Crisis and Community
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Crisis and Community 2020 Annual Report A “I am so thankful that I’m part of a group of people that cares so much about the thoughtful mentoring and education of the next generations of scientists. These are my people.” Cottrell Scholar “It was particularly hard during the pandemic to get in touch with fellow scientists, and I only recognized during the Scialog meeting how much I was missing these interactions. Thanks for making this possible.” Scialog: Negative Emissions Science Fellow B Letter from the President Along with the terrible losses and disruptions of the impact of the pandemic. In response to their We recognize that a return to “normal” will be 2020 came evidence for optimism about human concerns about keeping scientific careers on track neither rapid nor easy. Our support and programs resilience, scientific innovation, and the power at a time when most universities and colleges will continue to focus on basic research in the of partnerships. The community of teacher- severely cut back their faculty hiring plans, we physical sciences, while also paying close attention scholars that the Research Corporation for Science joined with the National Science Foundation to to how we can help improve the lives and careers of Advancement supports adapted to teaching online offer fellowships to senior postdoctoral fellows who faculty in the sciences at universities, colleges, and and to guiding their research groups remotely; in a non-pandemic year would have expected to be research institutes. Please be in touch with your long-term investigations were put on hold as launching independent research programs. We also observations and advice as we all work together to efforts detoured toward improving coronavirus offered support for new instrumentation needed put the pandemic behind us and to create a more diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines; and to continue research and learning at primarily diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment for physical scientists with expertise in molecular undergraduate institutions. scientific inquiry and student learning. structure, chemical and materials design, and By late 2020, with the experience we developed data analytics forged collaborations with in organizing online discussions to promote microbiologists and immunologists to develop collaborative, interdisciplinary approaches to new strategies in the ongoing battle against complex challenges, we proceeded in partnership human pathogens. with the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation with the Throughout this difficult year, the foundation’s scheduled inaugural meeting of the Scialog: approach has been to listen to the needs of our Negative Emissions Science initiative. For both community and to respond quickly with changes Sloan and RCSA, our thinking was that despite in our programs and support. We put on hold the pandemic, climate change is such a pressing several initiatives to focus instead on funding issue that we need to move ahead without delay promising ideas to tackle COVID-19, and on to support the most compelling ideas to reduce bringing together Cottrell Scholars to consider how atmospheric levels of greenhouse gases. We were to help students learn effectively and equitably delighted that the Thistledown Foundation joined online. Through Cottrell Conversations, we gave Sloan and RCSA in the support of projects that faculty opportunities to share their thoughts about emerged from that meeting. Daniel Linzer President & CEO Research Corporation for Science Advancement 1 2020 Awards In 2020, Research Corporation for The Cottrell Scholar Program develops outstanding The COVID-19 Initiative supported cutting-edge Science Advancement supported a teacher-scholars recognized by their scientific research into the detection and mitigation of the communities for the quality of their research current and future epidemics. In 2020, seven teams diverse community of early-career programs, innovation in education, and potential of scientists were awarded a total of $715,000. scientists at colleges and universities for academic leadership. In 2020, Cottrell Scholar Cottrell Fellowships supported the work of in the United States and Canada Program funding included $2.5 million for 25 initial postdoctoral fellows whose plans to start through its Cottrell Scholar Program Cottrell Scholar Awards, $75,000 for three Cottrell independent academic or research careers were Scholars Collaborative Awards, and $565,000 for nine and Scialog, in addition to three delayed or derailed due to pandemic-related Cottrell Plus Awards (the competitive FRED, SEED, institutional hiring freezes. In 2020, RCSA awarded emergency initiatives in response STAR, and IMPACT awards). $831,250 to 