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Cornell
Chemistry August 1994
Issue 60
H. Floyd Davis
In the last issue of the newsletter we introduced you to one of our two new faculty members, Melissa Hines. Now meet H. Floyd Davis.
Dr. Davis, a native of Waterloo, Ontario, received a Bachelor of Science Degree from the University of Waterloo, then pursued his PhD at the University of California at Berkeley under the direction of Professor Y.T. Lee in the area of bimolecular and unimolecular reaction dynamics. His research as a postdoctoral associate in Professor Curt Wittig's group at the University of Southern California has involved the unimolecular decomposition of vibrationally excited molecules prepared by visible or infrared excitation.
Davis, who won a U.C. Berkeley Department of Chemistry Outstanding Teaching Award, feels that it is important when teaching introductory chemistry to illustrate how our science relates to everyday problems of economics, government policy, and the global environment. He also wants to show students that their problem-solving skills can be brought to bear in many different areas of life.
"In the real world," he says, "there are often many 'correct' solutions to problems; some may just be better than others." The following is Professor Davis's description of the research he will carry out at Cornell.
"We wish to develop a fundamental understanding of the physical and chemical interactions between species containing valence d-electrons (i.e., transition metals) and small covalently bound molecules such as hydrogen and methane. Such interactions are of fundamental importance in catalysis, surface chemistry, and organometallic reactions. Although it is widely recognized that the activities of transition metal atoms, complexes, and surfaces toward hydrogen and hydrocarbons are due to the presence of low- lying partially filled d-orbitals, precisely how does the electronic structure of a transition metal center control chemical reactivity? We address questions such as this through detailed experimental
studies of the unimolecular and bimolecular reactions of simple prototype neutral transition metal systems under well-defined conditions.
"Our experimental approach is based on the use of laser ablation for production of transition metal atomic and molecular beams having narrow ranges of internal and translational energies. In all of our studies, reactants and products are studied in detail using mass spectrometry and laser-induced fluorescence spectroscopy. Two complementary experimental approaches are employed. In the first, we study the structure, thermochemistry, and photochemistry of simple neutral transition metal hydrides, alkyls, carbenes, and van der Waals molecules. These simple, theoretically tractable molecules will serve as benchmark prototypes for the development of fundamental chemical concepts.
"We also study the bimolecular reaction dynamics of neutral transition metal atoms and small transition metal complexes with hydrogen and hydrocarbons using crossed molecular beams. In studies of transition metal atom reactions, a tunable laser is employed to prepare well-defined excited reactant atomic states. We compare the reactivities of different excited atomic levels with a given molecule to directly assess the role of orbital occupancy and electronic symmetry in the absence of ligand effects. These experiments provide detailed insight into the dynamics of chemical reactions by measuring product branching ratios for competing channels, as well as the translational, angular, and quantum state distributions of the product.
"Our goal is to address questions of fundamental chemical importance: How does electronic energy compare with translational or vibrational energy in promoting chemical reaction? Is the reaction mechanism direct abstraction or insertion? How do the dynamics of reactions initiated by random bimolecular collisions compare with those initiated at a restricted initial geometry in van der Waals complexes? What is the dependence of the alignment of an excited atomic orbital on reactivity? By establishing fundamental chemical concepts through studies of simple transition metal reactions, we will better understand the underlying chemistry of more complex systems."
Commencement 1994
The Class of 1994
Cornell University held its 126th Commencement on Sunday, May 29, 1994. After the ceremonies at Schoellkopf Field, a brief reception was held in Baker Laboratory for graduating chemistry majors and their families.
