DED National Meeting Issue UN 18 O 98 F
http://www.nesacs.org
N
Y
O
T
R
E I
T
H C
E N O A E S S S L T A E A C R C I N S M S E E H C C TI N Summer 2010 Vol. LXXXVIII, No. 10 O CA N • AMERI
One if by Land, or two Dining in and around if by T Boston By Megan Talkington By John Podobinski ACS Redux: What’s An Interview with new in Boston George Whitesides By Morton Z. Hoffman and Robert Lichter By Mindy Levine 2 The Nucleus Summer 2010 The Northeastern Section of the American Chemical Society, Inc. Contents Office: Anna Singer, 12 Corcoran Road, Burlington, MA 01803 One if by Land, or two if by T 4 (Voice or FAX) or 781-272-1966. ______e-mail: [email protected] Chair’s Welcome ______5 NESACS Homepage: http://www.NESACS.org Also NESACS Election Results and Magical Mixes for Muggles Officers 2010 ACS Redux: What’s New in Boston______6 Chair: John McKew Dining in and around Boston ______8 Wyeth Research 200 Cambridge Park Drive An Interview with George Whitesides______12 Cambridge, MA 02140 617-665-5603; john.mckew(at)gmail.com Arno Heyn Award Comments ______13 Chair-Elect: Historical Note: Saul G. Cohen______13 Patrick M. Gordon 1 Brae Circle April Meeting Photos-Esselen Award ______14 Woburn, MA 01801 gordonpa(at)emmanuel.edu Announcements ______15 Immediate Past Chair: Call for Nominations: Esselen Award, NSYCC Executive Committee Dr. E. Joseph Billo 13 Shattuck Street International Year of Chemistry ______16,17 Natick, MA 01760 508-653-3074, joseph.billo(at)verizon.net Graduate Student Sponsored Symposium ______18 Secretary: Multifunctional Nanoparticles in Medicine 19 Michael Singer ______Sigma-Aldrich NESACS Medicinal Chemistry Group 20 3 Strathmore Rd, Natick, MA 01360 ______508-651-8151 X291, msinger(at)sial.com YCC/GDCh-JCF Exchange ______22 Treasurer: James Piper Connections to Chemistry ______24 19 Mill Rd, Harvard, MA 01451 978-456-3155, piper28(at)attglobal.net Report from NERM 2010 ______26 Auditor: August Historical Events in Chemistry 27 Anthony Rosner ______Archivist: Major Employers of Chemists in NESACS ______28 Myron S. Simon 20 Somerset Rd, Newton, MA 02465 Woodward Memorial Symposium ______40 617-332-5273, romysimon(at)mindspring.com Trustees: Cover: Pictured is the final panel, showing Boston native George Minot, from the Peter C. Meltzer, Esther A. H. Hopkins, History of Medicine relief commissioned by Eliot Joslin in the 1950’s during the Michael E. Strem construction of the Joslin Diabetes Center. This is one of the science sights accessi- Directors-at-Large: Mukund Chorghade, Stephen Lantos, James ble by MBTA described in Megan Talkington’s article on Page 4. (Photo courtesy Phillips, Ralph Scannell, Myron S. Simon, Al of the Joslin Diabetes Center). Viola Councilors Alternate Councilors Deadlines: November 2010 Issue: September 15, 2010 Term Ends 12/31/2010 December 2010 Issue: October 13, 2010 Thomas R. Gilbert Timothy B. Frigo Pamela Nagafuji Mark Froimowitz Robert Lichter David Cunnigham Michael Singer Mukund Chorghade Term Ends 12/31/2011 The Nucleus is published monthly, except June and August, by the Northeastern Section of the American Doris I. Lewis C. Jaworek-Lopes Chemical Society, Inc. Forms close for advertising on the 1st of the month of the preceding issue. Text Mary Burgess Patrick M. Gordon must be received by the editor six weeks before the date of issue. Morton Z. Hoffman Lawrence Scott Editor: Michael P. Filosa, Ph.D., ZINK Imaging, Inc., 16 Crosby Drive, Building 4G, Michael P. Filosa Donald Rickter Kathi Brown Liming Shao Bedford, MA 01730 Email: Michael.filosa(at)zink.com; Tel: 508-843-9070 Term Ends 12/31/2012 Associate Editors: Myron S. Simon, 20 Somerset Rd., W. Newton, MA 02465, Tel: 617-332-5273, Amy E. Tapper Michaeline F. Chen Sheila E Rodman, Konarka Technologies, Inc., 116 John St. Suite 12, Lowell, Catherine E. Costello Jerry P. Jasinski MA 01852 Email: srodman(at)konarka.com tel 978-569-1414, Patricia A. Mabrouk Gary R. Weisman Mindy Levine, 516-697-9688 (c), mindy.levine(at)gmail.com Dorothy J. Phillips Marietta Schwartz Assistant Editors: Stefan G. Koenig Ruth Tanner Norton P. Peet Board of Publications: Vivian K. Walworth (Chair), Mindy Levine, Mary Mahaney Business Manager: Karen Piper, 19 Mill Rd., Harvard, MA 01451, Tel: 978-456-8622 All Chairs of standing Advertising Manager: Vincent J. Gale, P.O. Box 1150, Marshfield, MA 02050, Committees, the editor Email: [email protected]; Tel: 781-837-0424 of THE NUCLEUS, and Contributing Editors: Morton Hoffman, Feature Editor; Dennis Sardella, Book Reviews the Trustees of Section Calendar Coordinator: Sheila Rodman, email: srodman(at)konarka.com Funds are members of the Photographers: Morton Z. Hoffman and James Phillips Board of Directors. Any Proofreaders: Donald O. Rickter, Vivian K. Walworth, Mindy Levine Coun cilor of the American Chemical Soci- ety residing within the section area is an ex Webmaster: officio member of the Board of Directors. Copyright 2010, Northeastern Section of the American Chemical Society, Inc. The Nucleus Summer 2010 3 One if by Land, Corporate Patrons $2000 - or more AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals or two if by T Eisai Pharmaceuticals Science sights to see in and around Boston EMD Serono Genzyme Corp. By Megan Talkington, [email protected] Novartis Whether you’re a native or just visiting Novartis building that, in a former life, Johnson Matthey for the national ACS meeting, Boston housed a Necco candy factory. Its Pfizer Inc. is a great place for exploring. As you water tower, formerly painted like a Schering Corp. poke around for history and scenery, roll of Necco Wafers, now sports a Strem Chemicals, Inc. don’t forget that tucked into every cor- double helix. Fuel up at the Miracle of Vertex Pharmaceuticals ner, there’s also science. Science Bar & Grill (617-868-ATOM). $1000-$1999 Here is a smattering of spots to get Boehringer Ingelheim you started. Maybe you’ll want to hit GlaxoSmithKline one as you’re strolling the streets of Irix Pharmaceuticals Boston and Cambridge. Or pick up a T Lyophilization Services of NE pass and check out several. Sundia Meditech Yes Bank Hackers’ heaven: Around Kendall Square (on the Red Line), you’ll get $300-$999 the feeling that everyone you Cambridge Major Labs encounter is either a grad student Girindus who’s just stepped out of the lab or an Merrimack Consultants entrepreneur pitching drug discovery Organix opportunities to an investor. The former NECCO Candy Building. Now a PCI Synthesis Novartis research center. Sigma Aldrich Urban dirt: Two stops further out on Waters Corp. the Red Line is Harvard Square. Wilmington PharmaTech There’s no shame in ambling around Harvard Yard with the other sightseers, but do it knowing that you’re there for that allow you to witness the intrica- the chemistry and the microbiology. cies of brewing and to sample the Over the last couple of years, as results. Check their websites for tour Harvard’s facilities department has and tasting times before you go. moved to organic landscaping tech- Red Line to the green track: At niques, they have kept a close eye on UMass Boston, almost all of the MIT’s Stata Center. soil chemistry and texture and plant research in the chemistry department One not-to-be-missed site is root length in test and control plots. In fits into the mission of “green chem- MIT’s fantastical Stata Center, conjunction with their work, Ph.D. istry.” Labs are developing solar cells, designed by Frank Gehry, whose archi- candidate Benjamin Wolfe, in the lab building better batteries for electric tecture captures the sense of “why of Dr. Anne Pringle, has been perform- vehicles, figuring out what happens to not?” that imbues the area. Opened in ing DNA sequence analysis of soil volatile organic compounds released 2004, the complex replaced a less archi - samples to find out what kind of bacte- into the atmosphere, and finding tecturally impressive but famously pro- ria, archaea, and fungi the Yard hosts continued on page 30 ductive structure, Building 20. The and how the landscaping methods “plywood palace,” as it was also impact their diversity. One unexpected known, housed the MIT Radiation Lab- find: A close relative of an edible truf- oratory during World War II and, later, fle (but don’t get any ideas). dozens more groups, including the Chemistry you can taste test: Boston Tech Model Railroad Club—arguably boasts two well-known breweries: the birthplace of computer hacking. If Samuel Adams (near Stony Brook on you enter at the Dreyfoos Building (32 the Orange Line) and Harpoon Brew- Vassar St.), you’ll find exhibits detail- ery (on the Silver Line, in the neigh- ing Building 20’s history. borhood of the Boston Convention & Turn right on Mass Ave. to see a Exhibition Center). Both offer tours UMASS Boston, JFK Library MBTA Stop.
4 The Nucleus Summer 2010 NESACS Magical Chair’s Election Mixes for Welcome
Results Muggles I would like to extend a warm wel- Chair-Elect By Kathi Brown, Natick HS come to all the attendees of the ACS Fall 2010 meeting. Both the National Ruth Tanner 352 * ACS and the Northeastern Section of Treasurer the American Chemical Society James Piper 351 * (NESACS) have worked to make this national meeting a week of invigorat- Trustee ing science and networking activities. Esther Hopkins 160 * I encourage you to take advantage of Martin Idelson 120 the opportunities to share your science Director-at-Large and explore new ideas. David Harris 175 * Your host city, Boston, offers a Stephen Lantos 168 * remarkable array of entertainment John Burke 153 options for your stay here. Boston is Mariam Maloyan and Danielle Wis- infused with history; be sure to walk Raeanne Napolean 153 heart, members of the Natick High the Freedom Trail, visit Paul Revere’s Councilor /Alternate Councilor School chapter of ChemClub, were house, or explore the historic burial Thomas Gilbert 278 c awarded a grant from the ACS to cre- grounds and churches. In addition to Michael Singer 271 c ate a science club at Wilson Middle historical attractions, Boston offers Robert Lichter 257 c School in Natick, MA. Using the world-class museums, such as the magic of Harry Potter as a theme, Mary Shultz 246 c Museum of Science, the Boston’s Chil- Mariam and Danielle enlisted the help Leland L. Johnson Jr. 241 alt dren’s Museum, and the fascinating of eight additional Natick High School Museum of Fine Arts. For those with Alfred Viola 221 alt students to create, organize and carry more time to explore, take a ferry ride Sophia R. Su 210 alt out a series of hands-on experiments to the Boston Harbor Islands, or enjoy Kenneth C. Mattes 198 alt that would be engaging and fun for the a whale-watching trip to Stellwagen Timothy B. Frigo 185 26 middle school students participating Bank National Marine Sanctuary. Raj (SB) Rajur 169 in the program. Finally, please sample the fine food Mukund S. Chorghade 165 References to the magic of Harry this city has to offer. Within the pages Mark Froimowitz 127 Potter were evident in each of the of this special summer edition of The activities. Students made ‘gold’ pen- Nucleus we provide culinary tips, Nominating Committee nies, much like the gold coins found at sight-seeing, and a sampling of many Raeanne Napoleon 216 * Greengotts Bank, and used quills to local scientific events. Kenneth C. Mattes 200 * write with invisible ink (acid and base In closing, we at NESACS, one of Raj (SB) Rajur 152 solutions), just as Harry did when serv- the oldest and largest local sections in Mukund S. Chorghade 120 ing detention with Headmaster the country, invite you to read through Umbridge. Their messages ‘magically’ Norris Award Committee this Nucleus or visit www.nesacs.org to appeared when sprayed with a home- Mary Shultz 238 * learn about our activities. Send us made indicator (red cabbage juice). your thoughts. Doris Lewis 257 * Students also had the opportunity to Robert Lichter 195 experiment with colored flames (flame Enjoy the meeting and the Boston area! * = Elected, c = elected councilor, tests), similar to the Floo Flame used by Harry and his friends, and were u alt = elected alternate councilor u John McKew, NESACS 2010 Chair treated to demonstrations involving light, using luminol and flash paper, mimicking the light of the Patronus Charm. The goal of the five-week program plished this by tying the experiments to was to create interest and excitement in the magic of Harry Potter. Support the study of chemistry while having from the ACS, via the grant, allowed fun. Mariam and Danielle accom- this program to be a success. u
The Nucleus Summer 2010 5 ACS Redux: What’s New in Boston? By Morton Hoffman [[email protected]] and Robert Lichter [[email protected]] When the ACS national meeting was faster, but maybe not) to get between you can take the Orange Line inbound last in Boston in August 2007, a guide the Prudential Center and BCEC by (toward Oak Grove) to Downtown to the changing landscape of the city subway, which in Boston is affection- Crossing where you can transfer to the was published in this Newsletter, ately known as the ”T.” If you want to Red Line, as described above, for one which can be accessed at
6 The Nucleus Summer 2010 New in Boston Wharf) as well as to suburban destina- Restaurants tions. Continued from page 6 • Hamersley’s Bistro, 553 Tremont The Red Sox St. (Back Bay) – upscale French along Northern Avenue. Bistro, one of the best. In addition to the ACS shuttle Our beloved Red Sox, the 2004 and • Penang Restaurant, 685 Washing- buses from the hotels, the Seaport Dis- 2007 World Champions, are at this ton St., (Chinatown) – excellent trict is accessible by foot on bridges writing locked in a four-team battle for Malaysian and Indonesian food, rea- across the Fort Point Channel, by city the top positions in the American sonably priced (or walk around Chi- buses No. 4 and 7, and, as noted above, League East with Tampa Bay, New natown to find reasonable food at by the subway Silver Line from South York (BOO!!), and Toronto. The team good value). Station and Logan Airport. will be at Fenway Park during the ACS meeting against the Blue Jays on Fri- • Maggiano’s, 4 Columbus Avenue, The “T” day, August 20 (7:10 p.m.), Saturday or any of a number of locations – If you weren’t in Boston in 2007 or (7:10 p.m.) and Sunday (1:35 p.m.), family style Italian food, great sal- since, you should be aware of the fare and against the Seattle Mariners on ads, reliable, robust, reasonably structure for the public transportation Monday, August 23 (7:10 p.m.), Tues- priced. system. The fare for a single subway day (7:10 p.m.), and Wednesday (1:35 • Giacomo’s, 431 Columbus Ave – ride is $2.00; a bus ride is $1.50, p.m.). Thursday will be a travel day to small, and no reservations, but the including transfers. You must pur- Tampa Bay. food is good. chase a “CharlieTicket” (Charlie as in If you would like to tour Fenway • Abe & Louie’s, 793 Boylston Street the Kingston Trio’s 1950’s song, Char- Park when the team is away in order to – a Boston institution, pricy, but lie on the MTA) at one of the auto- touch the Green Monster and sop up its good steaks. mated kiosks within the stations for the 98-year history, see
