Vermeij, Former UM Faculty Member, Kicks off Darwin’s 200th Birthday Year Students & Alumni 18 Growing the Tree of Life: PhD Candidate Studies Evolutionary Relationships of Butterflies and Moths
19 How Green is Your City?
Alumni Join Mayor Michael Bloomberg for Conversation on Greening NY
20 Alumni and Student Photo Gallery 2007-2008
What’sNew Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Forges Partnership to Support African American Scientists By Kelly Blake and Monette Austin Bailey
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Photo by Cynthia Mitchel
Because it is a graduate program, students in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry understand that it’s going to be tough. However, a new university partnership may ease some of the stress of also being a minority in the field. The Department recently established a strategic alliance with the National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers (NOBCChE) to encourage more African American students to pursue graduate study at Maryland, and to nurture the success of outstanding black scientists. The Department and College have contributed $15,000 toward the group’s work. For Marvourneen Dolor and Renee Siler, the move speaks volumes about the University’s commitment to supporting its students. “There are only about ten African descent students in the graduate program, so this linkage is important” says Dolor, who is originally from St. Lucia and is pursuing a PhD in environmental and analytical chemistry. Siler, the campus chapter’s secretary/ treasurer who is working on a PhD in physical and analytical chemistry, says that “Having a familiar community Left: Chemistry and Biochemistry Chair Michael Doyle (center), makes the hard work much easier to presents a $15,000 check to NOBCChE president Dr. Victor McCrary (l), and Dr. Bobby L. Wilson, NOBCChE Executive Board Chair (r). handle.” Above: Marvourneen Dolor (l) was the second president of the UM “We want to have our faculty chapter of NOBCChE, and Renee Siler (r) is the campus chapter’s and graduate student body reflect the current secretary/treasurer. diversity of the community in which we live,” says Dr. Michael Doyle, Chair of the Department of Chemistry and “We want to have our faculty graduate fellowship, which is designed Biochemistry. The Department has been to attract outstanding African American a nationwide leader in recruiting and and graduate student body students, jointly with the National Institute supporting black faculty and students, of Standards and Technology. and its commitment to increasing reflect the diversity of the “Groups like this need to have more of African American participation made it a community in which we live.” a presence,” says Dolor. “It needs to be like natural choice to become NOBCChE’s ‘old boys networks,’ but without excluding first educational partner. people. There are so many people of color “It is our hope that this university partnership will serve as a model for future universities, as well as just floundering out there.” “This partnership should signal to top African American corporate entities,” says NOBCChE president Victor McCrary students that the University of Maryland is committed to of the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory. providing an academically rigorous and nurturing environment The synergistic relationship will help further initiatives in which they can excel,” says Dr. Kwaku Dayie, the newest already in place to attract African American scientists to the faculty recruit, who comes to Maryland this fall from the University of Maryland. The Department established a UM Cleveland Clinic Lerner Research Institute. b chapter of NOBCChE two years ago, and offers the Milligan
What’sNew New Core Facilities Give College Competitive Edge Since the opening of the Bioscience Research Building in identify and map individual proteins in complex biological September 2007, the college has established several new samples, such as blood, serum, or even bacteria, and to shared instrumentation facilities and a high performance determine their function. computing cluster that are enhancing faculty research and enabling the College to recruit excellent new faculty. Early Sequencing DNA with Robots in 2007, Dean Allewell established the “Instrumentation and The genomics core facility enables faculty to conduct high Core Facilities Committee” to identify which technologies throughput DNA sequencing and gene expression analyses would give the College’s research programs a boost. enhanced by the use of robotics. This will allow researchers New core facilities are being established for proteomics, to obtain information about the genomes of bacteria, genomics, and flow cytometry, in addition to the biosafety parasites, fish or other organisms in a much shorter time level-3 laboratory for pathogen research, than was previously possible. Robots in the facility that will augment existing cores in the were purchased with campus and College start “This instrumentation College. up funds provided to Najib el-Sayed, Associate has an immediate Professor of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, impact in generating and Thomas Kocher, Professor of Biology. Accelerating Faculty Research, new ideas and grant Attracting New Grants
opportunities, as well “This high end instrumentation has an Sorting and Analyzing Individual Cells immediate impact in generating new The flow cytometry core facility includes a BD as enhancing existing ideas and new grant opportunities, as Biosciences FACSAria II Cell Sorter, jointly funded research.” well as enhancing existing research,” says by a multi-user NIH-grant authored by David —Dr. Kevin McIver Kevin McIver, Associate Professor of Cell Mosser, Director of the Maryland Pathogen Biology and Molecular Genetics and the Research Institute (MPRI), and Associate Director chair of the instrumentation committee. Debra Weinstein, and funds from the College. “Faculty will be able to come in and see This sophisticated machine provides a method what’s possible with the new facilities, for sorting a heterogeneous mixture of cells, one and how it will make us more competitive cell at a time, based upon specific characteristics of each cell, and collecting them as homogenous nationally.” Staff with expertise in each core populations for analysis. facility area will oversee operations and provide user training and support for Supercomputing Speeds Data Analysis all College faculty, as well as faculty from other colleges In addition, the High-performance computing cluster (HPCC) and scientists from neighboring institutions. Each instrument will support faculty research by providing space for a carried a price tag ranging from $50,000 - $1 million, growing amount of scientific data and the computational and was funded by shared instrumentation grants and power to analyze it. High-performance computing harnesses funds from the College. Furthermore, new instruments will the power of hundreds and thousands of individual be added in the future to broaden the scope of existing processors into a supercomputer through the magic of facilities. parallel processing. Parallel processing is the ability to take a big job and break it down into smaller jobs that are Mapping Proteins and their Function all accomplished simultaneously. The result is a significant The proteomics core facility features an Orbitrap tandem reduction in the time for scientific results to be generated; in mass spectrometer, supported by a multi-user NIH-grant some cases from days to hours. organized by Catherine Fenselau, Professor of Chemistry Charles Mitter, Professor and Chair of Entomology, and Biochemistry. This technology will allow faculty to and colleagues are using it to gather and analyze data continued page 4…
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What’sNew
for the LepTree project (www.leptree.net), an international collaboration focusing on the evolutionary biology and relationships of Lepidoptera (moths and butterflies). Millard Alexander, Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, relies on the HPCC for computation related to his application of quantum mechanics to the study of chemical reactions.
