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NEWS June
2002
"News from
the College of Life Sciences at the University of Maryland,
College Park"
NEWS
ITEMS
- The
Dean's Message
- Upcoming
Events
- Faculty
- New Grants
- Faculty
- Publications, Honors, and In The News
- Alumni
& Student News
- Funding
Alerts
- How
to Post Your News Here
FROM
THE DEAN
And
so we come to end of another academic year. This has
been a momentous one, beginning with the events of
September 11 and its aftermath, followed by the tornado,
the opening of the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center,
a bowl game, a national sports championship, building
of the new Chemistry Teaching Wing, the first phase
of funding for the Bioscience building, and many awards
and honors to faculty, students and staff. These events
were remembered at both the College and the University
graduations last week, as we honored 312 graduates
from the College and over 5,000 from the University.
The College graduated 264 undergraduates, 18 Masters
students and 30 Ph.D. students. Tinsay and Fasika
Woreta and Anoma Nellore, who won Jack Kent Cooke
scholarships, with Anoma also winning the University
Medal, were among our graduates. We are enormously
proud of their accomplishments. Our commencement speaker
was Dr. Rita Colwell, Director of the National Science
Foundation, who led us through the accomplishments
of her remarkable life in science. Our thanks to her
and to all the faculty and staff who helped to make
this an outstanding event.
I
am very pleased to announce that Dr. Kaci Thompson,
Director of Undergraduate Research and Internship
Programs, has been named Associate Director of our
HHMI Undergraduate Program in the Biological Sciences,
and Dr. Joelle Presson has been promoted to Associate
Director of Undergraduate Academic Programs. Both
are key players within the College. Kaci has provided
outstanding leadership in our HHMI program and did
a heroic job of writing our renewal proposal last
fall, while Joelle has played a crucial role in our
efforts to revamp and revitalize our undergraduate
academic programs.
As
the summer begins, many of you will be heading off
to professional meetings. The Dean's office will be
undertaking a number of summer projects designed to
strengthen our graduate, undergraduate and research
programs. We will bring you up to date on our progress
in the fall. In the meantime, have a relaxing, rewarding
and safe summer.
Norma
Allewell
Dean
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UPCOMING
EVENTS
Schedule of Classes
June
3: First Day — Summer Session I
July 15: First Day – Summer Session II
September 3: First Day of Fall 2002
September 16: Last Day Schedule Adjustment for Fall
November 12: Last Day to Drop with a W
Events
July
4: Campus closed
September 2: Campus closed
May
2003: The College will be helping to host the American
Society for Microbiology - Education Section national
meeting in May 2003. This will be the 10th anniversary
meeting, linked to the ASM National Meeting to be
held in Washington, DC. We anticipate that several
high profile speakers will be part of the 10th Anniversary
program. Watch for more details about the meeting
in the coming months.
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FACULTY
- New Grants
Drs.
Neil Blough and Daniel Falvey, Chemistry &
Biochemistry, received a Navy grant for two+ years
at $360K to study "Field, Laboratory and Model
Studies of chromophoric dissolved organic matter."
Dr.
Daniel Falvey, Chemistry & Biochemistry, received
an NSF grant for $156K to study "Chemical and
Spectroscopic Studies of Nitrenium Ion."
Dr.
Zhongchi Liu, CBMG, received good news that she
was awarded $369K from NSF for her grant titled "LARSON,
An Arabidopsis Homeobox Gene in Flower Development."
Last
month we neglected to include Drs. Zhongchi Liu
and Elena del Campillo, CBMG, with Drs. Heven
Sze, Steve Mount and Caren Change, CBMG, as receiving
an NSF grant of $138K to set up a Plant Growth Facility
over the next two years.
Drs.
Robert Dooling, Psychology, and Arthur Popper,
Biology, received notification that NIH intends to
fund their proposal for the Center for the Comparative
and Evolutionary Biology of Hearing. This will provide
support for five years beyond their individual grants
specifically to support the workings and collaborations
of the group of auditory neuroscientists here and
at Walter-Reed. The funding levels will be known within
the next few weeks.