The Nucleus Summer 2010 7 Dining In and Around Boston by John Podobinski, Cerulean Pharma, Inc., Cambridge, MA, [email protected] Websites referenced in article: www.bostonchefs.com; www.restaurantweekboston.com Welcome to the 240th National ACS included on the recommendation of to visit the gift shop for unique Boston Meeting in Boston. As guests of our others. gifts. More expensive than No Name. city, you are temporary Bostonians or There are four significant restau- 2. Pagulica’s Ristorante Italiano (14 Cantabrigians and have the culinary rants that should not be missed. If you Parmenter St.; ph# 617-367-1504; opportunity to dine at some of the most are able to enjoy all four of these gems Boston’s North End) Family owned diverse and awarded restaurants in during your visit, you will have given and operated, featuring old southern New England. yourself a special treat. If not, be sure Italian recipes from the homeland, such They often say Boston is a city of to visit at least one of these during as Chicken Campagna (meaning on the neighborhoods and there is something your stay in Boston. farm: boneless breast of chicken here to satisfy any appetite. Across the 1. The Union Oyster House (41 sautéed with potatoes, peppers, mush- river in Cambridge your dining options Union St.; ph# 617-227-2750; Faneuil rooms and onions) and Insalata (salad expand even further. Diners can choose Hall Area) America’s oldest restaurant with huge chunks of provolone, red from nationally known chain restau- and a national landmark. The specialty peppers, lettuce, salami, olives and oil rants to local, chef-owned bistros and here is seafood. Baked, fried, boiled or and vinegar). The pasta fusilli (hand elegant up-scale hotel dining rooms. grilled, the seafood here is simply deli- made twisted noodle) and lasagna and Although New Englanders have a ten- cious. The clam chowder is superb chops round out the menu. Be sure to dency to prefer hearty meat and pota- and oysters and clams on the half shell save some room for the traditional Ital- toes or, because of our proximity to the are the freshest around. If you are ian desserts, tiramisu (layer cake with sea, fresh seafood, Greater Boston also lucky enough to find a seat at the oys- rum and topped with cocoa) or has restaurants serving Asian or Argen- ter bar, the continuous entertainment of spumoni (ice cream with nuts or can- tinean fare as well as French, Italian, oyster shucking for the entire restau- died fruit). Molto deliziosa! sushi and tapas. rant happens right before your eyes. 3. The Fireplace (1634 Beacon St.; The following restaurant choices The toothpick was first used in Amer- ph# 617-975-1900; Brookline, MBTA are recommended from several per- ica at the Union Oyster House an occa- Green line C branch to Washington sonal visits. Other listings have been sional hangout for politicians. Be sure Square) is a New England grille and bistro featuring wood-smoked and rotisserie dishes with the freshest offer- ings of the region and Chef Solomon’s culinary philosophy: hearty, clean food with integrity, simply prepared. The first certified green restaurant in Boston has a warm neighborhood feel featur- ing delightful seared tuna, spit-roasted maple glazed half chicken and sirloin steak. Only American ingredients and wine. Nothing is imported. They make their own carbonated water. 4. No Name Restaurant (15 Fish Pier; ph# 617-338-7539; South Boston, Waterfront): “Since 1917 serving fish- ermen and locals every day the harvest from the sea outside its front door.” Serves seafood dinners and has a down-home-by-the shore atmosphere. Prices are inexpensive to moderate and the portions are huge. There is no name on the building, but look for the line extending out the door. Arriving early or late for dinner is recom- mended or be prepared to wait for your meal. The seafood platter consists of shrimp, fish, clams, scallops and fries. 8 The Nucleus Summer 2010 dinners for $33.10 throughout Boston, divided the restaurants into two Dining In Boston Cambridge, and the suburbs. Prices are groups: fine dining and casual dining Continued from page 8 per person and exclude beverages, tax and bars. The fine dining restaurants, and gratuities. category (E-VE), are all inside hotels, Entrees simply served with tartar sauce Check the list of participating with the exception of Anthony’s Pier 4, and lemon wedges. Serving clam restaurants at www.restaurantweek which serves seafood and has a deli- chowder by the cup or bowl. boston.com cious broiled famous Boston Scrod. The following descriptions divide When you reserve a table at any of Photos of the celebrities who have vis- Greater Boston into neighborhoods the featured Restaurant Week restau- ited the restaurant are hanging on the where ACS visitors may be during rants, you will not only have identified wall in the lobby and can be seen while lunch and dinnertime. The following the best dining value in greater Boston, waiting for your table. The other restaurants have also been categorized but be treated to some of the best cui- restaurants all feature New American by dinner price: (I) inexpensive- less sine New England has to offer. cuisine. than $10 for entrées; (M) moderate Another restaurant website Be sure to take some time to visit between $10-18 for entrées; (E) www.bostonchefs.com is an insider’s the Institute of Contemporary Art on expensive between $18-26 for entrées; guide to dining in Boston. Boston’s harborwalk. The amazing (VE) very expensive meaning greater modern art work and the ICA’s dra- than $26 entrées. Most of the entrées Waterfront Area: Roughly bounded matic architecture make this an attrac- come with soup or salad and potato or from the Quincy Market area down to tion not to be missed. vegetable. the harbor and along the shoreline to Many of the following restaurants Northern Avenue to South Station. Fine Dining serve luncheons very similar to their MBTA Blue line to Aquarium or Silver • Anthony’s Pier 4 (140 Northern regular dinners at prices which are line to World Trade Center. MBTA Av.; ph#617-423-6385) often bargains. If you are on a limited Red line to South Station and walk www.pier4.com budget, plan on having your main meal across Fort Point Channel on Summer • Aura (Seaport Hotel, 200 Seaport around noontime and snacking in the St. No Name Restaurant is located in Blvd.; ph# 617-385-4300) evening at dinnertime. I have not this neighborhood. www.aurarestaurant.com included hotel restaurants unless they There are a variety of restaurants • Meritage (Boston Harbor Hotel, 70 are of special interest. Most hotels fall within walking distance on the water- Rowes Wharf, ph# 617-385-4300) within the (E-VE) category, while front and around the Boston Conven- www.meritagetherestaurant.com most hotel coffee shops will serve a tion & Exhibition Center. I have continued on page 10 very adequate dinner in the (M) range. The following restaurant menu does not attempt to be comprehensive, but was selected to provide a cross sec- tion of dining options. In each neigh- borhood there are likely several other choices. Moreover, if you observe peo- ple waiting outside the restaurant for their table; you probably have found another special option for your next meal that is likely worth the wait. If you are staying outside of Boston in one of the neighboring suburbs, ask the Hospitality Booth at the convention center or a Northeastern Section mem- ber for their restaurant recommenda- tions. Restaurant Week Boston August 22-27, 2010 August 2010 is the 10th anniversary of Restaurant Week in Boston. The finest restaurants will be serving prix fixe meals from Sunday, August 22 through Friday, August 27, 2010. Diners will enjoy 2-course lunches for $15.10, 3- course lunches for $20.10 and 3-course
The Nucleus Summer 2010 9 Open for breakfast, lunch and din- soups, salads and sandwiches for Dining In Boston ner. Vegetarian friendly. lunch and steak tips, pasta and Continued from page 9 • Daily Catch (2 Northern Av.; Ph# chicken options for dinner. • Morton’s Steakhouse (Two Seaport 617-772-4400) (M-E)- Open for • Salvatore’s (225 Northern Av.; ph# Ln.; ph# 617-526-0410) lunch and dinner on the Boston Har- 617-737-5454) (M-E)- Sal became www.mortons.com borwalk’s Fan Pier, with al fresco famous for his pizza. Strong lunch • Sauciety (Westin Boston Waterfront patio seating and fresh seafood and menu with many choices. The pasta Hotel, 425 Summer St.; ph# 617- black pasta (made with squid ink). and still-extraordinary pizza will 532-4670) Original restaurant still open in keep him that way. Boston’s North End. • Sportello (348 Congress St. (upper Casual Dining & Bars • Drink (348 Congress St. (lower level); ph# 617-737-1234) (M-E)- • Atlantic Beer Garden (146 Seaport level); ph# 617-695-1806) (I-M)- Italian for counter service, and every Blvd.; ph# 617-357-8000) (I-M)- Hip and traditional cocktails with seat in the room has a kitchen view. Typical American pub food featuring canapés (small, spicy or salty often Barbra Lynch’s latest venture pre- burgers, wraps and pasta. Patio over- decorative food, usually eaten in one pares outstanding pasta and polenta looking harbor and downtown. TVs bite). Hours: 4pm-1am. dishes. everywhere. • Flour (12 Farnsworth St.; ph# 617- • Legal Test Kitchen-Seaport (225 • The Barking Crab (88 Sleeper St.; 338-4333) (I)- Bakery and café with Northern Av.; ph# 617-330-7430) ph# 617- 426-CRAB) (M-E)- More warm breakfast muffins, fresh home- (M-E)- Pushes the boundary of food likely to be found on Cape Cod or in made bread sandwiches and salads. and drink, combining innovative Maine than downtown, this casual Don’t forget the double chocolate seafood dishes and original cock- clam shack with picnic tables and a and walnut cookie for dessert. tails. A sister of the popular Legal deck serves lobster, clam chowdah • Fresh City (World Trade Center Seafood establishment and has out- and fried seafood. Other options East, 2 Seaport Lane) (I)- Deli with door seating with extended hours to include crab cake burgers or vegetar- fast stir fry, salads and burritos. make this a neighborhood lure. ian. • Lucky’s Lounge (355 Congress St.; • Institute of Contemporary Art – • Channel Café (300 Summer St.; ph# 617-357-LUCK) (M-E)- Frank The Water Café (100 Northern ph# 617-426-0695) (M)- Neighbor- Sinatra ultra cool lounge with mel- Ave.) (I)- A Wolfgang Puck restau- hood café serving fresh, local food, low red lighting feels more like the rant open during museum hours. featuring an attached art gallery. 1950s than 2010. This pub serves continued on page 11
10 The Nucleus Summer 2010 steps from Paul Revere’s house on rigatoni dishes make for a memo- Dining In Boston Boston’s Historic Freedom Trail, this rable meal. Continued from page 10 modern costal Italian restaurant’s Quincy Market- Faneuil Hall Coffee and lunch with water views. cuisine is inspired by Italy’s Amalfi Area: Bounded by Congress Street, Museum admission not required to Coast. Elegant and very innovative Commercial Street, State Street and dine. menu has received numerous City Hall area. MBTA Green line to awards. Colorful and soothing inte- North End: The street signs pointing Government Center. The Union Oyster rior lighting. Dinner only Tuesday- House is located here. to Rome, Venice, Sorrento and other Sunday. • Houston’s (60 State St.; ph# 617- Italian cities demonstrate this neigh- • Modern Pastry Shop (257 Hanover borhood is very proud of its Italian 537-9777) (M)- Salads, steaks and St.; ph# 617-523-3783) (I)- Full- sandwiches for tourists and busi- heritage. Although Rome is 4108 mi service family owned Italian bakery (6602 km) away, the lively Italian nessmen alike. Excellent burgers and serving the best Florentine, biscotti, great service. neighborhood is located just over the and of course cannoli around. The • Durgin Park (30 N. Market St.; ph# Rose Kennedy Greenway (the Big Dig line out the door with locals and vis- 617-227-2038) (M-E)- Serving Yan- is below the park). Centered around itors demonstrates the popularity of kee pot roast and prime ribs in huge Hanover Street, running adjacent to this institution. portions. Boston baked beans and Faneuil Hall to the waterfront, the • Rabias (73 Salem St.; ph# 617-227- North End is not a neighborhood to famous “sassy” service. Be sure to 6637) (M-E)- Fresh pasta made try Indian pudding for desert. miss. After dinner, stop by any of the daily and the seafood ravioli are neighborhood’s cafés or bakeries for excellent. Steamed mussels or Copley Square-Prudential Area: gelato, cannoli desserts or an espresso, tomato mozzarella bruschetta appe- Located by the Hynes Convention and simply watch the locals and tizers demonstrate Italy’s diverse fla- Center from Massachusetts Avenue tourists pass by for the evening’s the- vors with creative presentations. through Copley Square to Clarendon atre. MBTA Green line to Government • Lucca (226 Hanover St.; ph# 617- Street. MBTA Green line to Hynes Center or Haymarket. Pagulica’s Ris- 742-9200) (E-VE)- Located on Convention Center or Copley Square. torante is located here. bustling Hanover St., northern Ital- • Legal Seafood (Prudential Center; • Mare Organic (135 Richmond St.; ian style cuisine prepared here. Pro- ph# 617-266-6800) (M-E)- Quality ph# 617-723-MARE) (E-VE)- Just sciutto antipasti and the wild boar continued on page 31
The Nucleus Summer 2010 11 An Interview with George Whitesides By Mindy Levine Introduction “One says you make big changes when taxpayer funds. “Keep in mind that “I want to show you something,” Pro- you invent new tools, and one says that someone is not buying a package of fessor George Whitesides said as I sat you make big changes when you use cigarettes in order to pay your salary,” down in his office. He took out a the tools. We are the tool makers.” Professor Whitesides said. “What bear- starfish-shaped object made of soft, Research in the Whitesides Group ing does this have on the sort of flexible polymeric materials, and The research in the Whitesides group research that you do?” As a result, Pro- demonstrated how the arms of the has covered a wide range of topics fessor Whitesides advocates choosing “starfish” moved when air was injected throughout Professor Whitesides’ research questions with this fact in via syringe. “This is the future of career. “When we first started, we did mind: chemists have both the ability chemistry,” he said. “We are giving real scholarship,” said Professor White- and responsibility to address signifi- people a starting point to think about sides, investigating topics such as C-H cant issues. Unfortunately, he pointed soft robotics.” Professor George activation and detailed reaction mecha- out, the current peer review system Whitesides, the Woodford L. and Ann nisms. Over the years, Professor White- may discourage this sort of ambitious A. Flowers University Professor of sides has investigated diverse topics thinking. Chemistry at Harvard University, has such as electrets, soft-lithography, the “We need the peer review system, spent a career providing “starting origin of life, self-assembled monolay- because anything else is worse,” said points” for people to think about a ers, soft robotics, and microfluidics. Professor Whitesides. “However, I variety of chemically-related endeav- “We try to go from program to pro- would prefer a world where assistant ors. Professor Whitesides elaborated gram. Once something is established, professors do something that other on providing “starting points” for other other people can use it,” Professor people have not done,” as opposed to a chemists. “There are two schools of Whitesides said. system where assistant professors try thought,” said Professor Whitesides. Dr. Michael Filosa, Senior Man- to do something that has already been ager of Science and Technology at done, but do it better. As an example of a chemist with ZINK Imaging, recalled the diversity broad ambition, Professor Whitesides of topics that were covered in a course Save The recalled that when Professor K. Barry he took with Professor Whitesides at Sharpless came to MIT, he presented a MIT. “It was probably one of the most long list of reactions that he wanted to Date! eye-opening courses I ever took,” said investigate. “You looked at the list and Dr. Filosa. “He talked about things like th thought, ‘It can’t possibly go any- 9 Annual Undergraduate organometallics, enzyme immobiliza- where,’” Professor Whitesides said. Symposium on tion, and remote functionalization of “But good things are bound to happen.” Sustainability and the hydrocarbons – things that ended up Environment being linchpins of many people’s Structure of the Whitesides Group careers over the next 30 years.” The Whitesides group is comprised of Saturday, November 20, 2010 8 graduate students and more than 30 Selecting Research Topics post-doctoral fellows and visiting Bridgewater State College Professor Whitesides explained his scholars. Professor Whitesides man- Undergraduate research posters strategy for choosing research topics, ages the research of the group mem- (including completed, in progress, and provided advice for newer bers primarily via the writing of and proposed research) in all envi- chemists on how to select appropriate successive paper drafts. “As soon as ronmental disciplines are wel- topics. “The problems that run the we are confident there will be a paper, come. We are also happy to invite world are our problems,” said Profes- we start writing,” said Professor student presentations pertaining to sor Whitesides, meaning that some of Whitesides. Over the course of several campus sustainability projects, or the most significant problems that face paper drafts, all of Professor White- regional/global sustainability humanity can and should be addressed sides’ research questions are fully issues. by chemists. For example, meeting the explored and answered. “I want to Please email Ed Brush growing energy needs of industrialized know how this works, and what the ([email protected]) to add societies in an environmentally respon- science is. I also want to know why we your name to our distribution list. sible manner is something that are doing it,” Professor Whitesides A formal “Call for Abstracts” will chemists can help solve. said. “I ask every question I can possi- be sent electronically in Septem- Chemists may also have a respon- bly ask until I am satisfied with the ber. sibility to the public, in part because chemists’ salaries are largely paid from Continued on page 34