The following received the Bachelor of Arts degree in a ceremony held in Baker 200:
Victoria Baeger, Sudip Bose, Jacqueline Chang, Amy Cheung, Robert Chisholm, Peter Choi, Sang-Ah Chun, Christopher Claps, Robert Cunningham, Lily Eng, Leonardo Etcheto, Susan Ghanbarpour, Ganga Hapangama, Shemin Hirji, Richard Huang, Sarah Hult, David Inoue, Marc Itskowitz, Jean Ku, Kenneth Li, Ruth Lin, Britt Lindberg, Josephine Liu, Jeffrey Lubin, Cynthia Mann, Donna Muise, Paul Mutolo, Quan Nguyen, David Patariu, Pulin Patel, Stephen Penepacker, Kristie Phillips, Edward Ray, Todd Ryder, James Sang, Mark Searles, Joseph Shipman, Darius
Sholevar, Amir Shuja, Jill Simpson, Rachana Singh, David Siska, Robert Steward, III, Samson Tom, Daniel Weiland, Donna Windish, Mason Wolak, Jin Zhang.
Graduating with honors were:
Sunima cum laude Thomas Cameron, Katherine Hutchison, Brent Stockwell
Magna cum laude Nathaniel Brackett, Steven Harford, Semil Mehta, Pari Pandharipande
Cum laude Bun Jim, Christina Lee
January degrees: David Argent, Sean Boerke, John Hirt, Perry Soriano, and Gary Wang.
Graduate Degrees Awarded 1993-
August 1993
Sheila Marie Adamus Professor B. Carpenter Synthesis of Molecules Designed for Selective Transition-State Stabilization
Lizla Soco Bontuyan Professor P. Houston State-Resolved Differential Cross Sections for Inelastic Collisions between Argon and Nitric Oxide by Ion Imaging
R. Samuel Boorse Professor J. Burlitch Metal-Ceramic Adhesion: Synthesis of Aluminum and Chromium Mixed Metal Oxides and Extended Huckel Modeling of Metal-Metal Oxide Interfaces
Linda Sue Brinen Professor J. Clardy Structural Studies of the Bioactive Natural Products: Gigantecin, Neamphine, Chlocophyllonic Acid A Methyl Ester and Structural Studies of a Monofunctional Chorismate Mutase
Scott Hayden Elder Professor F. DiSalvo The Synthesis and Study of New Ternary Nitrides and Oxy nitrides Prepared from the Ammonolysis of Ternary Oxides
Karen Marie Mattia Professor B. Ganem Synthesis and Evaluation of a Putative Branchpoint Intermediate in the Shikimic Acid Biosynthetic Pathway
Rebecca Lynne Miller Professor P. Wolczanski Synthesis and Reactivity of Low- Coordinate Ditantalum and Ditungsten Silox Complexes (Silox-Tri-Tertbutyl- Siloxide): Cleavage ofG-0 and C-C Bonds
Chris Patrick Schaller Professor P. Wolczanski Carbon-Hydrogen Bond Activation and Related Reactions Involving Early Metal Amido and Imido Complexes
Norah Elizabeth Shemetulskis Professor R. Loring Theoretical and Simulational Studies of Linear and Nonlinear Spectroscopy in Polar Eluids
Nathan Otto Siemers Professor J. McMurry The Development of a Molecular Mechanics-Based Model to Predict Diol
Sheila Adamus with her sister, Sharon Caraballo.