13 Cottrell Scholars. Four of these to the global pandemic: the COVID-19 Scialog promotes dialogue and community-building awards were funded through a $340,000 grant from Initiative, Cottrell Fellowships, and to catalyze transformational science through the National Science Foundation. Cottrell Instrumentation Supplements. collaborative, interdisciplinary research. In 2020, Cottrell Instrumentation Supplements supported RCSA awarded $330,000 to early-career faculty for new instrumentation (or updates to existing scientific research through Scialog Collaborative equipment) needed to continue research and Innovation Awards. The contributions of partner learning at institutions struggling with the financial philanthropies toward Scialog awards brought this impact of the pandemic. In 2020, RCSA awarded total to $1,155,000. (Three other Scialog initiatives 11 Cottrell Instrumentation Supplements totaling were postponed to 2021 due to the pandemic.) $141,000. 2 Cottrell Scholar Awards $100,000 is awarded to each scholar for a total of $2,500,000. Carlos R. Baiz Pengfei Huo Kristin S. Koutmou Chemistry, Chemistry, Chemistry, University of Texas at Austin University of Rochester University of Michigan Molecular Dynamics at Enabling New Chemical Chemical Modifications to mRNA Heterogeneous Oil-Water Reactivities through Polariton Nucleosides: A New Frontier in Interfaces and a New Approach Photochemistry Gene Regulation to Addressing the Mental Health Needs of Graduate Students Kateri H. DuBay Catherine Kealhofer Kah Chun Lau Chemistry, Physics, Physics, California State University of Virginia Williams College University, Northridge Teaching Entropy and Nonequilibrium Phonon Data-Driven Solubility Model Modeling the Sequence- Dynamics in Two-dimensional Development of Concentrated Determinants of Surface-Initiated Materials Non-aqueous Electrolytes Copolymerizations Keary M. Engle Elena F. Koslover Frank A. Leibfarth Chemistry, Physics, University of Chemistry, University of Scripps Research Institute California, San Diego North Carolina at Chapel Hill Catalytic Difunctionalization Physics of Cellular Distribution Organocatalytic Kinetic of Alkenes Using Transient Networks: Morphology and Resolution Polymerization of Directing Groups Transport in the Endoplasmic Lactones Reticulum 3 Huey-Wen Lin Elisabetta Matsumoto Peter P. Orth Physics, Physics, Georgia Institute Physics, Michigan State University of Technology Iowa State University Unveiling the Three-Dimensional Knotty Knits: Using Topological Probing Fractionalization Structure of Nucleons Constraints to Program Geometry and Entanglement in Quantum and Elastic Response in Knitted Spin Liquids: Theory of Textiles with Lattice Defects Two-dimensional Spectroscopy Song Lin Sharon R. Neufeldt Cedric Owens Chemistry, Chemistry, Chemistry, Cornell University Montana State University Chapman University New Catalytic Methods for Combined Experimental and Constructing a Better Enantioselective Electrosynthesis Computational Approach to Nitrogenase by Uncovering and Introducing Electrosynthesis Improving Nickel and Palladium- Protein-protein Interactions to College and Graduate Catalyzed Cross-Couplings That Protect the Enzyme and Curricula Expand its Chemistry Britt F. Lundgren Glen D. O’Neil Dennis V. Perepelitsa Astronomy, University of Chemistry, Physics, University of Colorado North Carolina Asheville Montclair State University Boulder Shedding Light on Star Neurotransmitter Detection using Next-Generation Experimental Formation Driven Galaxy Light-Addressable Electrochemical Probes of Hot and Dense Nuclear Outflows across Cosmic Time Sensors: Investigating the Role of Matter Metal Morphology and Coverage on Sensor Response using Scanning Electrochemical Methods 4 Leslie A. Rogers David A. Strubbe Jessica K. Werk Astronomy, University of Physics, University of Astronomy, Chicago California, Merced University of Washington Searching for Water in Light-induced Structural The Observational Signatures Distant Worlds: Connecting Dynamics in Materials: of Cosmic Gas Flows in a the Atmospheric and Bulk New Theoretical Insight into Hydrodynamic Framework Compositions of Sub-Neptune- Ultrafast Phenomena Size Planets Brenda M. Rubenstein Claire P. Till Chemistry, Brown University Chemistry, Advancing Chemistry through Humboldt State University Data Science: Catalyst Design Scandium and Iron: Parallels via Data-Enabled Quantum in Chemical Reactivity, and Chemistry and Integrating Reducing the Opportunity Gap in Data Science into the Chemistry the HSU Chemistry Department Curriculum and Beyond Lorenzo Sironi Jesus M. Velazquez Astronomy, Columbia Chemistry, University of University California, Davis To B or Not to B: Achieving Energy Conversion The Birth and Death of Functionality through Magnetic Fields in the Universe Compositional Modification: The