12 The Nucleus Summer 2010 Brandeis University Professor, Bran- Arno Heyn Historical deis honorary degree, Fulbright Senior Scholar, Guggenheim Fellow, and the American Chemical Society’s James Award Note Flack Norris Award. Saul G. Cohen His book, Memoirs of Saul G. comments Cohen, Scientist, Inventor, Educator, 1916–2010 published in 2008, details his life story, by Arthur Obermayer We deeply regret to record that Profes- his struggles to find the position in May 13, 2010 sor Saul Cohen, 93, passed away on chemistry he desired, and ultimate suc- cess when he joined a newly founded Thank you for presenting these books April 24. His careers at Polaroid Cor- poration and Brandeis University are Brandeis College and worked to make to me. They have special meaning to it a premier university. Copies may be me because I am a collector of anti- well known to members of our North- eastern Section, and his loss will be found in the Newton Public Library quarian science books. One of the and some local college libraries. A most important books in my collection felt by the many friends and students who join with his family in remember- review of these memoirs was pub- is the 1680 edition of the Skeptical lished in the May 2009 issue of The Chymist by Robert Boyle, which ing his gentle manner and quiet wis- dom. Nucleus of the Northeastern Section of marked the transition from alchemy to the American Chemical Society. chemistry – from metaphysical inter- His many honors included Har- vard Overseer (elected), The Centen- Saul Cohen was brought up in the pretations to experimental proof. Dorchester-Roxbury area of Boston, I am particularly honored with this nial Medal of the Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, first and his high intelligence was recog- award because I knew Arno Heyn so nized at the grade school level. He well and was impressed with his com- was sent to Boston Latin School where mitment and dedication to publishing its own URL. six years of a solid classical education The Nucleus for many years. I worked Before we started the website in and a first place among boys of high closely with him when he was Chair of 1996, we contacted the national ACS intelligence and ambition in the Class the Board of Publications, and I partic- to enlist their help. However, they had of 1933 prepared him for Harvard. ipated as the webmaster of the North- not yet decided how to deal with local As a commuter student, riding the eastern Section website. sections, and it wasn’t clear when they street cars daily to Cambridge, he had I thought you would be interested would decide. As a true entrepreneur, I a different view of Harvard than we in how the website got started. Espe- decided we should just plunge ahead read in novels of that day. He has writ- cially the young people in the audience on our own. It was good that I took ten an incisive critique of Harvard in probably do not realize what the inter- the initiative because the national ACS its transition from the presidency of A. net was like less than 15 years ago. converted what I considered a routine Lawrence Lowell to that of James As volunteers, my assistant, Betty request, a no brainer, into a major Bryant Conant. Of his choice of chem- Solbjor, and I, in the 1990s, initiated undertaking. I could not get them to istry, he wrote,”Chemistry seemed rea- the websites of many nonprofit organi- provide a constructive response for sonable and important, and far easier zations. In 1996, we suggested starting two years, and then the response was for me to deal with than the vexing a Northeastern Section website. In to send me a ten-page legal agreement. problems of society and politics,” as he those days, we only had dial-up con- The document was drawn up by switched his major field from history nections and were pleased that the lawyers whose purpose was to provide to chemistry. He was elected to Phi faster, 28.8 kilobyte per second every possible protection to the Beta Kappa in his junior year and modems were available to replace the national ACS institution and not con- graduated with a summa cum laude 14.4 ones. The website was almost all sider the reasonable and appropriate degree in the Harvard Class of 1937. text because of the long download needs of local sections to take respon- These were depression days, and times for any graphics. Internet access sible actions without first getting Cohen required a teaching assistant- cost about $1/hour, and the newest and approval from the national organiza- ship to be able to continue his educa- best browser was Netscape, which was tion. As a result, our website to this tion, but in spite of his brilliant an exciting new development because day is not under the jurisdiction of the undergraduate record, and despite the it could include graphics. national organization. fact that he had been accepted by a The Northeastern Section website I have enjoyed describing how the dozen chemistry departments to which initially was at the URL: http://www. website got started and especially he had applied, not one of them would tiac.net/users/obermayr/nesacs/. There appreciate being recognized for my offer him the necessary assistantship was no Northeastern Section internet effort. Over the years I have initiated until Paul D. Bartlett, then a junior pro- budget to purchase a domain and pay dozens of websites for nonprofit organ- fessor in the Harvard chemical depart- for hosting service. It wasn’t until izations just to be helpful, but this is the 2000 that the Northeastern Section got first time I have been honored for it. u continued on page 36
The Nucleus Summer 2010 13 April Meeting Photos – Esselen Award Photograph credits: “Copyright Ellen Rogers 2010”
(l. to r.) Don Smith shares a moment with John Neumeyer, past chair of Drs. Paulette and Martin Idelson (r.) with Dr. Arthur Obermayer (l.) at the Esselen committee, and Chris Hupp of McLean Hospital at the social dinner. Dr. Obermayer is a founding member of the Esselen Award Com- hour preceding dinner. mittee and Dr. Martin Idelson is a past chair of the committee.
(l. to r.) Arthur Obermayer, founding member of the Esselen committee, Dr. Paul Vouros, former Esselen committee chair, and his wife Irene. greets Timothy Swager and his wife at the social hour while Katherine Lee looks on. Dr. Swager, Chair of the MIT Chemistry Department, nominated Prof. Buchwald for the award and introduced him at the award ceremony.
Dr. Esther Hopkins, chair of the Board of Trustees, and James Phillips, Gustavus J. Esselen, IV (l.), Professor Stephen Buchwald (ctr.) and Mrs. member of the Board of Directors. Gustavus J. Esselen, III, wife of the founder of the award, at the social hour preceding the dinner.
14 The Nucleus Summer 2010 Announcements Call for Nominations National Chemistry Week NSYCC Seeks The Gustavus John 2010: Design a t-shirt Nominations for Executive Esselen Award for contest Committee for the 2010-11 Chemistry in the Public Would you like to design the NCW Academic Year Interest 2010 t-shirt worn by all NESACS We would like to invite all readers to NCW volunteers? The winning design nominate Younger Chemists of the The Northeastern Section (NESACS) will be on the front of the t-shirt, is inviting nominations for its presti- Northeastern Section of the American Northeastern Section of the American Chemical Society to the NSYCC Exec- gious Gustavus John Esselen Award Chemical Society Logo on the sleeve, for Chemistry in the Public Interest. utive Committee for the 2010-11 aca- and ACS logo will be on the back of demic year. The role of the executive This award is given annually to a the t-shirt. This contest is open to all chemical scientist, whose scientific committee is to manage administrative students K-12 in the Northeastern Sec- affairs and organize activities for and technical work has contributed to tion. the public well-being and has thereby NSYCC member as required by our Contest rules: constitution (accessible on the NSYCC communicated the positive values of Your design must capture the NCW the chemical profession. The signifi- website, www.nsycc.org). The NSYCC 2010 theme, which is Behind the is seeking younger chemists (defined cance of this work should have become Scenes with Chemistry – Chemistry apparent within the five years preced- as less than 35 years of age and are in in the Movies. pursuit of a degree or are just establish- ing nomination. The awardee shall be You may use up to 4 colors in your a living resident of the United States or ing their careers) for the following design and your design must be on positions: Chair, Vice-Chair, Treasurer, Canada at the time of the nomination. an unlined 8.5” x 11” sheet of paper. There is no limitation to the field Secretary, Webmaster, Career Chair, The deadline for submission is Sep- of chemistry. This award differs from Publicity Chair, and Social Chair. tember 15, 2010. The winner will be other ACS awards because the selec- Younger chemists within the North- announced by September 30, 2010. tion committee focuses on the general eastern Section of the American public recognition of the work but also Please mail your original design to: Chemical Society are eligible and considers its scientific/technical signif- Christine Jaworek-Lopes encouraged to run for a position. icance. 400 The Fenway The NSYCC provides many excit- The Award consists of a bronze Emmanuel College ing events for its members, including medal and the sum of $5,000. Travel Boston, MA 02115 an annual Career Day and Chemistry expenses incidental to the conferring All entries must have the following Research Conference, many social of the award will be reimbursed. The information included with the entry: activities, and helps with the organiza- award will be presented at the April student’s name, grade, home address, tion of the NESACS-GDCh Exchange 2011 meeting of the Section. The telephone number, school name, Program. Awardee is expected to deliver an school address, teacher’s name, Please email nominations to the address related to the work for which email, and school telephone number. current NSYCC Chair, Raeanne L. the honor is conferred, but it should be Have fun!!! u Napoleon, at [email protected] by oriented toward why it is in the public August 31, 2010. Please include the interest and for an audience with lim- nominees’ contact information and ited knowledge of the specific field. for recognition; and 4) copies of popu- affiliation. Nominations should be submitted lar and technical press news or feature The election will take place online as a single pdf file including: 1) a letter articles indicative of public benefit and between September 1, 2010 and Sep- signed by the primary sponsor with a interest. Further information is avail- tember 10, 2010. The voting procedure description of how the nominee’s work able at www.nesacs.org. will be made available to the public on has been recognized as making a major Nominations Are Due October 15, September 1, 2010 by e-mail, and a contribution to the public welfare and 2010 to [email protected] link will be provided on the the as communicating positive values of with cc to [email protected]. NSYCC homepage. Results will also the chemical profession, plus the Award recipients will be notified by be announced via e-mail and on the names of two co-sponsors; 2) short February 1, 2011. NSYCC homepage. supporting co-sponsor statements; 3) Inquiries may be directed to the above We strongly urge all readers to the nominee’s professional biography or to Dr. Arthur Obermayer, Tel. nominate and all members to cast their u including a list of no more than ten of (617)244-0180 or Karen Piper, Tel. votes! the nominee’s publications selected for (978) 456-8622. Address: 19 Mill Rd., their pertinence to the work nominated Harvard, MA 01451. u
The Nucleus Summer 2010 15 SCHEDULED EVENTS FOR THE INTERNATIONAL YEAR OF CHEMISTRY Morton Z. Hoffman Chair, NESACS IYC Committee
The International Year of Chemistry be under the sponsorship of the UN, anniversary of the Nobel Prize Award (IYC) will take place in 2011. The UNESCO, and IUPAC. to Marie Curie and the 100th anniver- International Union of Pure and sary of the Solvay Conferences, one of IUPAC World Chemistry Congress Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) is in the the most significant series of scientific July 30-August 7, 2011: San Juan, process of establishing global chem- meetings of all times. After an open- Puerto Rico istry activities to provide international ing address by his Royal Highness, “Chemistry: Bridging Innovation visibility for the event. In addition, Prince Philip of Belgium, and a recap among the Americas and the World” is IUPAC is partnering with UNESCO to by IUPAC President, Professor Nicole the theme for the 43rd IUPAC World organize high-profile occasions for the Chemistry Congress, a IYC 2011 cor- Moreau, of the main exhilarating celebration. The following events nerstone event. The following plenary events of the IYC throughout the have already been scheduled. speakers have already confirmed their world, an international team of young scientists from the life sciences, chem- IYC Pre-launch Reception at participation: istry, industry, and government will Pacifichem Aaron Ciechanover (2004 Nobel open a debate on their expectations to December 16, 2010: Honolulu, Laureate in Chemistry) build a better world in 2050. Eminent Hawaii th Richard Ernst (1991 Nobel Laureate players from academia will share their Pacifichem 2010 will be the 6 in in Chemistry) the series of successful co-sponsored views as to how chemists and chem- scientific conferences of the Pacific Robert Grubbs (2005 Nobel Laure- istry are the “solutions providers” to Basin Chemical Societies. A pre- ate in Chemistry) the major challenges facing mankind, launch reception will be held to high- Roald Hoffmann (1981 Nobel Lau- and a round table composed of scien- light the upcoming celebratory year reate in Chemistry) tists, politicians, CEOs from industry and promote in that context collabora- Mario Molina (1995 Nobel Laure- and NGOs will build on the discussion tions among chemists of the Pacific ate in Chemistry) and debate interventions. The closing event will also emphasize how impor- Rim countries. Ada Yonath (2009 Nobel Laureate tant chemistry is for the economy and in Chemistry) South African Chemical Institute society throughout the world. (SACI) Convention A special topic, important for local and January 16-21, 2011: University of regional needs in Puerto Rico, will be More information about IYC is avail- the role of biotechnology in the devel- able at the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, u South Africa opment of the agricultural and pharma-
16 The Nucleus Summer 2010 The International Year of Chemistry 2011 - the Countdown Continues! launch a year full of activities and resources linked to four quarterly 3 Ways to get involved with themes: environment, energy, materi- IYC…Now! als, and health. National unifying 1. If Chemistry is everywhere…. events will coincide with National Prove It! Chemistry Week and Chemists Cele- Nominate an “everyday” chem- brate Earth Day. Additionally, innova- istry topic (elements, discover- In 2005, physicists celebrated the Inter- tion grants will be available for local ies, processes, people, etc.) to be national Year of Physics. In 2009, sections, student chapters, and high highlighted through 365: Chem- astronomers celebrated the Interna- school chemistry clubs to conduct istry for Life during IYC 2011 tional Year of Astronomy. And now, IYC-related programming. at www.acs.org/iycsurvey. Sub- chemists around the world are prepar- Toolkits with ideas and templates mit a suggestion individually or ing for the International Year of for planning additional activities to as a group! Chemistry (IYC) in 2011. engage various communities will be 2. Spread the Word: Are you ready to join the celebration? available at www.acs.org/iyc2011. Programming at National and Get the word out about IYC About IYC 2011 Regional Meetings will also reflect 2011 through your everyday interactions and through partici- The International Year of Chemistry IYC objectives and themes. A Chal- pation in local section events 2011 is a United Nations designated lenge Grant competition was held in such as NCW 2010. worldwide celebration of the achieve- early 2010, in which ACS Technical ments of chemistry and its contribu- Divisions applied for support for sym- 3. Plan and Tag for IYC: tions to the well-being of humankind. posia at the July 2011 IUPAC World Decide how you want to cele- The IYC 2011 initiative is being led by Congress in San Juan, Puerto Rico. brate IYC 2011 and let us know at [email protected]! the International Union of Pure and Building Bridges Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) and the ACS, in collaboration with Chemical United Nations Educational, Scientific Heritage Foundation (CHF) & the 2011 and its messages. Technology- and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). American Institute of Chemical Engi- enabled mechanisms, such as mobile IYC 2011 will offer a range of neers (AIChE), will launch a multi-day platforms for delivery, podcasts, and interactive, entertaining, and educa- IYC 2011 event during February 2011. video, will also be utilized for dissemi- tional activities for all ages across the Partnerships with the National Acade- nation of the IYC 2011 message. globe aligned with the following mies of Science, various U.S. govern- objectives: IYC 2011 and You ment agencies, and sister societies IYC 2011 will provide ACS and the • Increase the public appreciation of worldwide are also under way. chemistry in meeting world needs worldwide chemistry community with • Increase interest of young people in Delivering the Message a historic opportunity to celebrate the chemistry 365: Chemistry for Life will be many ways that chemistry improves • Generate enthusiasm for the creative launched online on January 1, 2011. people’s lives. We need you to join the future of chemistry This web-based initiative is designed effort! • Celebrate the 100th anniversary of to highlight a different topic (person, How will you engage your local the Mme. Marie Curie Nobel Prize place, molecule, element, etc…) every community in celebrating IYC? What in Chemistry. day. Individuals, local sections, techni- bridges might you build during 2011? cal divisions, student chapters – every- How will you deliver the IYC mes- ACS Celebrates IYC 2011 one is asked to nominate an sage? There are many answers to these In order to take full advantage of this “everyday” chemistry topic (elements, questions. The difficulty may lie in historic, once in a lifetime opportunity, discoveries, processes, people, etc.) to choosing which answers – and activi- ACS will celebrate IYC 2011 using a be highlighted through 365: Chem- ties – to pursue! Whatever you decide, three-pronged approach. istry for Life during IYC 2011 at we look forward to celebrating with Engaging Communities www.acs.org/iycsurvey. you – in whatever way you choose! To support the work of its local sec- Additionally, the ACS Network For more information, visit: tions during 2011, the ACS Office of and ACS publications such as our jour- www.acs.org/iyc2011 or email Volunteer Support and the Committee nals and Chemical and Engineering [email protected]. u on Community Activities ACS will News will also be utilized to share IYC