Chemistry Expands Instrumentation to Support Interdisciplinary Research Core facilities have been an integral part of Chemistry and Biochemistry’s research for several decades. With the rapid growth and development of instrumentation used by chemists that is applied to materials that include biomolecules and polymers, the Department has upgraded facilities so that they can tackle expanding interdisciplinary research questions. “We have acquired close to $3 million in new instrumentation that has allowed us to focus on problems on the forefront of the chemical, biophysical, biological, and materials sciences,” says Michael Doyle, Professor and Chair, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. The department added two new 600 MHz nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometers, funded by a multiuser grant from the National Science Foundation. One of these spectrometers, combined with pre-existing instrumentation, is now the core facility for a group of experts in biomolecular NMR spectroscopy including David Fushman, Professor; Vitali Tugarinov, Assistant Professor; and Kwaku Dayie, Associate Professor; who all study the intricate structure and dynamics of proteins and nucleic acids. The second 600 MHz NMR spectrometer has enabled advances in materials science, including the technology developed by Lawrence Sita, Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, that can produce a wide variety of plastic products that are safe for the environment and human health. With another grant from the National Science Foundation, the department also upgraded their “small molecule” X-ray instrumentation to obtain the structures of complex molecules, and added a second powder diffractometer that impacts research into materials of chemists, geologists, and engineers. This instrumentation is enabling Bryan Eichhorn, Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry to advance research on nanoparticles for use in energy technology. In addition,
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Nanoparticles for Energy Technology The Single Crystal Diffractometer in the X-Ray Crystallographic Center enables Dr. Bryan Eichhorn (pictured, left) to determine the composition and size of alloy nanoparticles that are used in many energy technologies, such as fuel cell electrocatalysts and various solar cell devices. Dr. Peter Y. Zavalij (pictured, right), director of the X-ray Crystallographic Center, provides expertise in chemical crystallography and materials characterization that supports Dr. Eichhorn’s research, as well as others in the department.
the department has acquired the X-ray instrumentation that provides the structures of large biomolecules, especially proteins and nucleic acids, and Nicole LaRonde-LeBlanc, Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, has led the way in producing structures with her own group and collaborators within the College and Department.
Maximizing Research, From Computation to Molecules to Cells to Organisms The acquisition of this state of the art technology is allowing the college to maximize its research on every level – from computation to molecules to cells to organisms. “In a year and a half, we have gone from ‘wouldn’t this be nice,’ to having all these instruments coming on line,” says McIver. “Whole new areas of research and collaboration have opened up.” b
What’sNew Math and Biology as Soulmates: New Program Breaks Down Barriers to Math Literacy The woman helping to design the College’s new program to get biology students up to speed in math has always been fascinated by subjects at the interface of math and biology, such as chaos theory, fractals, and artificial life. “I love math, it’s fun, elegant, beautiful, and tricky – like a mind puzzle – why would you not want to explore that?” says Karen Nelson, a postdoctoral research fellow in the College. As a PhD student in biology, Nelson was known as “the mathematically inclined ecologist in the group.” Nelson’s intuitive sense about how to incorporate computational models into research on biological systems made her a perfect candidate to help design the Math Bench Modules. This program is exposing undergraduate students in five different biology courses to the math needed for 21st century research. “The average level of quantitative literacy among our undergraduates is lower than what is now required for cutting-edge biology,” says William Fagan, Professor of Biology and the principal investigator for MathBench, which is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). Dr. Fagan’s own research focuses on key problems in spatial ecology, such as habitat fragmentation and the impacts of landscape structure on biodiversity. He was the lead faculty member on the proposal to develop the MathBench modules in response to a call for curriculum redesign projects from the college’s Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) program in the Biological Sciences, led by Dr. Kaci Thompson. The College receives significant support from HHMI for its undergraduate research fellowship program. Fagan recruited Dr. Nelson to work with faculty to design a program to help biology students appreciate how math can enrich their understanding of biological phenomena and prepare for upper-level courses.
Nelson has created web-based interactive problems that incorporate humor and informal story lines to help students develop their own intuitive sense of how to use math. “Math doesn’t have to be formulistic, it can be like cooking without a recipe,” says Nelson. “I am trying to build the sense that math can be figured out.” Students work through the self-paced modules on their own time and are quizzed on the content in class. The interactivity allows students to perform simulations where they can change parameters and watch the result, make predictions, and check their answers. Nelson worked with several faculty, including Todd Cooke, Professor of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics (CBMG), and Patricia Shields, Lecturer (CBMG), to develop a Top Ten List of Skills that students should have. This list includes how to manipulate graphs, make probability calculations, and distill mathematical equations from a verbal description. Dr. Cooke has found the modules to be a great teaching tool: “You have achieved a genuine breakthrough in how to improve the mathematical skills of our bioscience students, many of whom were not facile in applying mathematics to biological problems,” he says of Nelson’s work. The MathBench team has recently secured new funds from the National Science Foundation to implement the MathBench modules in the introductory biology classes offered at Montgomery College (MC). Nearly one third of our college’s undergraduate transfer students come from MC, and as second year students must take a mathematically rigorous course, Principles of Biology III: Organismal Biology. “Students who don’t have a mathematical background are really thrown for a loop,” Nelson explains. With the new MathBench modules, these
Using Math to Predict the Effects of Climate Change on Stream ecosystems
Karen Nelson’s research, with her doctoral advisor Margaret Palmer, Professor of Entomology and Biology and Director of the Chesapeake Biological Laboratory, considered the impact of climate change on stream ecosystems. She uses mathematical models to make predictions about how temperature increases and other factors could affect fish populations. As a postdoctoral researcher with Professor William Fagan, she is designing the MathBench program, which helps students appreciate how math can enrich their understanding of biological phenomena.
transfer students will have a better chance of keeping up with their peers who entered UM as freshmen. Nelson believes that a better understanding of math will help students in whatever path they choose, whether it is research, medicine, or environmental science. “Biology has really changed with the introduction of much more powerful computers and techniques. We couldn’t predict patterns of climate change or simulate models of protein folding without math,” she says. “Now biology education needs to change too.” b
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Photos by John Consoli
Trash
Fuel from
Not from Food
Professor’s Invention Promises Major Advance in Biofuel Production Dr. Steven Hutcheson decided
chips and corn stalks, and energy
Professor Emeritus Ron Weiner, who had a thorough understanding of the cell biology of the bacterium, Saccharophagus degradans, and Hutcheson convinced the US Department of Energy to sequence its genome in 2003. These data allowed them to crack into its potential for biofuel production. “We realized as we were going through the genome sequence that it had every enzyme needed to digest the plant cell wall,” Hutcheson recalls. “I knew there was a growing push to start using cellulosic materials as a fuel source, and this seemed to be the perfect organism to do that.”
crops like switchgrass.