Stereo-Chemistry in Low Valent Titanium Mediated Pinacol Coupling Reactions. Successful Application of This Model Toward the Total Synthesis of Periplanones C, D, and A
Clarence Joseph Wang Professor D. Usher An Oligonucleotide Analog with Non- Ionic Carboxamide Linkages: Molecular Mechanics Study and Synthesis of the Monomer
Karen Lynn Wooley Professor J. Frechet Design, Synthesis, and Properties of Dendritic and Hyperbranched Macromolecules
January 1994
Vandana (Arora) Bindra Professor A. Kuki Design, Synthesis and Conformational Analysis of Electronically Active 3JO- Helical Peptides Rich in Aib-Class Amino Acids
Michael Jerome Daniels Professor J. Wiesenfeld Ozone Photo-dissociation and Photoproduct Chemiluminescence
Florangel Dilig Duldulao Professor J. Burlitch Toward Oxidatively Stable Interfaces in Fiber-Reinforced Ceramic Matrix Composites: Syntheses and Characterization of Fluoridated Layer Silicates from Sol-Gel Derived Precursors
Deborah Jean Gilbert Professor F. DiSalvo In Search of Conducting Materials Via the Chemical Oxidation of Extended Solids Containing Linked Clusters
Timothy John Glines Professor B. Carpenter The Role of Dinuclear Metal Complexes in the Reppe Cyclotetramerization of Alkynes: A Modeling Study
Robert Anthony Heintz Professor K. Theopold The Synthesis, Structure, and Reactivity of Paramagnetic Organometallic Chromium Complexes
Stephen Bruce King Professor B. Ganem Synthetic Studies on Mannostatin A and Its Derivatives: A New Family of Alpha- Mannosidase Inhibitors
Jonathan Lee Mumford-Zisk Professor G. Morrison Standards for Quantitative Ion Microscopy of Boron in Boron Neutron Capture Therapy Candidate Compounds
Dong Gon Park Professor J. Burlitch H2O2- Assisted Sol-Gel Syntheses of Forsterite (MgjSiO^ and Metal-Doped Forsterite (M:Mg 2 SiO 4 , M=Cr, V, TL) and Electrostatis Spray Synthesis of Anatase (TiO 2 ) Nano-Particles
Gomathi Ramachandran Professor G. Ezra The Dynamics of Ion-Neutral Collisions: The Role of Complex Formation
Duane Richard Smith Professor G. Morrison The Use of Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry and Analytical Electron Microscopy for the Determination of the Distribution of Sulfur in Thin-Film Bicrystals of Iron-Sulfur Alloys with Small and Large Angle (001) Twist Boundaries
Harold Blair Wood, Jr. Professor B. Ganem Shikimic Acid and Its Cognate Biosynthetic Pathway: Synthetic Studies on Rationally Designed Inhibitors
Stephen P. Smith with his father, Chas Smith.
May 1994
Demetrios Anglos Professor A. Kuki Photoinduced Intrapeptide Electron Transfer Involving Novel Donor and Acceptor Amino Acids: A Triplet State Approach
Jody Ellen Beecher Professor J. Frechet Advanced Polymeric Coatings for Photopatterning and Second Order Nonlinear Optical Materials
En-Yuh Chang Professor B. Baird Studies of FceRI-Mediated Signaling and Receptor Rotational Dynamics by Lipid Modulation and Phosphorescence Anisotropy Measurements
Eugene Kim Professor E. Kramer Studies of Diffusion, Thermodynamics, and Surface Segregation in Miscible Polymer Blends
Sanghyuk Lee Professor J. Freed Theory of Two-Dimensional Fourier Transform Electron Spin Resonance Spectroscopy
Sze-Ming Lee Professor J. Frechet The Design and Chemistry of Novel Imaging Materials for Microlithography
Swee Kim Lim Professor A. Albrecht Time-of-Flight Mobility Experiments in n- hexane: Observation of Radical Cations and Anions, Dimer Radical Anions, and Charge Carrier Competition
Jinping Luo McCormick Professor J. Meinwald Total Synthesis of a Novel Disaccharide Nucleoside Isolated from the Venom of a Spider Hololena curta
James Christopher McWilliams Professor J. Clardy Synthesis of Mitochondrial Atpase Inhibitors and Enantioselective Total Syntheses of Octalactins A and B
J. Christopher Phelan Professor J. McMurry Studies Toward Synthesis of Digitoxigenin Via Transannular Cationic Cyclization of a Macrocyclic Precursor and Synthesis of Unsubstituted Calix[4]arene and Its Metal Complexes
Mary Alice Reppy Professor C. Wilcox Studies Towards the Syntheses of Cycloocta[1,2,3,4-def]- cyclobuta[6,7Jbiphenylene and Benzo[def]biphenylene
David Burgess Rydberg Professor J. Meinwald The Total Synthesis of Palasonin
Alumni News
1941- An announcement in the May 30 Chemi- cal & Engineering News cites Leo Mandelkern AB '42, PhD '49, as winner of the 1993 Paul J. Flory Education Award for the ACS Division of Polymer Chemistry. Mandelkern is a member of the chemistry faculty at Florida State University. He and his wife, Berdie, established a prize at Cornell for an outstanding senior chemistry major who will go on to graduate study in chemistry or biochemistry (see Student News).
