Mid-Hudson ACS Matters - http://midhudsonacs.org

Minutes for Mid-Hudson Section Of ACS Executive Board Meeting on November 3, 2005, at Crew Restaurant, Poughkeepsie

In Attendence: John Galbraith, Cyndy MacMahon, Daniel Freedman, John Edwards, Neil Fitzgerald, David Straus, Joan Skinner

Minutes of Meeting for October 5th meeting were approved.

Chairs items: Alton Hassel – spoke at Oct 11 meeting – Johnny sent him a thank-you card signed by all the students who attended.

November 9th meeting will be at Vassar, Mudd 3rd floor at 7:00 pm – Geoff Johnson, Englehardt – John will follow up with him about dinner etc. Honorarium check was requested.

December Meeting – Neil will contact Chris Palmer of NY Dept of Health in Albany – check availability for week of Nov 30.

Councilors report on electronic balloting – David Straus presented the changes to the byelaws that are required to allow electronic balloting starting in 2006. Bylaws will be accepted by the appointed ACS elections committee, but also need to be ratified by the section membership. Will do this in the November election. Action items – John to place check boxes on ballot for accepting/not accepting the by law changes. Bylaws will be placed on website and the link communicated to the membership in the ballot cover letter. John will start the ballot mailing ASAP – will go with printers from last year who will provide printed envelopes and will photocopy and trifold the paperwork.

ACS National Chemistry Week – Joy of Toys Events went well and were well attended. No donations to ACS were obtained at the events. Neil had about 15 kids, OCCC had 35 kids, New Paltz had 35 kids, we think Mount St Mary’s had 10 kids. Neil may need to follow up with a report on the section events to National.

Poster competition needs to be judged – meeting will take place after Nov 9 meeting to determine winners. Prizes need to be determined.

WCC – Nothing to report – Joan will catch up with Mary Dery to find out if there is anything

Gissel was looking for any items for the December newsletter.

Joan discussed the treasurers report which was provided to everyone as an excel printout at the meeting. We appear to be on budget. There will be a Nov 7 meeting of the budget committee at the Hyde Park Brewery at 6:30. Joan again emphasized that we need to get more affiliate members.

Nominations called for officially in the newsletter… have bios for need bios for Joan Skinner (Treasurer), John Edwards (Chair-Elect)…. Need some further information from Joe Tanski (Member at Large), and Neil Fitzgerald (Secretary) (from both I need professional affiliation information and details on past activities within the ACS).

Dan presented the speakers list for the Spring/Summer and Fall – suggested that we have a Wine tour meeting in the summer. Speakers seem to be quite timely in their topics – perhaps we should push the advertising for these events. January speaker should be on Bird Flu if possible?

The Mid-Hudson Section of the American Chemical Society and the Chemistry Department of Vassar College Announce:

“Morphology Of Effect Materials”
Dr. Geoff Johnson, Engelhard Corporation
Wednesday, November 9, 2005 Time: 7:00 PM
Location: Vassar College , Mudd Chemistry Building, 3rd Floor – Science Visualization (Sci Vis) Lab

Contact Joseph Tanski (Vassar) at 845-437-7503 or by e-mail at jotanski@vassar.edu.

About the lecture: Classic pearlescent pigments have evolved far beyond the biologically derived mother-of-pearl that originally inspired them. The class of synthetics that includes pearlescent pigments is now called “effect materials.” This renaming emphasizes that appearance is the sum of many sensory effects, not just color. The most robust effect materials are composed of thin layers of metal oxides coated onto inorganic substrates. The layer structure determines color effects, but the morphology of the substrate plays a significant role in the overall effect. There is also a class of effect materials composed of bismuth oxychloride, in which the morphology of the BiOCl crystal is solely responsible for the observed effects.