Moving from Lab to Market
Chesapeake Bay Bacteria Key to Biofuel Technology
e pitched the concept of developH ing a technology from this bacterium that could lead to large scale biofuel
to go into the biofuels business while listening to George Bush’s 2006 State of the Union address. “America is addicted to oil…,” Bush said publicly for the first time. “The best way to break this addiction is through technology.” Among other initiatives, the President announced funding for research in cutting-edge methods of ethanol production, not just from corn grain, but from wood
Hutcheson, a Professor of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, held the key to one such innovative approach to produce biofuels. It involved a rare celluloseeating bacterium found in the Chesapeake Bay.
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“Right now, we are converting food to fuel, and there are moral issues associated with that,” Hutcheson says of corn-based ethanol production.
Left — A culture of Saccharophagus degradans, a rare bacterium which produces at least 70 different enzymes that digest the hard cellulose in plant matter and turn it into simple sugars. Right — In his lab, Dr. Hutcheson shows examples of the kinds of plant and paper waste that he can convert to ethanol using S. degradans.
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production to his business-savvy father and brother, who put up funds to help him. “I was so naïve and not thinking about money,” Hutcheson, who is more comfortable as a scientist than a CEO, admits. “I just wanted to know if there was a seed of an idea.” The seed has since blossomed with the help of University programs that support faculty in entrepreneurial pursuits and investments from “angels,” affluent individuals who provide financial support for a
start-up in exchange for ownership equity. Hutcheson has developed a patent-pending enzyme technology which is licensed through his University of Maryland spin-off company Zymetis, Inc. The enzyme mixture, called EthazymeTM, aids in the conversion of all kinds of biomass – from switch grass to waste paper – into ethanol. Hutcheson and Weiner together won the University’s Office of Technology Commercialization Inventor of the Year Award in 2007
(in the Life Sciences category) for the enzyme system invention. It has the potential to yield ethanol at a significantly lower cost than current technologies.
The Biofuel of the Future Responding to the urgent need to find alternatives to oil, Congress passed the 2007 Energy Bill. It included a mandate to increase biofuel production in the US to 36 billion gallons annually by 2022. Although this bill specifies that 21 continued next page…
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Biofuel Production
(continued from page 7)
“We want to focus on our return on the dollar,” Hutcheson says, “so we’re recovering cellulosic materials from waste streams not currently recycled. We only need modest technology developments to make this work.” Above – Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley and UM President C.D. Mote, Jr. toured the Zymetis lab in March 2008, accompanied by reporters from local news media. Dr. Hutcheson explained his patent-pending technology and plan to start producing ethanol in the state by 2009. Right: Governor O’Malley presented Dr. Hutcheson with a $50,000 “challenge grant” from the state to help Zymetis expand its production process to a commercial scale.
billion gallons of that amount must come from advanced sources, such as cellulosic biomass, corn ethanol production could also increase from seven billion gallons/year to 15 billion/year over the next 14 years and exacerbate the problems already associated with that industry. “Right now, we are converting food to fuel, and there are moral issues associated with that,” Hutcheson says of the current corn-based ethanol production process. “It also has a potential economic impact, because you have two competing uses for the same commodity.” That impact has been felt in a variety of food markets as the price of corn has more than tripled in the last few years. Other factors also limit corn-based
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ethanol’s long term sustainability, including environmental problems related to intensive corn production, and the susceptibility of corn crops to drought and fungal diseases. For these reasons, the cellulosic ethanol that Hutcheson and Zymetis can produce may be the biofuel of the future. Compared to all other available biofuels, including biodiesel and ethanol from corn and sugarcane, cellulosic ethanol production has the highest energy balance ratio and the lowest greenhouse gas emissions from production and use. This means that it yields the largest amount of fuel energy for the amount of fossil fuel energy used to make it, and requires the smallest amount of land to produce. Hutcheson estimates that biomass from an energy crop could yield as many as 1000 gallons of fuel per acre, while corn grain yields less than half this amount.
Speeding Up the Breakdown Zymetis is not the only company with a patent-pending technology to produce cellulosic ethanol, but Hutcheson believes his company has a distinct advantage over the competition. “Because the bacteria are so inexpensive to grow and are so prolific in the amount of enzymes they produce,” Hutcheson says, “we can produce a larger diversity of enzymes for less money than competitors.” EthazymeTM is also more powerful at degrading the cell walls of plant matter than other technologies and can break the material down into fermentable sugars in one step. Hutcheson wants to go even further to maximize the efficiency of the process and is working with Jonathan Dinman, Professor and Interim Chair of the Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, to engineer a yeast strain with expanded capabilities.
Biofuel Production
(continued)
Currently, 1/3 of the sugars found in cellulosic biomass can not be fermented by yeast into ethanol. The newly engineered yeast will be able to ferment 90% of the sugars found in these materials.
Building the Infrastructure Research and development are ongoing, but there are real external barriers to be overcome before Zymetis will be producing large amounts of ethanol. “This is truly a nascent industry,” Hutcheson says. “It has an end that is being mandated by the federal government, but most of the infrastructure in between isn’t yet there.” That infrastructure includes everything from the equipment needed to harvest crops like switchgrass or corn stover (the stalks left over after harvest), to the vehicles required to transport them, to the factories where crops would be processed into ethanol, to the cars that are engineered to run optimally on ethanol. “It will probably take 20-25 years to get to full production,” Hutcheson acknowledges.