1951- Ellis Glazier, AB '51 writes "When I left Cornell in 1951, my goal was to become part of academia after I got my PhD. Getting the degree at the University of Rochester did happen, but academia eluded me. Finally, after about 40 years and one retirement, I have been appointed a Professor of Chemistry, Department of Oceanology at Cicimar-IPN (Instituto Politecnico Nacional), one of the two major universities in Mexico. Cicimar is one of their degree-granting and research outposts in the country, in this case out in the boonies as far as Mexico City is concerned. I am able finally to start passing along some of the knowledge that I gained at Cornell, at Rochester and all the points between then and now. It has been difficult getting back into the swing of teaching, but I have been giving seminars here and at the Univ. Baja California Sur for the past year. Each time becomes easier."
We heard from George B. Walker, AB '52, who says he has been consulting for the past three years for WAYTEK of Springboro, Ohio. Walker, who has been elected to the company's board of directors and named Director of Develop- ment, says it's nice to feel needed at 75!
John C. Howard PhD '53, who lives in Augusta, Georgia, wrote with another example of Keith Shillington's wit: " At one of the 'ice sessions' described by Ellis Glazier in the April "Cornell Chemistry,"
a newly hired assistant professor was telling us of the new equipment that the department had authorized him, finally saying "they just gave me a carte blanche." "Well, said Keith, "that's better than NOTHING!"
A chemistry professor at Union College in Schenectady, New York, Charles Scaife AB '59, PhD '66 has used a six-month sabbatical to tour schools in the northeast- ern United States to demonstrate prin- ciples of science to elementary grade pupils. You may have seen the Wall Street Journal's "centerpiece" article about him.
1961- Horace A. Judson, PhD '70, became the ninth president of the State University of New York College at Plattsburgh in January 1994. Judson had served as provost and vice president for academic affairs at California State University at Stanislaus, where he was also a professor of chemistry. He began his academic career as an assistant professor of chemis- try at Morgan State University in Balti- more.
1971- Joe Weissman, AB '74, is a member of the Department of Neurology at Emory University and spends much of his time doing in-vivo NMR spectroscopy studies in patients with neurodegenerative disorders.
John Kevin Buchi, AB '76, who was the senior director of finance and administra- tion for Cephalon Inc. (a pharmaceutical products developer) has been appointed vice president for finance and administra- tion. Congratulations!
Peter S. Kim, AB '79 and an associate professor at the Whitehead Institute at MIT, has been selected as the recipient of the 1994 Eli Lilly Award of the ACS Division of Biological Chemistry. Kim is recognized for his work in the field of protein folding. The award will be presented at the fall ACS national meeting in Washington, D.C.
1981- The Charles E. Culpeper Foundation has named Howard Worman, M.D. Culpeper Foundation Scholar in Medical Science for
- Worman, who received his bachelor's degree in chemistry from Cornell in 1981, is an assistant professor of Medicine and of Molecular Biology at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. His research focuses on cell division in normal development and in cancer, by examining how proteins localize to the nuclear membranes and direct the disassembly and reassembly of the nucleus.
Robert J. Hamers PhD ' 86, an associate professor in the department of chemistry at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, has received the Peter Mark Memorial Award of the American Vacuum Society. Hamers was honored for "outstanding contributions to the development of scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy as tools for quantitative analysis of the electronic properties of surfaces."
One of 169 scientists and engineers nationwide to win a National Science Foundation Presidential Young Investiga- tor award was Gae Montelione PhD '87, who is an assistant professor of chemistry at Rutgers University.
Douglas Hudgins PhD '90, has a faculty position in the Chemistry Department of Adrian College in Michigan, and will begin teaching there this fall. Doug previously held a postdoctoral research position in the laboratory of Dr. Lewis Allamandola at NASA-Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, California, where he has been working in the area of Matrix- Isolation Infrared Spectroscopy.