About the speaker: Dr. Johnson is originally from South West England, near Bath. He received a BS in Chemistry from the University of Birmingham, UK and his MS in Chemistry from the École Nationale Supérieure de Chimie de Montpellier, France. He earned a PhD in Inorganic Materials Chemistry with Professor Mark Weller at the University of Southampton, UK. Dr. Johnson’s postdoctoral experience includes work in zeolite chemistry with Professor John Parise at SUNY Stony Brook and chemical catalysis at Worcester Polytechnic Institute with Fabio Ribeiro. He joined Engelhard in 2001 as a Research Chemist at the Corporate R&D facility in Iselin, New Jersey. In June 2004, he joined Engelhard’s Appearance and Performance Technology facility in Ossining, New York as a Senior Scientist. Dr. Johnson is a member of the Royal Society of Chemistry, American Chemical Society, Materials Research Society, and International Zeolite Association.

Directions to Vassar College : Vassar College is located at 124 Raymond Avenue in Poughkeepsie , NY. Refer to the following link for driving directions and campus map: www.vassar.edu/directions/. Enter the main entrance of the campus on Raymond Avenue .

Election Results for Mid-Hudson Section
2006 Executive Committee:
Chair: Dan Freedman
Chair-Elect: John Edwards;
Past Chair: John Galbraith
Treasurer: Joan Skinner
Secretary: Neil Fitzgerald
Councilor: David Straus
Alternate Councilor: Timothy MacMahon;
Members–at–Large: Joe Tanski, Cynthia MacMahon, Sarjit Kaur
Program Chair: John Harrington;
Public Relations Chair: Mary Dery;
Awards Chair: Patti Cusatis
WCC Chair: Mary Dery
Mid-Hudson Chemist Editor/Publisher: Gissel Mentore

For more information visit http://www.midhudsonacs.org/officers06.htm

Meeting #1
“Science Policy: Chemistry and Nuclear Waste Disposal” Dr. Douglas J. Raber GreenPoint Science
Wednesday, March 15, 2006, Orange County Community College Middletown, Refreshments: 6:15 PM, Lecture: 7:00 PM (Room TBA)* Room to be announced on the Mid-Hudson ACS listserv and at www.midhudsonacs.org. Contact Tim MacMahon (OCCC) at 845-341-4575 or by e-mail at tmacmaho@sunyorange.edu.

About the lecture: Soon after the end of World War II, peaceful uses of atomic energy became a major thrust of scientific endeavor around the world. At present, the world derives 16 percent of its electricity from nuclear power, mainly in industrialized countries. The level is 20 percent in the United States and 75 percent in France. Concerns about safety in the nuclear power industry have been a source of continuing controversy for many years, and the single most important challenge in this area is what to do with nuclear waste. The spent nuclear fuel from a reactor is highly radioactive and will remain so for an extremely long time. The potential for release of radioactive material into the environment is strongly coupled to the chemical properties of the waste material, so many of the problems and many of the potential solutions are chemical in nature. This talk will present issues in current national policy and will discuss the interplay between science and policy, using several National Research Council studies to illustrate the complexity of the problem. How is scientific input obtained? How is it utilized? Does it receive the respect that it deserves? And what can you do to improve the situation?

About the speaker: Dr. Raber is a science policy consultant with GreenPoint Science, which he formed in 2004. Previously, he served for thirteen years as Director and then Senior Scholar of the Board on Chemical Sciences and Technology at the National Academy of Sciences and its operating arm, the National Research Council (NRC). Before joining the NRC in 1989, he was a member of the faculty of the University of South Florida from 1970 to 1990, publishing some 70 research articles. Dr. Raber is active in ACS governance, serving recently on the C&EN Advisory Board, the Committee on Chemistry and Public Affairs, and the Committee on Science (which he previously chaired). He recently completed several terms as the Secretary of the U.S. National Committee for IUPAC and currently serves as Chair of the Chemical Technology Operating Council of the AIChE. Dr. Raber’s responsibilities at the NRC centered on organizing and directing science and science policy studies, particularly in the areas of federal policy and its interrelationships with the chemical sciences. These efforts resulted in more than 50 reports and monographs that provide technical policy guidance on topics that encompass R&D opportunities, laboratory safety and management, nuclear waste disposal, and the threat of terrorism.