Turning Trash Into Fuel Yet Hutcheson could be producing ethanol as soon as this year with a minimum investment in infrastructure. “We want to focus on our return on the dollar,” Hutcheson says, speaking like a veteran entrepreneur, “so we’re picking the low-lying fruit by working with a company called Fiberight to recover cellulosic materials from waste streams not currently being recycled. We only need modest technology developments to make this work.” This strategic partnership with the
Virginia-based Fiberight company gives Zymetis access to their technology which is used to extract cellulose from waste products otherwise destined for the landfill. Fiberight had been turning it into blown-in insulation for the once booming housing market. Using a series of washers, Fiberight can extract and concentrate the cellulose so that it’s ready to be converted into ethanol. Together, Fiberight CEO Craig Stewart Paul and Zymetis CEO Steve Hutcheson are moving ahead with plans to open an ethanol processing facility in Baltimore next year with institutional funds from another company.
Remembering the Bottom Line With five employees, and four more soon to come, Zymetis is working to take advantage of an estimated $100 million market through ethanol production and by selling the EthazymeTM technology to existing corn ethanol facilities that can use it to increase their production efficiency. Hutcheson sees himself as the interim CEO for Zymetis and looks forward to returning to research, to which he says the smallest portion of his time is currently devoted. He plans to shift into the role of Chief Technical Officer once the company is established and a full management team assembled. “Remember that the company isn’t about the technology,” he says, when asked what advice he has for fellow faculty considering entrepreneurial pursuits, “it is about the money!” Only two years after President Bush’s speech on developing an energy policy, Hutcheson took center stage with Maryland Governor Martin
Academics as Entrepreneurs The University of Maryland provides a variety of resources to help faculty members turn an invention into a viable business venture. Dr. Hutcheson took advantage of these resources to launch his company Zymetis. He first got support for his business plan by attending the “entrepreneurial office hours” initiated by the College of Chemical and Life Sciences in 2006, and now hosted by MTECH (the Maryland Technology Enterprise Institute) to give faculty the opportunity to consult with experienced entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, and legal/ business professionals on how to build a successful startup company. MTECH also provides support to assist faculty with facilities (through the Bioprocess Scale Up Facility), funding (through the Venture Accelerator Program, Maryland Industrial Partnerships, and the Technology Advancement Program), and developing a business plan (through the Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship).
O’Malley for a press conference on the University of Maryland campus in March. Under the glare of eight television news cameras, he announced his company’s innovation in biofuel production and the role that the University is playing to help break our country’s seemingly insatiable addiction to oil. b
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Chemlife at a glance 15 Years and Going Strong 2008 The College of Chemical and Life Sciences celebrates its 15th anniversary this year and takes pride in the progress that we have made in recruiting many outstanding faculty members, building nationally competitive academic and research programs, increasing and supporting diversity, and developing cutting edge research facilities. The opening of the Bioscience Research Building in September 2007 helped propel the college forward in its research and education programs. This $69 million facility is a prominent reminder of the campus’s commitment to the life sciences and of the college’s accomplishments under the leadership of Dean Norma Allewell over the past eight years.
UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAMS Undergraduate enrollment has increased 21% in the last five years. Number of students:
2586
68% Female l 42% Male > 50% Minority students > 50% of freshman were selected for university honors programs
Distribution of Majors: Biological sciences
82%
Biochemistry Chemistry
11%
6%
Environmental Science and Policy 1%
Graduate Programs Number of students:
720
60% Female l 40% Male 25% International students
Top Five PhD programs: Chemistry Marine, Estuarine, & Environmental Science Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics Biology Neuroscience and Cognitive Science
Faculty Number of full-time tenured or tenure track faculty: 121 Hired within the last ten years: 58 73% men l 27% women College faculty members have programs or research activities in more than 60 countries on seven continents.
Funding Total external funds Sources of funding Photo by John Consoli, photo top right by Cynthia Mitchel
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National Institutes of Health: National Science Foundation: US Department of Agriculture: Department of Defense: State of Maryland: Other funding agencies:
$26 million 37% 32% 5% 4% 3% 19%
Chemlife at a glance Maryland Pathogen Research Institute Tackles Global Disease Threats understand host-pathogen interactions. They are interested in how these microorganisms function at the cellular level in the human body (or host), how our immune systems respond to them, and how we can more quickly detect their presence and avoid infection, or maximize the body’s chances of fighting disease through new treatment approaches. MPRI is developing strategic relationships with state legislators, as well as key institutions, such as the MD
John Consoli John Consoli
The University of Maryland is playing a critical role in securing Maryland’s place as a leader in the biosciences and the College’s new Maryland Pathogen Research Institute (MPRI) will figure prominently in this area. The Institute’s interdisciplinary team of scientists working on the third floor of the Bioscience Research Building and across campus, is confronting the threats to human health posed by pathogens, the microorganisms that cause disease. “Diseases know no global boundaries so we have to be ever vigilant about detecting and treating new and existing pathogens,” says Dr. David Mosser, Professor of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics and the Director of MPRI. To date, the Institute brings together more than 45 affiliated faculty members from 12 campus departments whose expertise includes bioengineering, computer science, chemistry, and the life sciences. Their advisory board is comprised of leading scientists in pathogen research, both on and off campus. MPRI’s broad range of collective expertise, combined with the latest tools in biotechnology, is enabling them to confront questions that will help us to better
“Diseases know no global boundaries so we have to be ever vigilant about detecting and treating new and existing pathogens.” —Dr. David Mosser
College of Chemical & Life Sciences, University of Maryland
Mike Landavere
Department of Business and Economic Development, the United States Army Medical Research Institute for Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID), Canon Life Sciences, and United Therapeutics, to advance their research programs. The State of Maryland is leading the nation in life sciences research, an industry which generates $29 billion in economic output in the state, supporting 120,000 total jobs, $11 billion in income and nearly $600 million in State government taxes annually, according to the MD Comptroller’s office. b
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Ahead on the
Learning Curve:
