Chemistry Newsletter mistry CHEMISTRY NEWSLETTER 3 Issue 3 February 2007

Applications Soar Contents

Applications Soar 1 Disposable Fashion? 2 New Teaching Labs Swing into Operation 2 Ask a Boffin 3 Reactiv8 3 More Honours 4 Yet More Honours 4

The popularity of Chemistry at Sheffield has been booming. While nationally, application figures for university chemistry courses are up by 3% over last year, undergraduate applications to Sheffield have rocketed up by over 25%. The rise in number probably reflects the £16 million (and rising) recently invested in the department and our traditional position as one the UK’s leading chemistry departments. The investments are not just in chemistry though: our students will also soon have access to a state-of-the- art learning and study environment. Opening in early 2007, the University Information Commons is a £23 million combination of library, study space, and IT centre dedicated to undergraduate students’ study needs. How the new University Information Commons will look, opening in early 2007 Disposable Fashion?

Tony and Helen hold a dress viewing in one of our teaching labs It’s a creative project that makes environmentally harmful, will be “The idea is to get people curious statements about humanity’s waste of ceremoniously lowered into goldfish about something that is hard to talk resources, the ephemeral nature of bowls at a forthcoming exhibition, about and not glamorous - how to get fashion, and the possibilities brought dissolving into a form that can be rid of your waste responsibly,” added to us by science. Working in recycled in bottles. Prof Storey. partnership with the multi-award winning designer Prof Helen Storey, As Tony explained, the project is The dresses are just one of the our ICI Professor of Physical designed to highlight a very serious innovative products the two Profs Chemistry, Prof. Tony Ryan has been issue: “In your lifetime you throw away have come up with, other ideas creating a range of dissolvable around 20 tons of packaging material. include plastic bottles that dissolve in dresses. The dresses, which illustrate We want people to think about that. hot water forming a gel for growing how new materials could make But it has made us think more plants and a pillow that purifies water. consumer products less seriously about science, too.”

New Teaching Labs Swing into Operation

Practical sessions in the new teaching labs The multimillion rebuild of our department continues with the new academic year and students were soon using the first stage in a projected £3.5 million plan to upgrade these state-of-the-art facilities, which includes direct undergraduate teaching facilities. The £1.2 million refit of access to research standard NMR spectrometers. our teaching labs was opened for business at the start of

2 Ask a Boffin

Although his students have not started asking him for his autograph just yet, Senior Lecturer Simon Jones is becoming a local celebrity. Following the massive success of such books as ‘Does Anything Eat Wasps,’ Radio Sheffield hosts a once monthly ‘question time’ session, inviting listeners to ring in with their scientific queries, the questions are then answered by Simon and a panel of two fellow experts. This popular slot on the Rony Robinson show has unofficially become known as ‘Ask the Boffins.’ As Simon explains; “we receive loads of interest from the public and get a wide range of questions from How do greenhouse gases work? to Why do sprouts give you wind?”

Senior Lecturer Simon Jones (left) Rony Robinson (next to Simon) and fellow ‘Boffins.’ Reactiv8

Simon Jones is also involved with the Reactiv8 educational project. Through a collaboration involving the Department of Chemistry, EPSRC, and Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council, the Reactiv8 project aims to excite and interest young people in science and in particular chemistry. Over 120 local school pupils between the ages of 14 and 18 have been working on chemistry-based projects, which range from developing their own medicines, to studying how heat changes enzymes in a pineapple. As the picture show, members of the Reactiv8 team also delivered some illuminating lectures! Simon is now working with the Royal Society of Chemistry to turn the DVD developed for Reactiv8 into a resource that will be sent to ALL schools in the country.

3 Chemistry Newsletter

Contact: Admissions Office Email: [email protected] Chem Department of Chemistry Brook Hill Sheffield S3 7HF

More Honours Yet More Honours

Following the award of an OBE in March 2006 to Prof. And it is not just former members of the department Tony Ryan our current ICI Professor of Physical who have been picking up gongs. Our current Chemistry, some distinguished former members of Professor of Inorganic Chemistry, Professor Mike the department have recently received honours. Ward, recently picked up the Royal Society of Chemistry Award for the Chemistry of Transition Currently, heading one of the leading chemistry Metals for his wide-ranging work on chemical systems departments in the world, Prof. J. Fraser Stoddart is that could be used in molecular devices and solar cell the Professor of NanoSystems Sciences in the technologies. This RSC award is sponsored by Inco University of California at Los Angeles, but between Europe Limited. Inco is one of the world’s premier 1970 and 1990 he was a member of the lecturing staff mining and metals companies and the world’s second at Sheffield. Fraser, who is an internationally feted largest producer of nickel. expert on nanotechnology and has often been tipped as a future Nobel Prize winner, was awarded a Receiving his award from at the Royal knighthood for his; “services to chemistry and Society of Chemistry General Assembly in Glasgow, molecular nanotechnology.” However, Fraser was quick Mike echoed the words of Fraser Stoddart; “I am to acknowledge his time in Sheffield as the crucial delighted to receive this award which recognises period in his research; “it was in Sheffield where a lot the excellent contributions of students and post- of my most creative ideas developed.” adding; “I’ve doctoral researchers who have worked in my group in been blessed through 35 years with some of the recent years” brightest young men and women on the planet coming to Sheffield, Birmingham, and latterly to Los Angeles to work in my research group. The award also recognizes the significance and relevance of chemistry to everyday life” Meanwhile a close friend of Fraser, Prof. Jim Feast - who is the current President of the Royal Society of Chemistry and former undergraduate at this department - received a CBE in the New Years Honours List for his “services to polymer chemistry.”

Prof Mike Ward receives his RSC medal from Prof Jim Feast CBE Further news and information on the department, and all the courses offered can be found at its web site: www.sheffield.ac.uk/chemistry

Sir Fraser still finds time to visit the lab