Directions: From Rte. 17M West in Middletown turn left onto Fulton Street. Turn left onto Wawayanda Ave. Turn left onto Grandview Ave. Enter parking lot on right. For complete directions and campus map, visit http://www.sunyorange.edu/aboutus/directions/index.shtml.

Meeting #2
“Nanoscale Building Blocks for Mesoscopic Materials” Dr. Tom Mallouk, Pennsylvania State University, Monday, March 20, 2006, at IBM* Refreshments: 6:15 PM, Lecture: 7:00 PM

*Registration for this talk is required. Contact Charles Davis (IBM) at 845-892-9570 or by e-mail at cdavis@us.ibm.com by March 13. Photo ID must be presented at the site. Room information and directions will be provided to all registered attendees.

About the speaker: Dr. Mallouk is the DuPont Professor of Materials Chemistry and Physics and the Director of the Center for Nanoscale Science at Penn State. His research focuses on the assembly of nanoscale materials and their applications to interesting problems in chemistry, including photocatalysis, molecular electronics, environmental remediation, fuel cell electrochemistry, chemical sensing, and catalytically driven movement.

Meeting #3
“Mechanism of Oxidation of DNA by Pt(IV) Complexes” Dr. Sunhee Choi, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Middlebury College
Friday, March 31 2006, Vassar College, Refreshments:6:15 PM, Lecture:7:00 PM Mudd Chemistry Building (Room TBA)*

*Room to be announced on the Mid-Hudson ACS listserv and at www.midhudsonacs.org.
Contact Joe Tanski (Vassar) at 845-437-7503 or by e-mail at jotanski@vassar.edu.

About the lecture: Platinum complexes are biologically important for their anticancer activities. The interaction of DNA with PtII complexes has been extensively studied by many research groups. PtIV complexes are kinetically inert and their reaction with DNA was not generally expected. However, Dr. Choi’s research has shown that PtIV complexes with highly electron-withdrawing and bulky ligands have high reduction potentials and high reactivity toward 5’-GMP. Furthermore, a PtIV complex, trans-Pt(d,l)(1,2-(NH2)2C6H10)Cl4, [PtIVCl4(dach)], which has a high reduction potential, oxidizes 5’-dGMP, 3’-dGMP and 5’-d[GTTTT]-3’. Kinetic studies and the proposed mechanism will be discussed.

About the speaker: Dr. Sunhee Choi is Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Middlebury College in Vermont. Dr. Choi received a B.A. degree from Seoul National University in 1973 and went on to receive a master’s degree in Physical Chemistry at the Korean Advanced Institute of Science in 1975. She earned her Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry at Princeton University in 1982 in the laboratory of Professor Thomas G. Spiro. After her Ph.D. she became an industrial chemist at Colgate-Palmolive where she was awarded the Colgate Presidential Award for Technical Excellence and obtained a U.S. Patent for cold water detergency. In the fall of 1987, she joined the faculty at Middlebury. Dr. Choi is active in research in metals in biological system with many of her undergraduate colleagues. Her research has been funded from a variety of sources such as the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, Petroleum Research Fund, Research Corporation, and Vermont-EPSCOR.
Directions: Vassar College is located off Raymond Avenue in Poughkeepsie, NY. Refer to the following link for driving directions and campus map: http://www.vassar.edu/directions/. Enter the Main Entrance of the campus on Raymond Avenue and The Main Building and College Center are in front of the Main Entrance. The Security Guard at the Main Entrance will direct you to parking. The Villard Room is on the second floor of the Main Building/College Center. The Alumnae House is located across the street from the tennis courts on Raymond Ave at Vassar.

The Symposium: The symposium will be held from 3:00-4:30 PM in the Villard Room on the second floor of the College Center at Vassar College. Set-up must be completed by 3:00 PM. As in previous years, all research will be presented as posters.
When-Where-What: Wednesday, April 19, 2006, 3:00 – 8:00 PM, Villard Room, Vassar College, Poster Session: 3:00-4:30 PM, Talk: 4:45 PM, Dinner: 6:15 PM (Alumnae House), Guest Speaker: Dr. Jenny Glusker, Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, PA

Dinner: Please make reservations with Dr. Joe Tanski by Friday, April 7. Dinner will be at 6:15 PM at the Alumnae House, immediately following the keynote speaker.