Faculty Initiatives Elevate Importance of Teaching & Learning Many undergraduate students planning to become doctors, dentists, or other health professionals major in microbiology. Fortunately for this group and perhaps their future patients, their professors are working hard to make the classroom experience engaging and active in a way that science classes haven’t always been. In this model of active learning, students learn how to ask and answer scientific questions, rather than simply memorizing facts. The “Host Pathogen Interaction (HPI) Teaching Group,” a group of 17 faculty members ranging from lecturers to professors, teach the eight undergraduate courses focusing on host-pathogen interactions. They have been collaborating since 2004 to foster teaching and learning and have shared their teaching methods at national and international conferences. “People haven’t really done this before,” says Ann Smith, instructor of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics (CBMG) and
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the project’s principal investigator. “We’re taking advantage of the strong research community in host pathogen interactions and harnessing it to emphasize teaching.” Rigorous Research on What Works in Science Education This group has been supported by the College’s Teaching and Learning Center (TLC), led by Dr. Gili Marbach-Ad, which was established in 2006 by a grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Undergraduate Science Education Program. The TLC encourages strategies to improve classroom learning and promotes excellence in teaching throughout the College by providing mentoring opportunities for faculty and graduate student teaching assistants, and facilitating faculty-led initiatives to analyze classroom curricula, assess what students are learning, and publish the findings in leading science
education journals. The University’s Center for Teaching Excellence, led by Spencer Benson, Associate Professor (CBMG), encouraged the creation of the College’s Teaching and Learning Center to complement CTE initiatives and provide resources specific for faculty teaching science curricula. Are Students Really Learning or Just Passing the Tests? The HPI group discusses how and what they teach to ensure that they aren’t duplicating efforts or omitting key concepts necessary for students to progress to higher-level courses. The group focuses on one course each semester and develops ways to incorporate more “active learning” approaches. “Our interest is to bring our passion for learning about science in our research world to our students in our undergraduate classes,” says Dan Stein, Professor of CBMG, who teaches the General
Photos by Cynthia Mitchel
Microbiology course. They agreed upon 13 fundamental concepts that students need to know, and have used these to develop a “concept inventory” that enables them to monitor if students are really learning these central ideas. They give students an 18 question multiple-choice test in which they are also asked to explain their rationale for their answer (see next page for example). From this, they can deduce how to target their curriculum to student needs. “Learning outcomes assessment has become a hot topic. It relates to accountability and revealing what students learn,” explains Kaci Thompson, Director, Undergraduate Research and Internship Programs. “In some fields, they already have concept inventories, but they are much less developed in the biological
sciences.” The HPI group is clearly filling a void, and others on campus and beyond have taken notice. Promoting Active Learning on Campus and Beyond Recently, Ann Smith was invited by the UM School of Public Health to share strategies for active learning at a teaching retreat they sponsored. “We were looking for the best practices on campus for teaching tools,” says Dushanka Kleinman, Associate Dean of the School of Public Health, “and immediately thought of the host-pathogen interaction teaching group. It was wonderful for us to see how that group is moving forward in the science of teaching, and publishing the outcomes of their teaching approaches.”
The HPI group has also been invited to present their findings at leading conferences focused on science education research. Norma Allewell, Dean of the College of Chemical and Life Sciences, encourages faculty participation in these initiatives. “I am really excited about how this is bringing together the teaching and research missions of the College,” she says, “and is raising our undergraduate program to a new level of excellence.”
Photos opposite page: (l) Students in the General Microbiology laboratory, (r) Dr. Dan Stein leads a discussion in the lab. Above: Dr. Kevin McIver (r) guides students to ask and answer scientific questions.
Undergraduate Students as Active Learners and Teachers “Most people remember sitting through lectures that gave tons of content you had to memorize and then regurgitate for a multiplechoice exam,” says Ken Frauwirth, Assistant Professor (CBMG), says
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The Host Pathogen Interaction Teaching Group uses a “concept inventory” to learn what students understand and what they do not understand regarding how the human host responds to bacterial pathogens. The goal is to ensure that students can articulate their understanding concisely in an explanation. Here is a sample question:
Q:
Patient A has been treated and recovered from a recent infection with Streptococcus pneumoniae. Patient B does not have any recent history of infectious disease. Both patients are in the emergency room with an infection caused by the same strain of Esherichia coli. You would expect that: a. The symptoms of Patient A would be more severe than the symptoms of Patient B b. The symptoms of Patient B would be more severe than the symptoms of Patient A c. The symptoms of Patient A would be the same as those of Patient B. Explain your response
A:
The symptoms of Patient A would be the same as the symptoms of Patient B. The immune response to a pathogen is specific. The two bacteria are different enough that the immune response to one will not provide protection to the other. This simple but elegant realization provides the basis for treatment of infectious disease and vaccine development. To come to this understanding, students must appreciate the characteristics of bacteria and the mechanisms by which the immune response sees these characteristics.
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Learning Curve
(continued from page 15)
of the old-school approach to science instruction. “We’re trying to get away from that. The best way to teach science is to engage students in how science is done.” In HPI courses, students debate current microbiology topics heard on National Public Radio, or published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. A side benefit of the more studentoriented learning approach found in the HPI courses is the opportunity for undergraduates to gain experience as teaching assistants. In the sophomore level course General Microbiology, undergraduate teaching assistants (UTAs) acting as peer guides help keep fellow students actively engaged. “Students are sometimes intimidated by talking to the professor,” says June Chan, (Microbiology ’08) a former UTA for General Microbiology. “Having a UTA is powerful because they are more approachable and have gone through what you are going through.” Another undergraduate teaching assistant described how he got students to think about the underlying concepts behind an experiment: “I was there as a guide,” says Nik Neelkantan, a microbiology major who graduated this spring. “I went to each lab group and asked them to stop and think – ‘Why is this important, what purpose does it serve?’” Neelkantan considers the work of the HPI teaching group “groundbreaking,” but expresses some frustration in getting students to appreciate active learning approaches. “It’s not hard to memorize stuff,” he says, “but really learning something is more challenging. Most of these students are in the pre-health professions track and need to be prepared for when they get a patient that is not a cookie-cutter case. They have to be able to think it through and use what they know.” SPRING 2008
Photo by Cynthia Mitchel
How Much Do Students Really Grasp the Concepts?
June Chan (left), a microbiology major who graduated this spring, served as an undergraduate teaching assistant for General Microbiology, taught by Dr. Ann Smith (right).