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FACULTY
- Publications, Honors, and In The News
Dr.
Earlene Armstrong, Entomology, received the Nyumburu
Cultural Center's 2002 Outstanding Faculty/Staff Award.
To Earlene they said, "In expression of our deep
appreciation for your support of students and your
many outstanding achievements and community service
throughout your tenure at the University of Maryland..."
Dr.
Catherine Fenselau, Chemistry & Biochemistry,
comments on the use of proteomics and the implications
for science and business opportunities in Chemical
& Engineering News, April 8. http://pubs.acs.org/cen/coverstory/8014/8014sci3.html
Dr.
Richard Payne, Biology, explains how color sight
in some animals can actually mean distinguishing colors
better than humans because of greater contrast. Washington
Post, May 24
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A2093-2002May23.html
Last
month we neglected to note that Dr. Carol Pontzer
from CBMG, Jeffrey Shupp, and Marti Jett
should also be congratulated for being finalists as
collaborators for invention of the year. Their invention
was titled "Peptide Vaccine for Staphylococcal
Enterotoxins."
The Journal
of the American Chemical Society, May 29, included
three submissions by faculty from the Department of
Chemistry & Biochemistry. The titles and the contributors
are below.
"Regarding the Stability of d0 Monocyclopentadienyl
Zirconium Acetamidinate Complexes Bearing Alkyl Substituents
with Hydrogens"- Richard J. Keaton, Lisa A. Koterwas,
James C. Fettinger, and Lawrence R. Sita, pp 5932
- 5933
"Charged Molecular Alloys: Synthesis and Characterization
of the Binary Anions Pd7As164- and Pd2As144-"
by Melanie J. Moses, James Fettinger, and Bryan
Eichhorn, pp 5944 - 5945
"Efficient and Specific Strand Scission of DNA
by a Dinuclear Copper Complex: Comparative Reactivity
of Complexes with Linked Tris(2-pyridylmethyl)amine
Moieties" by Kristi J. Humphreys, Kenneth D.
Karlin, and Steven E. Rokita, pp 6009 - 6019
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ALUMNI
& STUDENT NEWS
On May 9, the Department of Chemistry
& Biochemistry held its annual Rollinson Fellowship
Research Symposium. The Fellowship Program seeks to
attract talented, enthusiastic freshmen to independent
research opportunities in chemistry and biochemistry.
The students who presented the results of their research
included: Matt Elrick, Maura Iezzi, Milton Liu,
Chris Jones, Joyce Breger, Chris McDonald, Scott Halpern,
and Dan Burden.
Chi Chae, Class
of 2002 in CBMG and department honors student funded
by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, presented
the results of research on the plant root rubricine
at the American Society for Microbiology’s annual
meeting in Salt Lake City. Her research colleague
was Alma Arnold, also a CBMG honors student.
Both were mentored by Dr. Spencer Benson, CBMG. Reuters
Health, May 22
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20020522/hl_nm/herbs_antibiotics_1
Congratulations to
Heather Lindsay, this year's winner of UMCP's
Mitretek Alumni Scholarship! This award is given to
graduates of UMCP who continue with graduate work
here. It recognizes outstanding academic achievement,
leadership and participation in community service.
Heather graduated in EEB in 1998, and will join the
CONS graduate program in the fall.
Congratulations to
Kristy Reynolds who is the 2002 recipient of
a J. Edgar Hoover Foundation scholarship for Forensic
Science. Kristy is a graduate student with Dr. Catherine
Fenselau, Chemistry & Biochemistry.