The Nucleus Summer 2010 17 Graduate Student Sponsored Symposium (GSSPC) By Mindy Levine “Chemistry and Policy: Solving Prob- expenses and Boston-area housing. ial Methods Center, are among the lems at the Interface” will be a full-day They are helped to some extent by the other speakers of the symposium, symposium at the 240th ACS National ACS Division of Chemical Education, which will also include David Gold- Meeting dedicated to addressing issues which arranges the room reservations ston (NRDC), Joan Berkowitz (Farkas at the interface of chemistry and public for the symposium and provides $2000 Berkowitz & Company), John Gaveno- policy. This symposium, which will of start-up money. This money is even- nis (DuPont), and Janan Hayes (Chair take place on Monday, August 23rd, is tually passed on to the future GSSPC of ACS History of Chemistry). organized by a group of chemistry team. This event has been publi- graduate students at MIT who serve on The remainder of the money cized through several venues. The the Graduate Student Symposium comes from various industry sponsors News Office at the ACS included this Planning Committee (GSSPC). Jan and other ACS divisions. NESACS is symposium as an important part of the Schnorr, co-chair of GSSPC with Jared proud to be a co-sponsor of this impor- ACS Boston meeting. The fact that the Silvia, explained that the symposium tant event. The organizers successfully symposium has been designated as a topic should be of interest to a wide obtained industrial funding from Strem presidential event will also garner pub- variety of chemists: industrial and aca- Chemical Company and Dow Corning licity. Moreover, the co-sponsorships demic chemists, graduate students and and recruited a variety of ACS Divi- of this symposium by many ACS divi- post-doctoral fellows, and people with sions to co-sponsor the event, includ- sions will ensure wide spread publicity. various chemistry experiences and ing the divisions of Organic Chemistry, The Chemical Education division backgrounds. Biological Chemistry, Polymer Chem- is also interested in ensuring continuity This GSSPC-organized sympo- istry, and Nuclear Chemistry. The ACS between different groups of graduate sium is the 8th symposium in the series Division of Chemical Education, in students who organize these events. To that began in 2005, when the ACS addition to providing the $2000 of that end, the MIT GSSPC has recruited Division of Chemical Education start-up funds, also donated $1000 to a group of graduate students from launched the GSSPC program. Accord- the event. The MIT Chemistry Depart- SMU who will be responsible for ing to the program charter, the goal of ment is providing substantial funding organizing the symposium at the 2011 the GSSPC is to “facilitate ongoing as well, part of which will be utilized ACS meeting in Denver. MIT students involvement among graduate students for a dinner with the speakers that will have also secured $2000 in funding for in planning symposia at ACS national follow the symposium. the 2011 planning committee, and meetings.” The graduate students Selecting appropriate speakers for were themselves recipients of financial involved are given full autonomy to the symposium was an important assistance from the graduate students choose a topic, recruit speakers, and aspect of organizing a successful who planned the Philadelphia GSSPC. arrange all logistics of the program. event. Professor John Deutch, Institute This symposium is expected to Previous symposia covered both Professor in MIT’s Department of have wide-ranging effects, for exam- technical and non-technical subject Chemistry, agreed to participate in the ple, in encouraging graduate students areas. Two examples of non-technical event and suggested several additional to think of alternative careers, subjects are the Fall 2007 GSSPC- speakers, according to graduate student explained Becca Parkhurst. Jose Lobez sponsored symposium, which was enti- and GSSPC member Jose Lobez. said, “We are interested in bringing tled, “Finding Your Catalyst: Lower One goal in selecting speakers science policy to the minds of the the Barrier from Graduate School to was to find speakers with diverse expe- graduate students.” The outcome of Industry,” and the Spring 2006 sympo- riences who would be able to share such an education and exposure can sium entitled, “Balancing the Equa- their thoughts and experiences, accord- only be beneficial to all involved. u tion: Finding a Personal-Professional ing to GSSPC member Becca Equilibrium.” Technical symposia Parkhurst. The list of speakers includes included the Spring 2007 symposium notable professors George Whitesides Looking for seminars on “Exploring and Exploiting Nature (Harvard University), John Deutch in the Boston area? with Biomimetics.” (MIT), and Jay Keasling (UC Berke- Check out the The graduate students on the ley). Dr. William Rees, director of GSSPC are responsible for securing global security for Los Alamos NESACS Calendar funding for various aspects of the sym- National Laboratories, and Dr. Kathyrn www.nesacs.org/seminars posium, including the speakers’ travel Beers, director of NIST’s Combinator-
18 The Nucleus Summer 2010 Benefits and Challenges for Multifunctional Nanoparticles in Medicine Sonke Svenson, Cerulean Pharma Inc., Cambridge, Massachusetts The National Institutes of Health, The next generation of nanoparticle- ogy-enabled drug delivery is expected thro ugh the National Cancer Institute based research is directed at the to rise to US$ 26 billion by 2012. (NCI), have been charged with the goal consolidation of functions into multi- Besides overcoming bioavailability of eliminating death and suffering from functional devices, which may ulti- hurdles for newly developed drugs, i.e., cancer by the year 2015. In order to mately facilitate the realization of poor drug solubility or membrane per- achieve this ambitious goal, the devel- individual therapy. These multiplexed meability, nanoparticule-based drug opment of novel nanotechnology- nanoparticles may be capable of: (1) delivery can enable reformulation of based devices and therapeutics are improved delivery of poorly water-sol- existing drug products to increase envisioned that are capable of one or uble drugs; (2) identifying malignant product lifecycle, expand intellectual more clinically important functions, cells via molecular detection; (3) visu- property estate, and discourage compe- including detecting cancer at its earli- alizing their location in the body by tition during a drug’s most valuable est stages, pinpointing its location providing enhanced contrast in medical years. [3] One of the best-known within the body, delivering anticancer imaging techniques; (4) fostering tran- examples for reformulated, nanoparti- drugs specifically to malignant cells, scytosis of drugs across tight epithelial cle-based drug delivery is Doxil. and determining if these drugs are and endothelial barriers; (5) targeting Doxil, approved in the U.S. in 1995, killing malignant cells. The Cancer and killing diseased cells with minimal is the poly(ethylene glycol)-coated, Nanotechnology Plan developed by the side effects through selective cell tar- liposome-encapsulated form of dox- NCI has identified six major challenge geting; (6) monitoring treatment in orubicin, a drug used in cancer areas, including “Multi-functional real-time; and (7) co-delivery of multi- chemotherapy. A more recent com- Therapeutics,” i.e., nanoscale devices ple drugs for combination therapy. [2] mercial product developed by Abraxis that integrate diagnostic and therapeu- The total market for nanotechnol- continued on page 37 tic functions, and control the spatial and temporal release of therapeutic agents while monitoring the effective- ness of these agents. [1] The application of nanoparticles for combined targeting and delivery of diagnostic and therapeutic agents has received significant attention in recent years. Nanoparticles may be con- structed from a wide range of organic and inorganic materials, such as emul- sions, solid lipid nanoparticles (SLN), nanocapsules, nanospheres, micelles, liposomes, dendrimers, quantum dots (QD), and fullerenes and carbon nan- otubes (CNT). These materials are being used to encapsulate or solubilize chemotherapeutic agents for improved drug delivery in vivo or to provide unique optical, magnetic and electrical properties for imaging and therapy. Several functional nanoparticles are being evaluated in preclinical and clin- ical studies and some nanoparticles have advanced status, including clin - ically approved liposome drug formu- lations and metallic imaging agents.
The Nucleus Summer 2010 19 The NESACS Medicinal Chemistry Group By Mindy Levine When Dr. Raj Rajur left ArQule Cor- a position that he has held since 2004. maceutical industry, as many compa- poration in 2001 to start his own com- The MedChem group, one of the nies find it more cost-effective to con- pany, very few of his colleagues were largest and most active subgroups in duct some chemistry research in these interested in joining him. “When you NESACS, organizes three annual sym- countries. have very preliminary ideas, it is hard posia. The goal of the symposia is to Additionally, the symposia provide to convince people to support you,” “cover cutting-edge topics in the phar- a networking opportunity for chemists said Dr. Rajur. maceutical and biotech industries,” from industry and academia to interact. His company, Creagen Biosci - according to Dr. Rajur. Each sympo- Students who may be interested in a ences, now employs 24 chemists, who sium focuses on a particular therapeu- career in the pharmaceutical industry are divided between sites in Woburn, tic field. For example, past symposia are highly encouraged to attend and MA, and India. have focused on advances in the treat- network with representatives of local The goal of Creagen Biosciences ment of Alzheimer’s Disease, which pharmaceutical companies. In addition is to provide medicinal chemistry affects more than 35 million people to the scientific talks, Dr. Mukund knowledge and expertise to biotechnol- worldwide, and on the treatment of Chorghade, past NESACS chair and ogy companies. “We specialize in cre- Type II Diabetes, also an extremely CSO at THINQ Pharma, often pro- ating intellectual property for common affliction. vides a one-hour career guidance and biotechs,” said Dr. Rajur. For example, The most recent symposium took consulting session during the symposia, Creagen Biosciences developed a com- place in May, 2010, in conjunction which assists students, as well as other pound for Mercury Therapeutics, Inc., with Sino-American Pharmaceutical chemists who are seeking employment that had nanomolar potency against the Professionals Association (SAPA-NE). in the pharmaceutical industry. biological target. The topic of this symposium was “Dis- The MedChem group is “doing MedChem symposia covery in China: Status Opportunity, very new things that we haven’t been Dr. Rajur heads the Medicinal Chem- International Collaboration, and Chal- doing before,” said Dr. Chorghade. “I istry (MedChem) group of the North- lenges.” The choice of this topic recog- am just delighted.” eastern Section of the American nizes the increasing role that China and Relationship with NESACS Chemical Society (NESACS), which is other Asian countries play in the phar- The MedChem group plays an impor-
20 The Nucleus Summer 2010 tant role in the larger NESACS organi- 70 chemists attended the December, could be presented annually at the zation. Two of the three annual sym- 2009 symposium on “Recent Develop- December MedChem symposium. posia are hosted in conjunction with ments in RNAi Therapeutics,” which Yet another area for future devel- the monthly NESACS meeting, and was held in Burlington, MA. opment would be the elaboration of the one symposium is held independently. Another relatively recent change NESACS website to include more Additionally, the NESACS website in the MedChem group’s organization medicinal chemistry-specific content. (www.nesacs.org) has a section is the source of funding for events. The Dr. Rajur would like to add “fun and devoted to the MedChem group. chair-elect used to be responsible for interactive chemistry links” to the Med- History of MedChem procuring funds from various pharma- Chem section of the NESACS website. The MedChem group used to meet ceutical companies, which would be Dr. Rajur would also like to add links monthly at a restaurant in Sturbridge, used to invite speakers to the monthly and advice to help students success- said Dr. Patrick Gordon, chemistry lec- meetings. Funding for the symposia fully transition from the academic turer at Emmanuel College and past now comes partly from NESACS and world to a pharmaceutical position, chair of the MedChem group. How- partly from local pharmaceutical spon- which is often a challenging career ever, very few chemists attended the sorships, Dr. Gordon said. move. Links that help visitors volun- monthly meetings, which included a Future Directions teer for and contribute to the Med- chemistry seminar given by an external Dr. Rajur would love to see more peo- Chem group would also be desirable. speaker. “Clearly we weren’t meeting ple involved in the MedChem group. In Conclusions the needs of our clientele,” Dr. Gordon particular, chemists are encouraged to “What I am particularly proud of is said, as sometimes the only people get involved in planning the symposia that we represent chemists from indus- who attended the meetings were the and choosing relevant therapeutic top- try, academia, and government,” said members of the MedChem board. ics for the events. The MedChem Dr. Chorgade. “This diverse group When Dr. Rajur assumed the posi- group conducts a long-range planning brings a fresh perspective to the table.” tion as chair of the MedChem group in meeting once a year, at which time the “The people who established this 2004, he significantly modified the topics of the symposia (and potential group were the real pioneers,” con- structure of the group and its program- speakers) are chosen. Another future cluded Dr. Gordon. “They saw the ming, moving to the current format of direction that Dr. Gordon suggested vision and necessity of having a Med- three annual symposia. The group’s would be the establishment of a Med- Chem group. We continue to benefit popularity has increased dramatically Chem prize to recognize an important from that vision today.” u as a result. For example, approximately local medicinal chemist. This prize