Teachers as Mentors and as Learners “There is a stereotype that research faculty don’t emphasize teaching,” says Najib El-Sayed, Associate Professor of CBMG. “But this group shows how invested we are and allows us to bring our expertise to our students and keep our courses current.” As the research area in HPI has grown on campus, new faculty have joined the group. “I learned about the importance of teaching undergraduates from the professors on the team even before I had set up my research lab,” says Volker Briken, Assistant Professor, who teaches Pathogenic Microbiology. “I have a collegial group to share teaching ideas that meets on Monday, and a similar group to discuss research on Friday… that is how science teaching and research is most successful, when you work with a team.” One of the senior faculty members, David Mosser, Professor of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics and Director of the Maryland Pathogen Research Institute, echoes this: “Now you are just as likely to talk to your colleague about a teaching technique you tried in your class as you are to discuss a paper in Science. That probably wouldn’t have happened before.” b
DevelopmentUpdate Great Expectations, Outstanding Results College Surpasses Fundraising Goals for 2007-2008 Since the launch of Great Expectations, the Campaign for Maryland in 2005, the College of Chemical and Life Sciences has had its best year yet in reaching out to alumni and friends for gifts to help support a wide variety of research and education initiatives. The College surpassed its fundraising goals for the entire year, thanks to a variety of new gifts, including a generous seven figure pledge bequest from an anonymous donor that will be used to create the Nathan Drake Endowment in Organic Chemistry. A sampling of new campaign gifts (FY08) reflects the diversity of interests of our alumni and friends:
The John W. Reed Memorial Health Professions Student Support Endowment Founded by physician Dr. Victoria Yorke, (Biochemistry ’82) in memory of her late husband John Reed, this endowment provides scholarships for pre-medical, pre-dental, and pre-veterinary students, as well as support services critical for success in these professional schools.
Douglas Kent Shaffer Endowment for an Undergraduate Analytical Chemistry Laboratory This unrestricted gift from Douglas Kent Shaffer (B.S. Chemistry, ’72), a successful forensic scientist, provides undergraduate students with critical supplies and equipment for an excellent laboratory education in analytical chemistry.
The William J. Bailey Fellowship Mary Caroline Bailey established this fellowship in 1992 in memory of her late husband William J. Bailey (pictured), who was a professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. The fellowship, which provides support for graduate students in the Department, was augmented this year by gifts in memory of Mary, who died in November 2007. The fund now totals $500,000.
The William J. Higgins Distinguished Teacher-Scholar Fund Founded by alumnus Julius Hyatt, DDS, (Zoology ’80), this fund honors the legacy of Dr. William J. Higgins (pictured) by endowing a professorship in the Department of Biology. During his 34 years (and counting) as a faculty member in the Department of Biology (formerly Zoology), Dr. Higgins has guided countless students into successful careers through his teaching, advising, and mentoring.
Nathan Drake Endowment in Organic Chemistry A generous seven figure pledge bequest from an anonymous donor will be used to create the Nathan Drake Endowment in Organic Chemistry. Dr. Nathan L. Drake (pictured) was head of the University’s Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry from 1940 until 1959. He founded the Institute for Molecular Physics at Maryland in 1950.
Dr. Erik and Mrs. Joyce Young Endowment to Enhance the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry This unrestricted gift enables the department chair to strategically allocate funds as needed to insure the department’s continued growth and success. Dr. Erik Young (pictured) is a chemistry/biochemistry alumnus and UM Foundation Trustee.
The Board of Visitors Fellowship in Support of Graduate Research Founded by Board of Visitors member and UM alumna Dr. Ann Hobbs (pictured), this fellowship augments the stipend of one graduate student researcher. Several other Board Members including alumni Dr. John Young and Henry Wixon also support this fund.
The Entomology General Operating Fund This fund receives ongoing support from alumnus Jay Nixon (pictured), CEO of American Pest Control in suburban Maryland, who serves as the entomologist for the US Department of State and provides integrated pest management (IPM) training for State Department personnel.
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Faculty&research Faculty Honors
Photo by John Consoli
Biologist Sergei Sukharev Recognized for Discovery of Membrane Sensor Involved in Pressure Regulation Dr. Sergei Sukharev, Professor of Biology, is investigating the cell receptors that are involved in regulating our cardiovascular systems. This work builds upon his recent breakthrough in understanding how mechanoreceptors function in E. coli bacteria. The basic mechanisms of bacterial mechanoreceptors are similar to the force receptors in mammals and scientists can use this new knowledge to better understand complex human physiology. The Biophysical Society honored Dr. Sukharev with the 2008 Michael & Kate Barany Award for Young Investigators for his research on how bacterial cells open membrane channels in response to tension and adjust cell pressure.
Biochemist Catherine Fenselau Recognized for Pioneering Use of Mass Spectrometry in Biological Research Catherine Fenselau, Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, will receive the Frank H. Field & Joe L. Franklin Award for Outstanding Achievement in Mass Spectrometry this fall. Her research has spanned a broad range of mass spectrometry (MS) topics and applications over a career of four decades. One of Fenselau’s major innovations is using mass spectrometry to obtain amino acid sequence information from microbial protein fragments. The order of the amino acid building blocks can then be compared to those in public databases and used to identify a microorganism. Her goal is to build systems that can continuously monitor the environment for pathogens and toxins. She has also led major advances in how samples are prepared for mass spectrometry, including the use of microwave technology to break proteins into fragments. Cell Biologist Spencer Benson Receives Fulbright Scholarship to Train Educational Leaders in Hong Kong Dr. Spencer Benson, Associate Professor in the Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics and Director of the Center for Teaching Excellence, has been selected to be a 2008-09 Fulbright Scholar in the first cohort of the Fulbright Hong Kong General Education Program. Dr. Benson and three other US educational leaders will travel to Hong Kong this fall to teach, conduct developmental work on general education, collaborate across Hong Kong universities, and lead a series of workshops on general education for academic leaders throughout Asia. These Fulbright awards are designed to bring prominent American faculty to facilitate the move to four-year undergraduate programs at Hong Kong universities and the introduction of liberal arts curricula at Hong Kong secondary schools.