The Jack Kent Cooke
Foundation announced the first recipients
of its graduate scholarship awards, which will provide
$50,000 each over a period of six years. Of Maryland's
six recipients, three were from our College: Anoma
Nellore will pursue a medical degree, and Fasika
and Tinsay Woreta will seek medical degrees at
Johns Hopkins University. (Hot
topics)
Chronicle of Higher Education, May 2 (Registration
required)
http://chronicle.com/daily/2002/05/2002050207n.htm
Washington Post, May 2
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A18228-2002May1.html
Washington Post, May 2 (List of winners)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A18529-2002May1.html
Baltimore Sun, May 2
http://www.sunspot.net/news/local/bal-md.scholars02may02.story
"Identical twin
sisters Fasika and Tinsay Woreta, who recently
won $400,000 medical school scholarships, credit their
mom and dad's love and discipline for their success
and values."The biochemistry graduates will further
their education and dreams at the Johns Hopkins Medical
School. The Baltimore Sun covered their success and
editorialized about their family's immigration from
Ethiopia and work ethic.
Baltimore Sun, May 8 and May 13 (Also: For
Academic Duo, Parents a Source of Strength Associated
Press, May 13
http://www.inform.umd.edu/CampusInfo/Departments/InstAdv/newsdesk/Clips/2002/0513.html
The research of Daphne
Soares, PhD recipient in Biology, on the dome-like
bumps on an alligator's chin earned world attention.
(Hot
topics)
An Ancient Sensory Organ in Crocodilians Nature,
May 16
http://www.nature.com/cgi-taf/DynaPage.taf?file=/nature/journal/v417/n6886/full/417241a_fs.html
Agence France-Presse, May 15
http://www.inform.umd.edu/CampusInfo/Departments/InstAdv/newsdesk/Clips/2002/0515.html
Morning Edition, May 15 (audio button on story)
http://www.npr.org/programs/atc/features/2002/may/gators/index.html
Christopher Joyce of NPR on "All Things Considered"
did a great piece on Daphne's research
http://www.npr.org/programs/atc/features/2002/may/gators/index.html
National Public Radio, May 15 (transcript)
http://www.inform.umd.edu/CampusInfo/Departments/InstAdv/newsdesk/Clips/2002/0516.html
Jaws Let Alligators Sense Prey Associated Press
(CNN), May 15
http://www.cnn.com/2002/TECH/science/05/15/gator.pressure.ap/index.html
Sensory Stubble Helps Alligators Hunt Scientific
American, May 16
http://www.sciam.com/news/051602/1.html
Gator's Early Warning System
Newsday, May 16
http://www.newsday.com/news/health/ny-hsalli162707871may16.story?coll=ny%2Dhealth%2Dheadlines
Sixth Sense Gives Crocodiles Bite
London Times, May 16 (Free registration required)
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/newspaper/0,,173-298104,00.html
Alligator's Sensitive Side
BBC, May 16
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/sci/tech/newsid_1989000/1989032.stm
Crocodile's Smile Hides Dark Secret
London Telegraph, May 16
http://www.dailytelegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml;$sessionid$1EBQM2QAABUA3QFIQMF
CFFOAVCBQYIV0?xml=/news/2002/05/16/wcroc16.xml&sSheet=
/news/2002/05/16/ixworld.html
Singapore Straits Times, May 16
http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/cybernews/story/0,1870,119978,00.html?
National Geographic.com, May 16
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2002/05/0516_020516_gatorjaw.html
And coverage on News 24, South Africa
http://www.news24.com/News24/Technology/0,1113,2-13_1185210,00.html
New York Times May 21 (Free registration required)
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/05/21/science/21OBSE.html
Washington Post, May 20 (Please scroll down to
story)
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A42774-2002May19.html
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FUNDING
ALERTS
List of
Funding Alerts - The list of funding alerts is lengthy.
Community of Science Database of Funding
-
If you want information about the Community of Science
database of funding sources go to the Office of Research
Administration and Advancement at http://www.umresearch.umd.edu/ORAA/.
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How
to Post your NEWS!
If
you would like to share your accomplishments or other
news, please send a note to Gene Ferrick at gferrick@deans.umd.edu.
Issues are usually sent at the beginning of each month.
Maintained by
Gene Ferrick - gferrick@deans.umd.edu.
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