The Nucleus Summer 2010 21 10th Anniversary of the NESACS- YCC/GDCh-JCF Exchange: Celebrating a Decade of Friendships and Science By Raeanne L. Napoleon The Northeastern Section of the ACS During the meeting, Strem and 2001 Exchange (April 27-May 4) (NESACS), the Northeastern Section Begitt discussed the possibility of each Nine graduate students from across Younger Chemists Committee of the groups hosting the other on an Germany, along with Begitt and three (NSYCC), and the NESACS Educa- annual basis. Having the young faculty members from different univer- tion Committee are delighted to host a chemists interact socially and present sities, visited Boston and attended the group of 13 graduate-student represen- their work at conferences, in addition Third Annual NSCRC. In 2001 Dr. tatives from the Young Chemists Forum to visits to academic and industrial sites Robert Langer (M.I.T.) provided the (Jungchemikerforum, JCF) of the in the geographic areas that the groups keynote address. There were more German Chemical Society (Gesellschaft were visiting, would be the focus of than 60 posters, six oral presentations, Deutscher Chemiker, GDCh); a repre- the weeklong stays. Strem returned to and more than 100 attendees. Two of sentative from the European Young Boston with the ideas that he and the oral presentations were delivered Chemists Network (EYCN), Sergej Begitt developed and presented them by visiting German students. Toews; a German high- school teacher, to the NESACS Education Committee, In addition to the NSCRC, the Dr. JörgSaborowski; and the Deputy NSYCC, and the Board of Directors. group attended a concert by the Boston Executive Director and Director of He also informed the group that a dele- Symphony Orchestra at Symphony Education and Professional Affairs, Dr. gation of German graduate students Hall; visited laboratories at Harvard Kurt Begitt, in Boston August 21-28 would be visiting Boston in 2001 for University, M.I.T., and Waters Associ- during the ACS National Meeting. the Northeast Student Chemistry ates; attended the Kistiakowski Lecture This visit marks the 10th exchange Research Conference (NSCRC), an at Harvard University given by Ahmed between the NESACS-NSYCC and annual conference organized by the Zewail; attended a Red Sox game at GDCh-JCF and will highlight ACS NSYCC that provides an opportunity Fenway Park; and enjoyed a farewell international efforts, as well as demon- for undergraduate and graduate stu- dinner banquet. strate the close ties between NESACS dents, and postdoctoral fellows to pres- 2002 Exchange (March 9-16) and the GDCh. The visit to Boston ent their research work. NESACS Eleven graduate students and one will allow the German graduate stu- took immediate action and organized a undergraduate student from the North- dents to attend the national meeting committee to plan the events for their eastern Section traveled to Germany and present their work, visit local future guests. The committee included accompanied by Strem, Tanner, Hoff- industrial sites, and to have fun with Michael Strem, Chair; Ruth Tanner man, and Tapper. They visited representatives of NSYCC and experi- (UMass, Lowell), NESACS Education Cologne, Universität Köln, attended a ence Boston and its surrounding areas. Committee Chair; Morton Hoffman GDCh-NESACS symposium, toured Where it All Began (Boston University), NESACS Chair- the facilities of Bayer and Jülich In March of 2000, Dr. Michael Strem Elect; Amy Tapper (Boston Univer- Research Centers, and then moved on (Strem Chemicals, Inc), a member of sity), NSYCC Chair; Tim Frigo to Aachen, where the students pre- the ACS Board of Directors from Dis- (Advanced Magnetics, Inc.), NESACS sented their work at the two-day trict I (1997-2000) and a member of Chair; and Doris Lewis (Suffolk Uni- GDCh-JCF spring symposium (Eure- the NESACS Board of Directors, trav- versity), NESACS Immediate Past- gionale). Monica Rixman (M.I.T.), a eled to Germany for the Chemiedozen- Chair. The NESACS Board provided graduate student with the NESACS tentagung meeting to exhibit his funds to allow for comfortable lodging, group, won an award for giving an out- company’s products by invitation from local transportation, meals, and enter- standing oral presentation. Dr. Kurt Begitt, with whom he had tainment for the JCF visitors. 2003 Exchange (Feb 22-Mar 1) been in contact because of a growing History and Details of Each After the 2002 exchange, the GDCh connection between NESACS and the Exchange and NESACS agreed that future GDCh. The JCF had an exhibit at this Since this initial meeting in 2001, the exchanges would take place on the conference, and Strem realized that GDCh-JCF and NESACS-NSYCC basis of two NESACS visits for each this group and its young members had have been fortunate enough to have 9 GDCh visit. Thus, in 2003, representa- similar interests and organization to a additional meetings, with 2010 mark- tives from within the NESACS region group he was very familiar with, the ing the 10th Exchange. A brief history NSYCC. of the exchange trips follows. continued on page 23
22 The Nucleus Summer 2010 YCC/GDCh-JCF attending a performance by the Boston Symphony Orchestra in Symphony Continued from page 22 Hall and concluded the week with a returned to Germany. Ten graduate farewell dinner. students and two undergraduates, 2005 Exchange (April 3-10) accompanied by Patrick Gordon A new NESACS delegation traveled to (NESACS Alternate Councilor), Tap- Germany, along with Lauren Wolf, per, Tanner, Hoffman, and Strem, (YCC Immediate Past-Chair), Strem, returned to Germany for a visit to Tanner, and Hoffman. Two undergrad- Munich and Dresden. In Munich, the uate and 10 graduate students repre- group toured the city and visited Lud- senting different NESACS-area 2007 German Delegation with Dr. Kurt Begitt, wig-Maximilians University, Technical universities attended the Früh- Director of Education and Professional Affairs University Munich (TUM), Deutsches of the GDCh. jahrssymposium, which was held at Museum, and Hofbräuhaus, in addition Photo by Morton Z. Hoffman Humboldt University in Berlin. Sarah to participating in a symposium on the graduate students presented posters Chobot, a graduating senior from international careers. Additionally, the in their respective ACS Divisions and Boston University, delivered an oral group visited Burghausen, where they at the Sci-Mix, which took place on presentation at the conference and won toured the research and production Monday night during the conference; the top award, a € 250 cash prize and facilities of Wacker Chemie. The Sgoff gave an oral presentation in the a flight ticket to attend another science group then went to Dresden and visited CHED High-School program about conference anywhere in the world the the Technical University Dresden teaching chemistry in Germany. Three following year. Additionally, at the (TUD), where the Euregionale was of the graduate students, as well as farewell dinner Dr. Michael Strem was held. There were representatives from Begitt, gave oral presentations in a awarded the GDCh Golden Pin, which many countries in attendance and CHED symposium on research and recognizes outstanding service to NESACS students earned nominations chemical education in German, which chemistry and the chemistry society, in three of the four award categories was organized by Hoffman and for his contributions to the NESACS- for oral and poster presentations. cosponsored by the GDCh, ACS Inter- YCC and GDCH-JCF exchange. national Activities Committee, the 2004 Exchange (April 18-25) 2006 Exchange (March 12-19) CHED International Activities Com- Fifteen graduate students representing The Frühjahrssymposium was held at mittee, NESACS, the Graduate Stu- different universities in Germany, the University of Konstanz, and a dent Symposium Planning Committee, together with Begitt, visited Boston group of eight graduate students and and other groups. The group also and attended the Sixth Annual NSCRC four undergraduates representing enjoyed tours of university laborato- and YCC Career Fair. The Career Fair, NESACS traveled to Germany for the ries, a reception in their honor at the which preceded the conference, pro- conference, along with Ivan Koren- Seaport Hotel, a day at the Cape, where vided attendees with resumé-writing dovych (YCC Chair), Strem, Hoffman, they had a clam bake and played wiffle sessions, interviewing skills work- and Tanner. Three students from the ball, and a farewell dinner. shops, and the chance to talk with NESACS delegation won awards at the recruiters. The NSCRC featured wel- conference: Dan Killelea (Tufts Uni- coming remarks by Charles Casey versity) won the third-place cash (ACS President) and a keynote address award for his oral presentation, and by Dr. Stephen Lippard (M.I.T.). One Vikki Tsefrikas (Boston College) and of the visiting German students won a Leland Johnson (Boston University) cash prize for delivering an outstand- were both recognized for their research ing oral presentation. posters. In addition to the conference, In addition to the conference, the the group visited the Max Planck Insti- German delegation enjoyed the 360o tute for Materials Research, took a tour view from the top of the Prudential 2008 American Delegation together with Ger- of the old medieval section of Kon- Building, feasted on a traditional New man student hosts, Dow Chemicals Tour guides, stanz, toured the industrial site of England dinner at Durgin Park, and Dr. Robert Lichter and Dr. Ruth Tanner. Altana Pharma, and enjoyed a boat Photo provided by Robert Lichter watched the Red Sox play at Fenway ride on Lake Constance. Park on Patriot’s Day, and subsequent - 2008 Exchange (March 26-April 2) ly became spectators of the runners of 2007 Exchange (August 18-25) Twelve graduate students and two the Boston Marathon in Kenmore A delegation of 14 graduate students undergraduates from NESACS along Square, toured research facilities at from Germany visited the Boston area with Strem, Hoffman, Tanner and Harvard University, M.I.T., and Pfizer during the national meeting, together Robert Lichter (Merrimack Consult- in Groton, CT, and enjoyed a dinner in with a German high-school teacher, Dr. ants, LLC) attended the 10th Früh- Newport, RI. They spent an evening Marianne Sgoff, and Begitt. Each of continued on page 35
The Nucleus Summer 2010 23 Connections to Chemistry – Ten Years and Going Strong! By Morton Z. Hoffman, Ruth Tanner and Marietta Schwartz College/university and non-academic workshops on chemistry content, peda- The event was extremely favor- chemists stay current by reading gogy, and National Chemistry Week ably received by all participants; essen- research journals and attending confer- activities. Ideally, it would be sched- tially all would consider attending ences and meetings. The options for uled early in the academic year, at an another conference in the future and high-school chemistry teachers are easily accessible location, and would would recommend it to a colleague. much more limited, due to time, provide teachers with professional Comments on evaluation forms finances, rewards, and opportunities. development credits. included, “I regret that I could not The late Representative Tip O’Neill The first Connections to Chem- attend all four workshops.” “This was was famously quoted as saying, “All istry event was held on Thursday, very informative and worth my time.” politics is local.” There is nothing October 19, 2000 from 3:30-8:00 PM and “Nothing but gratitude for thinking more local in the ACS than the Local at Burlington (MA) High School. In of us.” Section, and thus the professional attendance were 100 participants from NESACS has been providing high- development of high school teachers 72 different high schools in all six New school teachers with Connections to should be of major concern to each England states. The day began with Chemistry for ten years now, and plan- Local Section. registration, refreshments, and a wel- ning is underway for Connections XI. New England provides many pro- come, followed by two 45-minute ses- The program has grown every year. fessional development opportunities sions of four hands-on workshops. The Because of laboratory space limita- for high-school chemistry teachers. four workshops were: “National tions, the attendee limit is now set at Schools and school districts, as well as Chemistry Week: Kitchen Chemistry”; 150, with at least one-third of those colleges and universities offer an “Integrating ACS Computer Resources being repeat attendees. Some work- assortment of programs. Teachers can into the High School Curriculum”; shops have been so popular as to war- also attend occasional regional meet- “Experiment with the ACS: Chem rant repeating. Within NESACS, there ings of the National Science Teachers Matters, ChemCom, Journal of Chemi- is an almost unlimited supply of work- Association (NSTA) and meetings and cal Education;” and “Chemists to shop leaders and keynote speakers, summer conferences of the New Eng- Classrooms: Connecting Industrial which is fortunate, as there is a great land Association of Chemistry Teach- Chemists with High School Chemistry demand for this event among the high- ers (NEACT). Other resources are Teachers.” school teachers in the area. The regis- provided by the Massachusetts Associ- Then came dinner and a keynote tration fee is now $18; this includes ation of Science Supervisors (MASS), address, given by Michael Tinnesand, workshop and program-related materi- the Massachusetts Association of Sci- Head of K-12 Sciences, ACS Educa- als, dinner, a one-year subscription to ence Teachers (MAST), and the Net- tion Division. The evening ended with ChemMatters, and a certificate for work of Educators in Science and door prizes and give-away of educa- three hours of Professional Develop- Technology (NEST). tional materials, including affiliate ment credit. In 1999, the Education Committee memberships to NESACS and CHED, With ten years of unqualified suc- of the Northeastern Section of the ACS logo products (mouse pads, T- cess, popularity, and proven worth to American Chemical Society took a shirts, mugs), ACS Education Division high school chemistry teachers within close look at these various opportuni- CDs, software, and magazines, and New England, Connections to Chem- ties, and felt that the American Chemi- four subscriptions to the Journal of istry is expected to continue to thrive cal Society should be highly visible as Chemical Education. for the foreseeable future, and we hope an important resource for the teachers’ All participants received profes- to write another update to celebrate professional development. The original sional development credits, for only a Connections XV in 2015! u group proposed an afternoon/evening $10 registration fee (which included weekday meeting for high-school dinner and materials). chemistry teachers in New England. The event would be organized and sponsored by NESACS and would pro- The NESACS website vide a connection to the extensive edu- Updated frequently • Late-breaking news • Position Postings cation resources and materials of the Back issues of the Nucleus • Career-related Links • Awards and Scholarships ACS and the Division of Chemical Education (CHED) for high-school www.nesacs.org chemistry teachers. It would include
24 The Nucleus Summer 2010 National Chemistry Week Events Celebrating Behind the Scenes with Chemistry October 17 - 23, 2010 October 17, 2010 – Museum of Science Boston • Phyllis A. Brauner Memorial Lecture by Dr. Bassam Shakhashiri Dr. Bassam Shakhashiri is a Professor of Chemistry at the University of Wisconsin-Madi- son and is the William T. Evjue Distinguished Chair for the Wisconsin Idea. Professor Shakhashiri has captivated audiences with his scientific demonstrations at a variety of locations including Boston’s Museum of Science, the National Academy of Sciences and the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington. Taking place in Cahners Theatre (2nd floor, Blue Wing) at 1:00 pm and 4:00 pm. * Admission to the museum is required. Free tickets to Dr. Shakhashiri’s show will be available on a first come, first serve basis. Tickets are available via advance reservation. To reserve tickets, please contact the NESACS secretary either via email [email protected] (preferred) or by phone 1-781-272-1966 before October 14, 2010. Tickets will be available for pick-up in the lobby of the museum at the ACS table. Kicking off National Chemistry Week 2010 festivities Join us in a variety of hands-on activities related to the yearly theme. Taking place from 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm on October 17, 2010 throughout the Museum.
October 23, 2010 – Boston Children’s Museum From 11 am – 4 pm, NCW volunteers will be on-hand throughout the museum to perform demonstrations and assist in hands-on activities related to the yearly theme.
September 1 – October 10, 2010 K-12 students participate in the NCW poster competition. Visit www.nesacs.org and http://portal.acs.org/portal/acs/corg/content?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=PP_TRANSITIONMAIN&n ode_id=1033&use_sec=false&sec_url_var=region1&__uuid=9f5daa85-50f8-4707-b39b- e2ad814f3021 for more information.
October 1 – 31, 2010 Grades K-12 may participate in the puzzle contest. See www.nesacs.org or the October 2010 issue of the Nucleus for the puzzles and contest informa- tion.