To present a poster, please submit an abstract of 200 words or less. The format for the abstract should adhere as closely as possible to the following guidelines: 1) 12 point Times-Roman font, 2) One inch margins, 3) MS Word document, 4) The abstract title should be typed in capital letters, followed by the authors’ names and institution name, institution address, and telephone number in lower case letters. Advisor’s name should be followed by an asterisk (*). Please submit the abstract no later than Friday, April 7 by e-mail or diskette to Dr. Joe Tanski. If you are unable to meet this deadline, please contact Dr. Tanski by phone or e-mail. Poster easels will be available for the first 35 participants; tables will also be available. Your poster should be self-supported on cardboard or posterboard backing. The standard size for ACS posters is 48 inches wide by 36 inches high. You will be contacted before the symposium to confirm acceptance of your abstract. Please note: there will be a $25 conference fee per poster up to $100 maximum per school.
Please submit your abstract, via e-mail or diskette, to:
Dr. Joe Tanski
Department of Chemistry
Vassar College, Box 601
124 Raymond Avenue
Poughkeepsie, NY 12604
Phone: 845-437-7503
E-mail: jotanski@vassar.edu

Directions: Vassar College is located off Raymond Avenue in Poughkeepsie, NY. Refer to the following link for driving directions and campus map: http://www.vassar.edu/directions/. Enter the Main Entrance of the campus on Raymond Avenue and The Main Building and College Center are in front of the Main Entrance. The Security Guard at the Main Entrance will direct you to parking. The Villard Room is on the second floor of the Main Building/College Center. The Alumnae House is located across the street from the tennis courts on Raymond Ave at Vassar.

The march 2006 Edition of the Mid-Hudson Chemist (Newsletter of the Mid-Hudson Section of the American Chemical Society) can be found at the following link:

Mid-Hudson Chemist – 3/06

“What You Always Wanted to Know About Chemicals in Foods but Were Afraid to Eat”
by Dr. Robert P. Bates, University of Florida,

Tuesday May 9, 2006,
Mount Saint Mary College, Refreshments: 6:15 PM, Lecture: 7:00 PM (Room TBA)*

Contact Lynn Maelia (Mount Saint Mary) at 845-569-3131 or maelia@msmc.edu

More Detailed Information Here

*Room to be announced on the Mid-Hudson ACS listserv and at www.midhudsonacs.org

A large number of meetings and talks are to be held throughout the fall of 2006. ACS members and members of the public are invited to attend these informative events.

“To Be or Not to Be… Regulation of Mammalian Cell Death in Response to Stress” 

Presented by Dr Richard L. Bennett, University of Florida , Shands Cancer Center 

Date: Tuesday, September 12, 2006 

, Location: USMA at West Point , Time: 7:30 PM 

Contact: MAJ Kimberly A. Bennett (845-938-3892)

“Dynamics of DNA Hybridization”  

Presented by Dr. Pamela St. John, Department of Chemistry, SUNY New Paltz Wednesday, September 20, 2006 

, Room: Science Visualization (SciVis) Lab, 3^rd Floor, Mudd Chemistry Building

More Details

“Emerging Energy Changes and Challenges: 

Fuel Cells and Hydrogen”

Presented by Dr Glenn A Eisman, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute

Date: Thursday, September 28, 2006 

, Location: SUNY New Paltz, Coykendall Science Building (CSB) Auditorium,Time: 4:00 PM 

Contact: School of Science and Engineering, Associate Dean David Clark (clarkd@newpaltz.edu, 845-257-3728)

“From Garbage to Stuff: How We Recycle Plastics”

Presented by Dr. William F. Carroll, Ex-President of the American Chemical Society

Wednesday, October 4, 2006 

, Room: TBA

Contact Neil Fitzgerald (Marist) at 845-575-3000 ext. 2491 or by e-mail at Neil.Fitzgerald@marist.edu.

More Details

“Area of Research:  Total synthesis of natural and unnatural products; new synthetic methods”