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Faculty&Research Commencement Speaker Geerat Vermeij, Former UM Faculty Member, Kicks off Darwin’s 200th Birthday Year To kick off the year of celebration and exploration of topics related to evolution coinciding with Charles Darwin’s 200th birthday year, the College was honored to have Dr. Geerat J. Vermeij, Professor of Geology at the University of California at Davis and a pioneer in the field of evolutionary biology and paleontology, as this spring’s commencement speaker. The College also inducted Dr. Vermeij into the Circle of Discovery, an honor bestowed on members of the extended College of Chemical and Life Sciences community for their visionary leadership and outstanding research in the biosciences or chemistry. Charles Darwin’s 200th birthday is February 12, 2009. Darwin first presented his theory of natural selection to fellow scientists 150 years ago this July. Darwin proposed an elegant and sophisticated explanation for the incredible variety of living things on Earth: that evolution was driven by natural selection. Through this process, organisms most suited to their environment survive and reproduce and pass their advantages on to their offspring. Many special events worldwide are planned in Darwin’s honor over the coming year, and the College is organizing its Bioscience Research and Technology Review Day 2008 on November 12 around the theme of evolution. Dr. Vermeij studies marine mollusks, living as well as extinct, and is known for his research on the role animals play in shaping each other’s evolutionary fates. He is interested in what he calls “the history of life on Earth from an economic point of view.” He is recognized for his unparalleled accomplishments as an outstanding marine biologist. Blind from the age of six, he is also recognized for his influence on young blind scientists through the National
Dr. Charles Darwin (pictured at left) (1809-1882), first presented his theory of natural selection to fellow scientists 150 years ago this July. Dr. Geerat Vermeij (pictured below), evolutionary biologist and professor of geology at the University of California at Davis, presented his theories of evolution relating to marine mollusks at a special seminar “Innovation, Fossils, and Time: Is Evolutionary History Predictable?” attended by faculty, students, and alumni on May 21, 2008. The College’s Bioscience Research and Technology Review Day 2008 (on November 12) will be organized around the theme of evolution. Renowned naturalist E.O. Wilson, Joseph Pellegrino University Research Professor in Entomology for the Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University, will be the keynote speaker. Details will be announced at www.chemlife.umd.edu.
Federation of the Blind. He is author of nearly 100 scientific papers and four books, including his autobiography Privileged Hands: A Scientific Life. He was on the faculty of the University of Maryland Department of Zoology (now Biology) from 1971-1989. b
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Students&Alumni Growing the Tree of Life: PhD Candidate Travels the World to Document Evolutionary Relationships of Butterflies and Akito Kawahara still uses the butterfly net that his father gave him when he was four years old, though his collection and classification techniques have undoubtedly advanced. Kawahara’s passion for studying butterflies and moths (Lepidoptera) originates in his unique experience growing up in both Japan and the United States. “In Japan, I learned to appreciate natural history and got interested in insects,” he says. “In the US, I started looking at a potential career in entomology and biology
because of this enthusiasm for insects that I discovered in Japan.” Akito knew he wanted to devote his life to research since he was an undergraduate studying entomology at Cornell University. “We’re going through a biodiversity crisis right now and many things are going extinct. There aren’t enough researchers in insect taxonomy and systematics, and I feel really strongly about the urgency of what we have to classify and discover,” he explains. As a PhD candidate with the University of Maryland Department
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of Entomology, Kawahara has traveled to many countries, including Chile, Congo, Costa Rica, Malaysia, and Taiwan, to collect and classify Lepidoptera. He contributes to the Tree of Life project, an international collaboration funded by the National Science Foundation that seeks to understand the evolutionary relationships of all living organisms. His advisor, Dr. Charles Mitter, is one of the Principal Investigators on the project (www.leptree.net). “Through this research, we can answer questions about evolutionary biology and explore the deeper relationships of Lepidoptera,” Kawahara says. Kawahara, Mitter, and other UM colleagues, along with collaborators from the Smithsonian, Europe, and throughout the world, are on a mission to catalogue the DNA of the Lepidoptera they collect in the hope of adding to the tree of knowledge about the more than 150,000 known moth and butterfly species. “There are many more that remain undiscovered,” Kawahara says. The specimens are often sampled in remote rainforest areas that researchers travel days to reach. Once there, they set up generators and mercury vapor lamps at night to attract insects. “You see all sorts of things, in addition to butterflies and moths, bats come in to eat the insects and frogs too,” Kawahara explains excitedly. “It’s different every night. You see an amazing diversity, and come to really appreciate nature. I love it.” Out of thousands of insects that appear, they collect only those that they are permitted, and necessary for the research. In Dr. Jerome Regier’s
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laboratory at the UM Biotechnology Institute, Kawahara extracts and stores the DNA. Kawahara also works closely with Dr. Michael Cummings’ Laboratory of Molecular Evolution at the University of Maryland’s Center for Bioinformatics and Computational Biology. Dr. Cummings’ research group helps analyze the DNA using a network “grid” of thousands of computer processors. The data are then made available to researchers throughout the world. After he completes his PhD, Kawahara plans to pursue a professorship and continue his research on many continents. He feels grateful to his parents who enabled him to benefit from a bilingual and bicultural upbringing which he feels was key to his interest in entomology. Recently, he was able to thank his father in an unusual but apt way – he named a moth after him. b Images: left–Akito Kawahara in the laboratory; above top–an ink illustration by Akito Kawahara of the head of the Beltheca oni moth, which he discovered and named after his artist father On Kawara (they use a different spelling of their last name). This unique moth is known to dance; above top–an ink illustration of the moth “dancing.”