The Nucleus Summer 2010 25 Report from NERM 2010 Morton Z. Hoffman, Boston University [[email protected]] NESACS Representative to the Board of Directors, Northeast Region of the ACS, Inc. The 37th Northeast Regional Meeting tingham (SUNY Binghamton); The ed Chris topher Masi (Westfield State (NERM), which was hosted by the Stanley C. Israel Award for Advancing College) as Secretary and Wayne Jones Northern New York Local Section, was Diversity in the Chemical Sciences to (Binghamton University) as Treasurer held on Wednesday-Saturday, June 2-5, Luis Colón (SUNY Buffalo). of the Region; Julianne Smist (Spring- 2010, in Potsdam, New York, on the Among the professional network- field College) and Richard Cobb (East- bucolic campus of the State University ing and social events were the ACS man Kodak) will continue as Chair and of New York (SUNY) Potsdam; Martin Governance Breakfast with District I Vice Chair, respectively, for another Walker and Maria Hepel, both of Director Neil Jespersen and Director- year. SUNY Potsdam, served as the General at-Large and 2005 ACS President The Treasurer reported that the Chair and Program Chair, respectively. William Carroll, and a performance of Northeast Region was fiscally solvent, More than 500 attendees, including woodwind chamber pieces by the Aria with $35,446 in the bank; the $4,000 about 60 undergraduate students, were Reed Trio from the Crane School of starter loan to NERM 2010 is expected present for the 350 oral and poster Music of SUNY Potsdam. One of the to be repaid very soon. When the papers that were offered across a wide highlights of the meeting was the treasury reaches $50,000, the Board range of the chemical sciences: nan- evening performance of the musical will consider changes in the distribu- otechnology, drug development, envi- comedy, “The 25th Annual Putnam tion of meeting surpluses and will look ronmental and green chemistry, County Spelling Bee,” which was pre- into the possibility of creating addi- organic and inorganic chemistry, bio- sented by the Chemistry and the The- tional regional awards, including chemistry, and chemical education. In atre and Dance Departments. Among grants for young chemists to travel to addition, the meeting exhibition fea- the four individuals chosen from the the meetings. tured 15 commercial vendors and two audience to participate on stage was The Board received a final report graduate school representatives. Work- the University President, John on NERM 2009 (Hartford, CT) from shops on careers and leadership train- Schwaller, an historian, who was elim- its General Chair, Julie Smist; the ing, a half-day program for high-school inated in the first round; he was unable meeting featured 329 abstracts, 592 science teachers, and a vendor sympo- to spell “lysergic acid diethylamide.” attendees, 12 exhibitors, and eight sium were also scheduled. Surviving alone into the fourth round graduate schools. Its surplus of income Plenary lectures about sustainabil- was John Michael Sophos, Meeting over expenditures was approximately ity were given by Catherine Hunt (Dow Planner from the ACS Department of $15,000, which will be split 60%/40% Chemical Co.), who was the 2007 ACS Meetings and Expositions, who cor- between the Connecticut Valley Local President, and by Berkeley Cue (BWC rectly spelled “cow,” “intolerant,” and Section host and the Northeast Region, Pharma Consulting), who received his “Mandingo;” he faltered on the name according to the by-laws of incorpora- undergraduate education at the Univer- of some obscure furry animal from the tion. Martin Walker gave an interim sity of Massachusetts Boston. The mountains of Tibet, and was eliminated report on NERM 2010; where a budg- Cope Scholar Awardee, John Porco just before the end of Act I. etary surplus is also anticipated. (Boston University), was recognized Details of the program of the Christopher Masi, the General Chair of by a symposium on natural product meeting and the abstracts of the pre- NERM 2011, reported on the loss of synthesis in his honor, and William sentations are available at
26 The Nucleus Summer 2010 August Historical Events in Chemistry by Leopold May, The Catholic University of America, Washington, DC 20064 August 1, 1885 August 16, 1904 their discovery of the ability of One hundred and twenty-five years Wendell M. Stanley, a researcher on poliomyelitis viruses to grow in cul- ago on this date, Georg von Hevesy chemical nature of viruses, was born tures of various types of tissue. was born. He was a researcher in on this date. He crystallized tobacco radioisotopes and discovered mosaic virus and shared the Nobel August 30, 1871 hafnium (Hf, 72) in 1923 with Dirk prize in Chemistry in 1946 with Ernest Rutherford, who formulated Coster. In 1943 he was awarded the John H. Northrop for their prepara- the theory of radioactive decay in Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his tion of enzymes and virus proteins 1903, was born on this date. In work on the use of isotopes as trac- in a pure form and with James B. 1908 he was awarded the Nobel ers in the study of chemical Sumner for his discovery that Prize for his investigations into the processes. enzymes can be crystallized. disintegration of the elements, and the chemistry of radioactive sub- August 2, 1788 August 18, 1933 stances. Three years later he discov- Leopold Gmelin, who was born on The manuscript, “The Determina- ered the atomic nucleus and eight this date, discovered potassium fer- tion of Enzyme Dissociation Con- years later made the first nuclear ricyanide (Gmelin’s Salt) in 1822, stants.” by Hans Lineweaver and transmutation. other organic substances, and a test Dean Burk was received by the Additional historical events can be for bile pigments. His Handbuch der Journal of the American Chemical found at Dr. May’s website, http://fac- anorganischen Chemie, first pub- Society (1934, 56, 658) on this date. ulty.cua.edu/may/Chemistrycalendar.ht lished in 1819, is still a standard ref- m u erence work in inorganic chemistry. August 20, 1942 B. B. Cunningham & L. B. Werner August 7, 1853 isolated first macroscopic amount of Arthur Michael, who developed the plutonium (Pu, 94) at wartime Met- entropy-based theory of organic allurgical Laboratory, University of reactions and the Michael addition Chicago. reaction, was born on this date. August 21, 1813 August 10, 1902 Jean S. Stas developed methods for Arne W. K. Tiselius, a researcher on determination of atomic weights and electrophoresis and adsorption analysis. His aim to prove the analysis, was born on this date. In hypothesis of Proust, that all atoms 1948, he received the Nobel Prize in were conglomerations of hydrogen Chemistry for his research on elec- atoms, could not become achieved. trophoresis and adsorption analysis, He and Dumas determined the especially for his discoveries con- atomic weight of carbon. He was cerning the complex nature of the born on this date. serum proteins. August 24, 1883 August 13, 1892 PPG Industries was incorporated on Olin was incorporated as Mathieson this date. Alkali Works on this date. August 24, 1895 August 15, 1896 Morris S. Kharasch, who was born Gerty T. Cori, who was born on this on this date, developed synthetic date, discovered how glycogen is applications of free radical chem- catalytically converted. In 1947, she istry. and her husband shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for August 25, 1916 their discovery of the course of the Frederick C. Robbins, a researcher catalytic conversion of glycogen and on growth of viruses in tissue cul- with Bernardo A. Houssay for his ture, was born on this date. In 1954 discovery of the part played by the he shared the Nobel Prize in Physi- hormone of the anterior pituitary ology or Medicine with John F. lobe in the metabolism of sugar. Enders and Thomas H. Weller for
The Nucleus Summer 2010 27 Major Employers of Chemists in the Northeastern Section by Don Rickter with valuable assistance from Karen Piper, Mike Filosa, Lee Johnson, Dorothy Phillips and others Eastern Massachusetts and New Hampshire are a hotbed of dynamic chemistry companies. Some are start-ups that will grow dramatically. There are dozens of companies in both states. Some will merge or be acquired or change their names. Each has a unique personality and spectrum of expertise. The following list is most of the employers of seven or more members of the American Chemical Society — as of the end of May 2010. A few of the larger employers, with more than 35 ACS chemists, are in ALL CAPS. The locations are in eastern Massachusetts — unless marked with NH for New Hampshire. Aerodyne Research Concert Pharmaceuticals Ironwood Pharmaceuticals Billerica Lexington Cambridge www.aerodyne.com/ www.concertpharma.com www.ironwoodpharma.com Alkermes Inc. Cubist Pharmaceuticals Jeol USA Waltham Lexington Peabody www.alkermes.com/ www.cubist.com www.jeol.com Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Dow Electronic Materials Lantheus Medical Imaging Cambridge Marlborough North Billerica www.alnylam.com/ www.dow.com/ & www.radiopharm.com/ AMGEN INC. www.rohmhaas.com/ Markem CAMBRIDGE DSM-Neoresins Keene, NH www.amgen.com/ Wilmington www.markem-imaje.com Ariad Pharmaceuticals www.dsm.com/en_US/html/dnr/home. MERCK & CO. Cambridge htm BOSTON www.ariad.com/ E-Ink Corp. www.merck.com Arqule Inc. Cambridge Metabolix Woburn www.e-ink.com Cambridge www.arqule.com/ EISAI RESEARCH INSTITUTE www.metabolix.com/ ASTRA ZENECA ANDOVER Microbia (Also see Ironwood) WALTHAM www.easai.com Cambridge www.astrazeneca.com/ EMD Serono www.microbia.com/ Rockland BIOGEN IDEC MILLENNIUM PHARMA www.emdserono.com CAMBRIDGE CAMBRIDGE www.biogenidec.com/ Enanta Pharmaceuticals www.mpi.com Watertown Boston Scientific Corp. MILLIPORE www.enanta.com Natick BEDFORD www.bostonscientific.com/home.bsci GENZYME www.millipore.com CAMBRIDGE Broad Institute [rhymes with road] www.genzyme.com Momenta Pharma Cambridge Cambridge www.broadinstitute.org/ GlaxoSmithKline www.momentapharma.com Waltham Bruker Corp. www.gsk.com New England Biolabs Billerica Ipswich www.bruker.com Immunogen Inc. www.neb.com Waltham Cabot Corp. www.immunogen.com Nova Biomedical Billerica Waltham www.cabot-corp.com Infinity Pharmaceuticals www.novabio.com Cambridge Cambridge Isotope Labs www.ipi.com NOVARTIS (& NIBRI) Andover CAMBRIDGE www.isotope.com/ www.novartis.com continued on page 29
28 The Nucleus Summer 2010 Major Employers Schlumberger-Doll Res. Synta Pharmaceuticals Cambridge Lexington Continued from page 28 www.slb.com www.syntapharma.com Organix Inc. Sepracor Inc. Tetraphase Pharmaceuticals Woburn Marlborough Watertown www.organix.com www.sepracor.com www.tetraphasepharma.com Osram Sylvania Inc Shipley Co. (part of Dow) US Army Natick SSC Beverly Marlborough Natick www.sylvania.com/ www.shipley.com www.army.mil/info/organization/natick/ PCI Synthesis Shire VERTEX PHARMACEUTICALS Newburyport Cambridge CAMBRIDGE www.pcisynthesis.com www.shire.com www.vertexpharma.com/ PFIZER INC. Siemens Medical WR Grace CAMBRIDGE Norwood Cambridge www.pfizer.com www.usa.siemens.com www.wrgrace.com Physical Sciences Inc. Sigma-RBI Waters Corp. Andover Natick Milford www.psicorp.com www.sigma.com www.waters.com Sirtris Pharmaceuticals Rohm and Haas Electronic Materi- Woods Hole Oceanographic Insti- Cambridge als (part of Dow) tute www.sirtrispharma.com Marlborough Woods Hole www.rohmhaas.com Strem Chemicals www.whoi.edu Schering-Plough (Merck) Newburyport www.strem.com Wyeth Biopharma (Pfizer) Cambridge Andover www.schering-plough.com Surface Logix www.wyeth.com u Brighton www.surfacelogix.com
The Nucleus Summer 2010 29 One if by Land New in Boston • Old Town Trolley Tours
30 The Nucleus Summer 2010 Dining In Boston able prices for Newbury Street. Tiny • India Samraat (51 Massachusetts restaurant space, so take-away may Ave.; ph# 617-247-0718) (I-M)- Continued from page 11 be the best option. Fresh fish and Has wonderful Indian take-away. and freshness are hallmarks of this vegetables. Try the lunch box spe- Friendly service, great breads, enterprise. Legal’s famous clam cials and the fancy torched tuna including keema naan (white bread chowder has been served at White gone wild roll. stuffed with lamb) and chicken, House Presidential inaugurations • Bukowski Tavern (50 Dalton St.; lamb, vegetable, seafood, and birya- since the early 1980s. The company ph# 617-437-9999) (I)- Countercul- nies (rice) offerings. Order a mango has made industry advances in fish ture dive bar with extensive beer list lassi to accompany your meal. Stu- handling and gets its catch from and peanut butter and jelly hamburg- dents get 10% discount with ID. local day-boat fishing operations. ers. Menu items less than $10. Cash • Atlantic Fish Company-(761 Boyl- Scrod (young cod, split and boned) only. Cambridge Inman Square loca- ston St.; ph# 617-267-4000) (E- is a staple of fish markets in New tion, too. VE)- White tablecloths and even a England and can be prepared many • Steve’s Greek (316 Newbury St.; follow-up hand written thank you ways- grilled, baked or crumbed it is ph# 617-267-1817) (I)- Newbury note sent snail mail complement the delicious. You cannot go wrong with Street diner. The saganaki (flaming fresh seafood. The dining room feels anything on this menu. Reservations pan seared cheese) appetizer, avgole- like the inside of a ship. Outdoor recommended. Several locations mono (Greek egg lemon) soup and patio is always crowded. Located throughout greater Boston and Cam- spanikopita (spinach and feta cheese near the finish line of the Boston bridge. phyllo pastry pie), and kebabs are all Marathon. • P.F. Chang’s Chinese Bistro (Pru- excellent. Opa! Takeout specialties • Skipjack’s (199 Clarendon St.; ph# dential Center; ph# 617-378-9961) only at Faneuil Hall Quincy Market 617-536-3500) (E-VE)- An empo- (I-M)- Chinese cuisine with a South- location. rium of seafood,; with sushi and oys- east Asian influence and patio seat- • Top of the Hub (Prudential Tower; ters on the half shell augmenting ing. Appetizer chicken lettuce wraps ph# 617-536-1775) (M-E)- Amazing their deep and innovative fish plat- are a combination of hot and cool. A city views from the 52d floor. Live ters. Can accommodate all your gluten-free menu and an extensive jazz lounge every night of the week. seafood needs. noodle/rice selection can be aug- Lamb shank or pork chops are rec- • Cheesecake Factory (115 Hunting- mented with vegetarian, seafood or ommended here. ton Ave.; ph# 617-399-7777) (M)- carnivore options. • Kashmir (279 Newbury St.; ph# The scale of the space inside of this • McGreevy’s Boston (911 Boylston 617-536-1695) (M-E)- Indian Tan- restaurant may hint at the huge por- St.; ph# 617-262-0911) (I-M)- door oven specialties, outdoor patio tion size you will receive. A wide Owned by Boston’s own Drop Kick and exotic henna designs projected variety of choice at a great price. Murphys, 3000 steps from Fenway by lights onto the wood paneled wall Will you make it to the dessert park and described as America’s old- inside the restaurant. Nibble on menu? The strawberry cheesecake is est sports bar. Traditional sports- pakoras, try the beef vindloo or the worth holding out for. themed pub across the street from saag paneer. All you can eat lunch Park Square Area: Roughly Berke- the Hynes Convention Center and a buffet and weekend brunch. local hangout with loud music blar- ley street, Tremont Street, Boylston ing from the speakers. • Davio’s (75 Arlington St.; ph# 617- Street and Columbus Avenue. MBTA 357-4810) (E-VE)- Open kitchen Green line to Arlington. • Pour House (907 Boylston St.; ph# concept restaurant with in-house 617-236-1767) (I-M)- Inexpensive • FiRE and iCE (203 Berkeley St.; bakery and pastry department. Open ph# 617-482-3473) (M)- Enormous sports bar with a college-town vibe. mornings for breakfast and lunch in No-frills pub fare. round grill in the middle of the din- the adjacent building. Meat and ing room cooks endless dining possi- • Casa Romero (30 Gloucester St.; pasta dominate this formidable menu bilities. You personally select the ph# 617-536-4341) (M-E)- Boston’s but the basil pesto dances with fla- ingredients and sauces, and the chef most authentic Mexican restaurant, vor while the mozzarella-tomato prepares the meal right in front of with colorful ambiance. Between insalate is a fabulous opening act. you. Rice and warm tortillas are Commonwealth Avenue and New- • Café Jaffa (48 Gloucester St.; ph# waiting at your table when you bury Street, a fantastic discovery off 617-536-0230) (I)- Serves American return. Monday Nights are College a quiet alleyway. The ceviche appe- and Middle Eastern fare in a casual Night, where with a valid college tizer and any enchilada están muy sit-down setting for lunch and dinner ID, their unlimited dinner is only bueno! with filling portions for students and $9.95. Also Cambridge Harvard • Snappy Sushi (144 Newbury, St.; thrifty diners. Lamb/beef schwarma Square location. ph# 617-262-4530) (I)- As the name salad and the falafel sandwich are • Laurel (142 Berkeley St., ph# 617- suggests, quick sushi but at remark- excellent. continued on page 32
The Nucleus Summer 2010 31 Dining In Boston to Boylston. • Ginza (16 Hudson St.; ph# 617-338- • New Saigon Sandwich (696 Wash- 2261) (I-M)- Zagat-rated restaurant Continued from page 31 ington St.; ph# 617-542-6296) (I)- serving Japanese in the middle of 424-6711) (I-M)- Inexpensive Tiny takeout shop makes outstand- Chinatown. The numerous dipping American gourmet food; some of the ing sandwiches. The bahn mi (cold- sauces and extensive sake menu dishes are around $10. The variety cut sub, cilantro, carrots, cucumber, complement the sashimi and hand includes tri-colored cheese tortellini, sprouts, and baguette) is a steal at $3. rolls. chicken and steak. Makes all their • Xinh Xinh (7 Beach St.; ph# 617- • Chau Chow (53 Beach St.; ph# desserts in house, and the cranberry 422-0501) and Pho Pasteur (682 617-426-6266 ) (I-M)- Sweet and pecan tart is fabulous. Washington St.; ph# 617-482-7467) sour shrimp and seafood are good • Grill 23 and Bar (161 Berkeley St.; (I)- Both deliver solid Vietnamese here. Crowded with families, and ph# 617-542-2255) (E-VE)- pho (noodle soup) and bún (rice ver- lunch combos are a great value. Boston’s premier steakhouse. Also micelli plates). During busy dining • King Fung Garden (74 Kneeland serves seafood and a wine list to hours, be prepared to share your St.; ph# 617-357-5262) (I)- Unpre- match. The highest quality service. table with strangers. tentious, tiny restaurant with only a • Jacob Wirth (31 Stuart St.; ph# • East Ocean City (25-29 Beach St.; few tables. Take-away might be the 617-338-8586) (M)- Second oldest ph# 617-542-2504) (M-E)- Lobster best option. The best kept and most restaurant in Boston, serving German is a great choice here and an excel- delicious secret in Chinatown. Be style fare with American flair some- lent value. Fried squid with spicy sure not to miss it. one from the 19th century would still salt is a local favorite. • New Shanghai (21 Hudson St.; ph# be familiar with. Including sausages, • Suishaya (2 Tyler St.; phone# 617- 617-338-6688) (M)- Szechuan appe- schnitzel (boneless meat coated in 423-3848) (M)- Interesting combi- tizers are hot and spicy and will have bread crumbs and fried), sauerbraten nation of both Japanese and Korean you sweating before the even spicier (beef, gravy, spaetzle egg noodles fare. Pass on the sushi and order the entrees arrive. and red cabbage). Simple, sturdy Korean dishes such as beef bulgogi • Winsor Dim Sum (10 Tyler St.; ph# tables and long mahogany bar gives or the sizzling bibimbap in a stone 617-338-1688) (I)- offers fresh, the room a classic European feel. pot with an egg on top. made-to-order dim sum. Try the • Cottonwood Café (222 Berkeley • Shabu-Zen (16 Tyler St.; ph# 617- dumplings and pork buns. St.; ph# 617-247-2225) (M)-Con- 292-8828) or Kaze (1 Harrison Av.; • Penang Malaysian (685 Washing- temporary American southwestern ph# 617-338-8283) (M)- Boston’s ton St.; ph# 617-451-6372) (M)- See fare. Mesquite-grilled entrées and best shabu-shabu (Japanese hot pot) the chefs in action preparing your the nacho appetizer are popular. are served here. meal in a tropical island themed Margaritas by the pitcher and an • Gourmet Dumpling House (52 restaurant. From Malaysian traders extensive tequila menu. Beach St.; ph# 617-338-6223) (I)- who married Chinese wives. A • M.J. O’Connor’s (27 Columbus Dumplings and buns of course, but unique mixture of culture and taste. Av.; ph# 617-482-2255) (I-M)- A consider the Szechuan-style dishes • Jade Garden (18-20 Tyler St.; ph# real Irish pub in Boston proper. No and steamed vegetables. 617-423-3288) (M)- Full tanks of televisions and authentic shepherd’s • Mei Sum (36 Beach St.; ph# 617- fish and lobster suggest the oceanic pie, bangers and chips appetizer. 357-4050) (I)- Bakery sells Chinese house specialties at this Cantonese Warm Irish hospitality makes you and Vietnamese pastries, breads and restaurant. Order anything seafood. feel at home. coffee. The banh mi sandwiches are • Burritos Express (86 Bedford St.; Chinatown: Generally bounded by excellent. ph# 617-482-8899) (I)- Nice service Kneeland Street, Washington Street • My Thai (3 Beach St.; ph# 617- with great burritos and tacos with a and Lincoln Street bordering the the- 451-2395) (I)- Vegetarian restaurant variety of hot sauces. Huge portions atre district. These restaurants special- serving “beef”, “scallops”, and reasonable prices. Worth seeking ize in preparing authentic dishes from “chicken”, “duck,” but they are all for a change of pace in Chinatown. China. Vietnamese and Thai restau- substitutes. Hard to tell the differ- Roughly rants are located here also. Dishes are Kenmore Square Area: ence from the real thing, and any of bounded by Fenway Park, Common- great to share with your group and the soups with coconut milk are rec- wealth Avenue, Beacon Street, and allow you to try many different tastes ommended. Park Drive. MBTA Green line to during the meal. Use the (n-1) rule • Peach Farm (4 Tyler St.; ph# 617- Kenomore. when ordering main entrees. Order one 482-1116) (I-M)- Efficient service • Cornwall’s (654 Beacon St.; ph# less main dish than the total in your and large portions ranging from siz- group because with appetizers, rice and 617-262-3749) (I-M)- British pubs zling hot pots, sweet-and-sour are a rarity in Boston. Authentic soup you will have enough. MBTA chicken to orange-flavored crispy Orange line to Chinatown; Green line beef. continued on page 33
32 The Nucleus Summer 2010 Dining In Boston many street musicians’ performances grilled with spicy pepper jack and students’ soles and lead to many cheese) and potatoes are outstand- Continued from page 32 dining, shopping and educational desti- ing. Chicken kebobs and salads are drinking and dining establishment nations. Be sure to visit Harvard’s great choices, too. Save room for the serving sandwiches, burgers and Museum of Natural History and stroll Toscanini’s ice cream or go across hearty dinners. The bar stocks board through the garden of over 300 glass the street to Toscanini’s yourself. games and has dart boards. flowers. They look so realistic you • Mary Chung’s (460 Massachusetts • Eastern Standard (528 Common- won’t believe a father and son hand- Av.; ph# 617-864-1991) (I)- Mary wealth Av.; ph# 617-532-9100) (M- crafted them over 50 years. serves very delicious Northern Chi- E)- Kenmore’s fanciest restaurant. • John Harvard’s Brewhouse (33 nese food. The noodle dishes are Menu is extensive and ranges from Dunster St.; ph# 617-868-3585) (M)- good, and the plain dining room seared salmon with couscous, Microbrewery in Cambridge that serves hungry students and neighbor- almond pesto roasted pepper, and serves hearty food, including old hood clientele until 10pm. Cash only. olive to grilled lamb sirloin with fashioned chicken pot pie and grilled • India Pavilion (17 Central Sq.; ph# wild mushrooms and green garlic meatloaf. Same recipes the founder 617-547-7463) and Shalimar of and fava beans. Also serving crispy of Harvard brought with him in 1637 India (546 Massachusetts Av.; ph# appetizer of frog legs and roasted and for whom the restaurant is 617-547-9280) (I)- Flavorful dinners bone marrow. Crowded at dinner named. with subtle spices at good prices. time and during Red Sox games. • Harvest (44 Brattle St.; ph# 617- • Middlesex (315 Massachusetts Ave.; • India Quality (484 Commonwealth 868-2255) (E-VE)- Contemporary ph# 617-868-MSEX) (I)- Small Av.; ph# 617-267-4499) (I-M)- New England cuisine that has bites and few menu choices. The Boston’s best Indian restaurant and received many awards and trained tiny tacos and pressed sandwiches Zagat-rated for the past 8 years. many celebrated chefs. Always headline the menu. Turns into a chic Serving beef, chicken, lamb and changing menu featuring seasonal discothèque with acclaimed DJs vegetarian entrees. Choose the Din- specialties from the region. High after 9pm. ner for Two and Dinner for Four if style in Cambridge. • Moody’s Falafel Palace (25 Central you are having a difficult time • Henrietta’s Table (The Charles Sq.; ph# 617-864-0827) (I)- Falafel choosing from all the options for a Hotel, 1 Bennett St.; ph# 617-661- and schwarma are very popular. nice sampling. 5005) (M-E)- Has served Nobel lau- Open late. • Petit Robert Bistro (468 Common- reates, celebrities and New England • Rendezvous (502 Massachusetts wealth Av.; ph# 617-375-0699) (I- farmers. The Yankee pot roast, Av.; ph# 617-576-1900) (M-E)- M)- With a miniature Eiffel Tower mashed potatoes and gravy and the Western Mediterranean cuisine mix- out in front of this French bistro, it’s Gloucester Scrod are from local ing Italian, French, Spanish and possible to have a truly French expe- farms and fishermen. Serves break- North African flavors. Rooftop gar- rience in Boston. Calf liver, lamb fast, lunch and supper. Jazz nearby at den produces home-grown ingredi- tongues, duck legs entrees, and tradi- The Regattabar (617-395-7757) ents incorporated by innovative head tional French onion soup are avail- • Grendel’s Den (89 Winthrop St.; chef. able here. Be sure to enjoy a tasty phone# 617-491-1160) (I-M)- treat from the pastry bar for dessert. • Sunset Café (851 Cambridge St.; Down-to-earth and comfortable ph# 617-547 2938) (M)- Between • Fenway Park (4 Yawkey Way)- place in Harvard Square, serving Central and Kendall Square, this Toronto and Seattle are in town play- international foods and beer. This Portuguese restaurant offers ethnic ing our beloved Red Sox, and if you restaurant is well filled with the col- specialties such as soups, seafood cannot get tickets to get inside Fen- lege crowd. and marinated meats. way Park, you can still check out Central Square: Take the MBTA Saint Mary’s Brookline: Take the Yawkey Way and Landsdowne Redline or Bus #1 to Central. This Street for sausages and game time MBTA Green line C branch to St. neighborhood has a very diverse mix Mary’s. ambiance all around the perimeter of of ethnic restaurants ranging from • Sushi Express (1038 Beacon St.; the ball park. Be sure to enjoy a Fen- Indian, Korean, Thai, Japanese, and ph# 617-738-5658) (I)- Nice staff way Frank or sausage “fully loaded”. Chinese. There are not any bad dining and fast service. Great prices for There is an afternoon game August choices in this neighborhood. 25th at 1:35 pm against Seattle. sushi at an unpretentious neighbor- • Miracle of Science (321 Massachu- hood joint. Discount for paying cash. Harvard Square: The MBTA Red setts Av.; ph# 617-868-ATOM) (I)- • Audubon Circle (838 Beacon St. line or Bus #1 will take you directly to Slate lab bench tops for tables and ph# 617-421-1910) (I-M)- Notice Harvard and you will be in the middle lab stools for seats with periodic the bird sculptures on top of the of Harvard Square. The historic red table menu. The Ronie Burger bricks on the walkways have seen (jalapeños in the ground beef and continued on page 34
The Nucleus Summer 2010 33 Dining In Boston NERM 2010 Report George Whitesides Continued from page 33 Continued from page 26 Continued from page 12 lamp posts here. Great neighborhood tion of its 100th anniversary. Expres- answer.” This research management bar blending atmosphere and menu sions of interest to host future NERMs strategy successfully promotes linear serving seared tuna to bean burgers were made by the Binghamton, New and organized thinking. “George runs and delicious appetizers. Haven, and Cornell Local Sections. his group like a corporate entity, in • Elephant Walk (900 Beacon St.; The Board will meet next in 2011 terms of document flow and accounta- ph# 617- 247-1500) (M-E)- Exotic at an ACS national meeting. u bility,” said Dr. Dana Gordon, a former Cambodian and familiar French mix post-doc in the Whitesides group, and together here. Traditional and origi- current Deputy Chair of the Intellec- (mousse-like dish that steams nal soups, salads and entrées. An tual Property Group at Foley Hoag, chicken, spices, coconut milk and extensive gluten-free and vegetarian LLP “He was very good at making curry paste in banana leaves). Spicy menu. clear what you needed to do.” curries or the mild grilled jumbo • Taberna de Haro (999 Beacon St.; prawns simply salted are also recom- Entrepreneurship ph# 617-277-8272) (M-E)- Tapas mended. Professor Whitesides, who described and wine from Spain. Simple tor- • FuGaKyu (1280 Beacon St.; ph# himself as a “serial entrepreneur,” is tilla espanola (potato and onion 617-734-1268) (M-E)- Pleasant chairing a new ACS task force, charged omelette) and pollo al ajillo (fried Japanese décor and excellent nigiri by ACS President Dr. Joseph Francisco chicken with garlic) and arroz negro (pieces) and makimono (roll) with with investigating the future of chemi- (black rice with squid) are delicious. significant house roll menu. Kobe cal entrepreneurship and the potential Espanola staples such as creamy cro- beef, noodle and rice dishes, too. role for ACS in facilitating such entre- quetas de jamon (ham sandwiches) Groups are welcome (make a reser- preneurship. As someone who has been and the pincho moruno (Moorish- vation in advance). involved in starting 12 companies dur- spiced lamb skewers) are a perfect ing his career, Professor Whitesides sampling of their extensive menu. Washington Square Brookline: explained some of the difficulties Take the MBTA Green line C branch a Take involved. “There is not a good culture Coolidge Corner Brookline: bit further to Washington Square. The the MBTA Green line C branch to in chemistry for small companies,” said Fireplace restaurant is located here. Coolidge Corner. Professor Whitesides, mostly because • Public House/Road House (1648 “not a lot of people do it.” For chemists • Lineage Restaurant (242 Harvard Beacon St.; ph# 617-277-2880) (I- who are interested in entrepreneurship, St.; ph# 617-232-0065) (M-E)- M)- Artisanal food and drink. The Professor Whitesides advised serving American bistro featuring seasonal Public House features comfortable as an “apprentice” to a current CEO. and quality ingredients. Spicy lob- food and the most extensive Belgian “Take advantage of their expensive ster taco appetizer and seared sea beer menu outside Europe. Road mistakes, so that you don’t make the scallops are incredible. Delicious House features American craft beers same mistakes yourself,” Professor pastry menu. and pub food. Whitesides said. “There will be plenty • Chef Chow’s House (230 Harvard • Golden Temple (1651 Beacon St.; of new mistakes for you to make.” St.; ph# 617-739-CHOW) (I-M)- ph# 617-277-9722) (M)- Extensive The Szechuan, Hunan or Peking spe- Conclusion menu featuring Cantonese special- cials are superb and will satisfy the “What will you work on?” Professor ties with some Szechuan, Hunan most discriminating palates. Whitesides asked me, when I men- dishes. Nightly discothèque with tioned that I would soon be starting a • Rani’s (324 Harvard St.; ph# 617- house DJ. 738-3577) (I)- Kosher Middle East- faculty position. “Why should I care?” • Vernissage Restaurant (1627 Bea- ern serving the best falafel in If one works on an important problem, con St.; ph# 617-566-3340) (M-E)- Professor Whitesides explained, people Boston. The hummus and tahini are Russian restaurant and bar. Meat also not to miss. will care about the research, regardless and poultry are featured in this fam- of whether it is ultimately successful. • Michael’s Deli (256 Harvard St.; ily-style restaurant. The appetizer Conversely, research on a non-impor- ph# 617-738-3354) (I)- H&H bagels potato pierogies and beef stroganoff tant problem will not garner much from New York and fantastic white- entrée are very good. interest, even if it is successful. “The fish salad. Try the corned beef sand- future of chemistry is you and your wich or pastrami. Please tell the In closing, I hope that you enjoy your generation,” Professor Whitesides con- corned beef king I said hello. dining adventures during your visit to cluded. “Work on something impor- • Khao Sarn (250 Harvard St.; ph# Boston. I am confident that the restau- tant.” u 617- 566-7200) (I-M)- Thai restau- rants listed will satisfy your appetite. rant serving delicious Haw Moak Bon appétit! u