Students &Alumni Making it Easier to Be Green: UM Alumni Attend Special Event on “Greening” New York City, Hosted by NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg UM alumni participated in an exceptional evening of discussion and networking at the first program the University of Maryland has ever held in conjunction with the New York Historical Society. The sold-out event “How Green is My City, Now and in 2030” was led by Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, who discussed his vision for creating a greener New York through initiatives concerning On Earth Day 2007, NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg released PlaNYC, a comprehensive traffic reduction, new energy sustainability plan for the City’s future. sources, new parks and housing, Visit www.nyc.gov/planyc2030. and improved water and air quality. Following the program, Dr. Norma Allewell, Dean of the College, hosted a reception for Maryland alumni. Ecological sustainability is one of the College’s strategic research initiatives, and this event provided an opportunity to learn about “green” innovations in the largest and most densely populated city in the United States. Despite its density, New York is an unusually green city, thanks to the visionary park builders of the 19th-century and to the extensive recreational facilities created in the mid-20th century. Today, New York hopes to be a role model for other cities confronting the environmental crisis, and speakers from the mayor’s administration as well as urban planning experts discussed current initiatives to fulfill this leadership role. The gathering included alumni from across the University of Maryland. Those representing the College of Chemical and Life Sciences included Dr. Susan Tannenbaum, Zoology ‘64, and her husband Douglas Nemens, and Dr. Ilya Rozenbaum, Biology ‘98. Dr. Fred Sachs, an alumnus of the Clark School of Engineering, who works for the Mayor’s Office of Environmental Protection in Manhattan, also attended. Other guests included those from the R.H. Smith School of Business and the Colleges of Computer, Math and Physical Sciences, and Arts and Humanities. Dean Allewell provided an update of the Univerity’s current efforts to green the campus, including the move to a biodiesel-powered fleet of UM Shuttle buses and efforts to move to cleaner sources of electric power. b
UM’s Climate Action Plan University of Maryland President Dan Mote signed the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment in May 2007. More than 500 presidents have signed the commitment and all University System of Maryland institutions are participating. Maryland pledges to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions from all campus operations and activities and move toward the goal of carbon neutrality. For more information and a list of participants, visit www. presidentsclimatecommitment.org. The University of Maryland Office of Sustainability was formed in the summer of 2007 to unite individuals, departments, and offices in the campuswide mission to reduce the university’s adverse environmental impacts and promote sustainability. Diverse campus input is actively sought. Visit www. sustainability.umd.edu to learn more and to share your ideas.
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Students&Alumni Alumni and Student Photo Gallery 2007-2008
Photos this page, clockwise from bottom left: Bottom left: At the University’s Celebration of Scholarships luncheon, Dean Norma Allewell posed with some of the College’s 2008 scholarship and fellowship recipients. Middle left: Patrick McTamney (l) and Aaron Haeusler (r), recipients of the Herman K. Kraybill Biochemistry Graduate Fellowship, with benefactor Herman K. Kraybill and Dean Allewell at the luncheon. Top left: Young Alumni Game Watch at DuClaw’s – Dean Allewell and recent CLFS graduates cheered on the Maryland Terps in a game against the Virginia Tech Hokies at DuClaw’s Brewing Co. in Baltimore in January 2008. Top right: “Alumni vs. Professors” Golf Outing – The College’s third annual golf outing at the UM golf course brought together faculty, staff, and alumni to enjoy 18 holes, in spite of the drizzly spring weather. The winner was alumnus Jay Nixon. The best score for the faculty was Dr. Jeff DeStefano (CBMG). Afterward, Dean Allewell joined the group for happy hour at Mulligan’s Bar. Pictured l to r: Jeff DeStefano; Dean Norma Allewell; Doug Walker, Zoology BS ’81; Bill Higgins, Biology; and Jay Nixon, Entomology MS ’73. Photos opposite page, clockwise from bottom left: Bottom left: Ninth Annual Alumni Association Awards Gala ( l to r) – Andrea Morris, CLFS Assistant Dean of Development and Corporate Relations; Frank Russek (PhD ’72, Economics); Norma Allewell, Dean, College of Chemical and Life Sciences; Henry Wixon, Chair of the College’s Board of Visitors (BS ’76, MS ’80, Zoology) who represented Distinguished Alumnus Joseph Rodricks, PhD ’68, recognized at the gala for his contributions to environmental health and risk assessment; Fran Rotter (BS, ’82 Zoology); Steve Rotter, President Elect of the University Alumni Association (BS, ’82 Zoology); Michael Doyle, Chair, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry; and Janice Doyle. Top left: Induction of Dr. Geerat Vermeij into the College’s Circle of Discovery Dr. Vermeij, a former College faculty member, served as the 2008 CLFS commencement speaker and was inducted into the College’s Circle of Discovery (see story, p. 16). The event was attended by faculty, students, and alumni who studied with Dr. Vermeij. (pictured l to r: Dean Norma Allewell; Brett Kent (PhD, ’81, Zoology); Miriam Smyth (MS ’82, PhD ’86, Zoology); Michael Berenhaus (BS, ’81 Zoology); Andrew Pope, (BS, ’73 Zoology); Suzanne Hamilton (PhD, ’79 Zoology)
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Students &Alumni
Top right: 2008 University Medal recipient Peter DeMuth, (’08, Biochemistry and Chemical Engineering, high honors in biochemistry, summa cum laude), with Associate Dean Robert Infantino at the College’s commencement reception. The University Medal is the highest academic honor bestowed on a graduate. DeMuth was mentored by Dr. Philip DeShong (Chemistry and Biochemistry) and worked in his senior year as part of an interdisciplinary team developing nanoparticles that can be used to image and deliver drugs to certain kinds of cells, including cancer or bacterial cells. He is entering a PhD program in bioengineering at MIT this fall. Middle right: Destined to be a Dentist? –Jordan Zaner (’08, Biological Sciences), son of Robert Zaner (’78, Zoology) is following in his father’s footsteps and entering dental school this fall. Bottom right: Maryland Pride –Graduate Claire Ciarkowski (’08, Biological Sciences, Physiology, and Neurobiology, high honors in Biology, cum laude) made a striking statement with her mortarboard.
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Save the Dates! Zoology Alumni Reunion September 19 & 20, 2008 Featuring: • 3rd Annual Biology Graduate Student Research Day • Cohen Foundation of Maryland Golf Tournament • Maryland Terps vs. Eastern Michigan football game • Reconnecting with fellow Zoology alumni • Tours of the Bioscience Research Building
University of Maryland Homecoming October 25, 2008
Featuring: • Maryland Terps vs. North Carolina State football game • College of Chemical & Life Sciences Tailgate Party with Neal Olkewicz (’79), former Terp and Redskins linebacker
Bioscience Research & Technology Review Day November 12, 2008
Featuring: • Keynote address by E.O. Wilson, Harvard University • Special presentations on the theme of evolution • Visit from the ghost of Charles Darwin who will discuss how to teach concepts of evolution in grades K-12
Visit www.chemlife.umd.edu for more details
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