34 The Nucleus Summer 2010 YCC/GDCh-JCF Details of the Current, 2010 Liquids.” Exchange (August 21-28): • Nina Schützenmeister Continued from page 23 Following is a list of the German grad- Georg-August-University, Göttin- jahrssymposium, which was held in uate students, their institutions, the gen Rostock, Germany. In addition, the titles of their research posters and talks ORGN: “Total synthesis of spin- group visited many local sites in Ham- in the CHED symposium, and the ACS osyn analogues,” CHED: “Ecologi- burg, attended a performance of “Don Division for their presentations. Check cally benign and economically Giovanni” at the State Opera House, the ACS website
The Nucleus Summer 2010 35 YCC/GDCh-JCF 3:00 p.m. Lourdes Echegoyen Historical Note (American Chemical Soci- Continued from page 35 ety) Continued from page 13 • Dr. Jörg Saborowski 3:15 p.m. Markus Behnke/Georg ment, found a scholarship that hadn’t University of Cologne, Institute for Bechtold (German existed before. the Teaching of Chemistry Research Foundation) Graduate work with Bartlett as his mentor went well, producing important CHED: “How we teach chemistry 3:30 p.m. Deirdre Kelly (Alexander in high schools in Germany.” papers in the newly exciting field of von Humboldt Founda- physical organic chemistry. Among Symposium tion) other studies, ester hydrolysis and (Sunday, August 22, 1:15-5 pm) 3:45 p.m. Intermission bridgehead publications stand out. Pri- “Connections to Germany and 3:55 p.m. Christian Küchenthal vate assistantships and war work on Europe: Education and Research (Justus-Liebig-University poison gases during World War II fol- Opportunities.” Giessen) lowed. Their close work together gen- erated a strong relationship of respect The symposium, with the sponsoring 4:10 p.m. Raeanne Napoleon between the two men. technical division, the Division of (Boston University) The period prior to WWII was dif- Chemical Education, has been organ- 4:25 p.m. Jens Breffke (Pennsylva- ficult for chemists with Jewish back- ized by Morton Z. Hoffman (Boston nia State University) grounds. While industrial jobs became University) and is designated a Presi- 4:40 p.m. Sergej Toews (University available due to war work, the aca- dential Event. It is cosponsored by of Paderborn) demic positions would have to wait NESACS, GDCh, the Society Com- until after the war’s ending and the mittee on Education (SOCED), the Looking Ahead need for teaching at the graduate level ACS International Activities Commit- Both the NESACS and GDCh are th became acute with the pent-up tee (IAC), the CHED International preparing for the 11 exchange, when demands of returning servicemen. Activities Committee (CHED-IAC), an American delegation will travel to Cohen, in spite of his National the Younger Chemists Committee Germany for the Frühjahrssymposium Research Fellowship, his important (YCC), the Women Chemists Commit- in the Spring of 2011. NESACS hopes publications with Bartlett and by him- tee (WCC), and the Senior Chemists that the exchange will continue for self, could not crack the barriers to an Task Force (SCTF). The schedule is as another decade and looks forward to academic position, and he accepted a follows: all of the visits, career opportunities, and friendships to be made. position with Columbia Chemicals 1:15 p.m. Morton Hoffman Division of Pittsburgh Plate Glass. (Presiding) – Introductory This article was compiled by Raeanne Here his studies on the polymerization remarks Napoleon with information from Mor- of styrene led to more visibility as a 1:20 p.m. John McKew (NESACS ton Hoffman, Ruth Tanner, Bob Lichter, highly competent research scientist. Chair) – Welcome and Michael Strem, and the 2007 Desire for a return to the Boston NUCLEUS article. Contributions to area with his wife, Doris, and a grow- 1:25 p.m. Michael Dröscher (GDCh the article are gratefully acknowl- President) – Welcome ing family, and again urged by Robert edged. u B. Woodward to that he visit Edwin 1:30 p.m. Jörg Saborowski Land, led to Land’s offer that Cohen (Gesamtschule Rodenkir- come to Polaroid Corporation in Cam- chen Cologne) bridge and work on anything he 1:45 p.m. Nina Schützenmeister Your one-stop source to career-related pleased. This was another relationship (Georg-August-University links in the Chemical Sciences of two men who had deep respect for Göttingen) WWW.NESACS.ORG/CAREERS each other, and when Cohen decided 2:00 p.m. Kevin Stella (University after several years at Polaroid to start of Duisburg-Essen) an academic career, Land refused to let 2:15 p.m. Shanshan Wang (Max- him go, but continued paying him as a Planck-Institut für Kohlen- Looking for seminars consultant-employee while he was forschung) fully employed by the fledgling col- in the Boston area? lege, Brandeis. 2:30 p.m. Intermission Check out the Cohen was hired by Brandeis’s 2:40 p.m. Joseph Francisco (ACS President Sachar simply to teach President) – Welcome NESACS Calendar organic chemistry. Sachar quickly 2:45 p.m. Miriam Hippchen (Ger- www.nesacs.org/seminars found in Saul a strong ally, and they man Academic Exchange worked together to ensure that Bran- Service) continued on page 37
36 The Nucleus Summer 2010 Nanoparticles or enzymatic activation at the desired sions, (1) Imaging and Therapy; (2) therapeutic site. Examples are Opaxio Carrier-based Drug Delivery; (3) Tar- Continued from page 19 from Cell Therapeutics, Inc., a pacli- geting and Drug Delivery; (4) Prepara- Bioscience, LLC, Abraxane, consists taxel conjugate of poly(glutamic acid). tion and Characterization of of an albumin-based reformulation of Inside tumor tissue the drug is released Nanoparticles; (5) RNAi and Biologics the anti-cancer drug paclitaxel. Abrax- by the enzyme cathepsin B. Opaxio is Delivery; and (6) Preclinical and Clini- ane was approved in the U.S. in 2005. in Phase 3 clinical trials for the treat- cal Applications. All speakers of this Examples of lipid formulations in clin- ment of ovarian cancer and in combi- last session present delivery ical trials are CPX-1 (irinotecan-flox- nation with carboplatin for the approaches developed in industry. uridine liposome; Phase 1) and treatment of non-small cell lung can- Local companies include Cerulean CPX-351 (cytarabine-daunorubicin cer. CRLX101 (IT-101), a nanoparti- Pharma, Bind Biosciences, Mersana liposome; Phase 2), dual drug combi- cle formulation of camptothecin Therapeutics, and Aphios Corporation. nations from Celator Pharmaceuticals, conjugated to a cyclodextrin-poly The other companies include Tekmira Inc. Brakiva, a liposomal formulation (ethylene glycol) backbone from Pharmaceuticals Corporation, Celator of topotecan from Hana Biosciences, Cerulean Pharma Inc. is currently in Pharmaceuticals, Access Pharmaceuti- and LEP-ETU (liposomal paclitaxel) advanced Phase 1b/ 2a clinical trial. cals, and Intezyne, Inc. The sympo- from Neopharm, Inc. are both in Phase Similarly, XMT-1001 from Mersana sium highlights keynote addresses by 1 trials. Micelle-based drug formula- Therapeutics, Inc. is a camptothecin Robert Langer from MIT (“Nanotech- tions, i.e., formulations consisting of prodrug based on the carbohydrate- nology and its Potential in Medicine”) hydrophilic-hydrophobic block copoly- derived ‘Fleximer’ polyacetal plat- and Piotr Grodzinski, National Cancer mers that self-assemble in aqueous form, which is currently evaluated in a Institute, Office of Cancer Nanotech- solution into micellar nanoparticles Phase 1 study. Other companies are nology Research, Center for Strategic with hydrophobic core and hydrophilic engaged in the development of Scientific Initiatives (“Nanotechnol- shell, are in clinical trials as well. poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-based ogy-based Cancer Therapeutics – View NK012 and NK105 are micellar for- prodrugs. NKTR-102 and NKTR-105 from the NCI Alliance for Nanotech- mulations of the camptothecin deriva- are PEG prodrugs of irinotecan and nology in Cancer”). Almost all of the tive SN38 and of paclitaxel. Both docetaxel from Nektar Therapeutics, 47 international speakers at the sympo- anti-cancer formulations from Nippon currently in Phase 2 clinical trial for sium have been invited to present their Kayaku Co., Ltd are in Phase 1 trials. patients with solid tumor malignancies, “State of the Art” overview of this Besides physical encapsulation, drugs including colorectal, breast, ovarian exciting research area. The symposium have been chemically conjugated to and cervical cancers (NKTR-102) and will be completed by 11 posters, polymers, forming prodrugs with Phase 1 trial in patients with certain shown during the joint POLY-PMSE improved solubility and reduced toxic- types of solid tumors including hor- poster session. ity, which release the drug based on pH mone-refractory prostate cancer References (NKTR-105). EZN-2208 from Enzon [1]Cancer Nanotechnology – Going Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a PEG-pro- Small for Big Advances, NIH Publi- Historical Note drug of SN38. Enzon recently opened cation No. 04-5489 (2006). its first Phase 2 trial for EZN-2208. [2]Farokhzad, O.C.; Langer, R. Impact Continued from page 36 The trial is open at multiple centers of Nanotechnology on Drug Deliv- deis would not become a small liberal throughout the United States for ery. ACS Nano 2009, 3, 16-20. arts college, along the lines of an patients diagnosed with metastatic [3]The Nanoparticle Drug Delivery Amherst, but rather would become a colon cancer. Market. Report, 300 Pages, Cienti- university known for its research as These few examples clearly fica Ltd., August 1, 2007. u well as its teaching, and, as it later was demonstrate the progression of described, as a small Princeton. nanoparticle therapeutics from basic Through the following years Saul research curiosities to viable business became first Chairman of the School of opportunities. Recent research per- Science, first Dean of Faculty, first formed in academic laboratories, as Looking for seminars University Professor, and in the cita- well as business approaches developed tion of his Honorary Degree on retire- by companies, are being presented at in the Boston area? ment are the words, “you played an the “Multifunctional Nanoparticles for Check out the indispensible role in transforming this Drug Delivery and Imaging” sympo- institution from a small liberal arts col- sium, which will be held on August 22- NESACS Calendar lege to a major research university..” 24, 2010, in Boston as a part of the This recognition was his best reward. 240th Annual Meeting of the American www.nesacs.org/seminars Ave atque Vale! Chemical Society, PMSE Division. M.S.Simon u The symposium consists of six ses-
The Nucleus Summer 2010 37 BUSINESS DIRECTORY
SERVICES SERVICES SERVICES
38 The Nucleus Summer 2010 BUSINESS DIRECTORY
SERVICES SERVICES CAREER SERVICES
Index of Advertisers BrandTech Scientific...... 10 CreaGen Biosciences...... 7 Eastern Scientific Co...... 6 EMD Chenicals, Inc...... 11 Front Run OrganX, Inc...... 38 Huffman Laboratories, Inc...... 38 Mass Spec Services ...... 38 Mass-Vac, Inc...... 19 MB Research Labs ...... 40 Micron Inc...... 38 Nacalai USA, Inc...... 39 New Era Enterprises, Inc...... 38 Northeastern University ...... 2 NuMega Resonance Labs...... 38 Organix, Inc...... 38 PCI Synthesis ...... 9 PolyOrg, Inc...... 39 Rilas Technologies, Inc...... 38 Robertson Microlit Labs...... 38 Scientific Bindery...... 20 Supercritical Fluid Tech, Inc. ...21 Uniqsis...... 29 Vacuubrand, Inc...... 8 Waters Corporation...... 39
The Nucleus Summer 2010 39 will feature a u Robert Burns Woodward The .org will feature a distinguished program of internationally-known speakerswho were trained in the Woodward laboratories. hope We that this Sym- par- to interest high of be will posium ticipants from manyespecially institutions, those who have benefited from Woodward’s legacy in organic synthesis. Memorial Symposium speak- of distinguished line-up strong ers, including YoshitoRoald Kishi, Hoffmann, Pat N.William Confalone, R. Roush, PeterA. Jacobi, Thomas R. I. and Jeffrey Seeman, Stu- Williams, Hoye, Schreiber. L. art Robert M. NESACS . anniversary st , sponsored by WWW , 2010. 2010. , rd Have you seen it on the NESACS website? NESACS the on it seen you Have Robert Burns Woodward Updated frequently • Late-breaking news • Position Postings Position • news Late-breaking • frequently Updated The Back issues of the Nucleus • Career-related Links • Awards and Scholarship and Awards • Links Career-related • Nucleus the of issues Back We We are pleased to announce a full- in day of honor symposium Professor Robert Burns Woodward, which will take ACS Meet- place at National the ing in Boston,23 August MassachusettsMonday, on R. WOODWARD B. SYMPOSIUM MEMORIAL of Woodward’s death. This Sympo- sium will bring together scientistsfrom United States and other coun- tries to celebrateartistry demonstrated by Woodward the molecularduring his remarkable career.Symposium, This the first held in nearly two decades to honor Woodward, the ACS Division of Organic Chem- istry, will mark the 31 Memorial Symposium
NONPROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID NORTHEASTERN SECTION AMERICAN CHEMICAL SOCIETY 19 Mill Road Harvard, MA 01451