— In Memoriam —
Martin Edward Panzer, AB '50, March 16,
Reunion 1994
Reunion 1994
Although reunion weekend was pretty soggy this year, Friday, June 3, was a beautiful day, just right for wandering across the campus and stopping by Baker Lab to see how much things have changed. Not everyone came into the lounge to sign in, but we surely enjoyed talking with those who did! Guests included L. Hastings Lyon BChem '29, B.V. Baus PhD '50 (ChE), Bruce Eisen AB '59, Sid Wolfe BChE '59, Margaret Bratley Mamet AB '59, Gerald R. Schultz, M.D. AB '59, Ken Asch AB '69, Lois Freeman Bennett AB '74, Mark Lipton AB '74, Charles Good AB '79, Camille Killey BS '79, Marty Putenis AB '79, Laura (BS) and Tim (AB) McCann '79, Peter M. Nalin, M.D. AB '84, and Martin McMillan postdoc '87-88.
Peter Nalin and Professor William T. Miller
Martin McMillan with his son, Payne. (^) Laura and Tim McCann look at reunion displays.
L. Hastings Lyon
Professor Ben Widom (middle) with Evelyn and Mark Lipton
Cornell Chemists Career Survey
Dear Cornell Chemist:
I was recently asked by members of the Chemistry Club for a statistical career profile of the classes of 1983 through 1993. It turns out we have good information for only about 18% of the people who graduated as chemistry majors from 1983 through 1989. We know where everybody goes the first year following graduation, but then they get "lost in space!"
Please help us improve our statistical records by completing and returning the following survey. Thanks very much.
—Donna
Name_
Employer.
Street Address.
City, State.
Your job title _
Brief job description.
Other comments.
Are you interested in sharing career information with current undergraduate or graduate students at Cornell? (Y/N)
Are you willing to participate in an alumni panel discussion? (Y/N)
Are you willing to correspond with a Cornell chemistry student? (Y/N)
Are you willing to write an article for the Chemistry Newsletter? (Y/N)
If you have answered yes to any of the above, what is the best way to reach you during the day?
From the Chairman's Office
Imagine a time when the federal govern- ment didn't fund scientific research. Unfortunately, quite a few scientists are beginning to know that feeling all too well again nowadays, what with the intensive competition for research grants at NSF and NIH, efforts to reduce the federal deficit, and the ongoing debate on Capitol Hill about the relative importance of basic and applied research.
But try to imagine a time when Washing- ton spent almost no money on basic research. Actually, it wasn't so long ago when academic scientists relied on their own university administrations to provide modest resources for scientific work. Most of the research was concentrated on a few large campuses. Some lucky faculty members found sponsors at the state level, or benefactors in the private sector for individual projects. While foundations or philanthropic organizations gave small grants on a competitive basis, their intent was often to provide seed money, and not to establish big laborato- ries with long-term funding needs.
That's how academic science (i.e., basic science) operated until the late 1940s. Industrial research was strong, but heavily mission-oriented, and although the United States led the world in R&D spending, the emphasis was mostly on 'D', less on 'r'." Basic scientific research was always much more strongly supported in Europe.
With the onset of World War II, however, the government realized it needed scientists and engineers. It also realized that certain key scientific findings like the discovery of radar and penicillin could be of considerable strategic value. The Office of Scientific Research and Devel- opment was created to award contracts for such war-related research to scientists in universities, where discoveries could be pursued without product development concerns or other commercial pressures.
The steady stream of important techno- logical discoveries (transistors, computers,
synthetic polymers, to name a few) that flowed from OSRD funding offered firm proof of principle that basic research could flourish in the university environment, to the great benefit of the country. In 1950, Congress created the National Science Foundation. Since then, Cornell has become one of the nation's largest recipients of NSF funds for basic research.
So what's changed? Why are federal funds for research so much more difficult to obtain? The country certainly needs scientists and engineers, although pre- cisely how many is hotly debated. There are definitely more scientists competing for grants, but even in the post-war era, society still depends heavily on the discoveries of university researchers for new technological advances.
The answer is that universities have changed, in ways that, believe it or not, have gone largely unrecognized (and underappreciated) by American society. Universities are no longer just conglom- erations of scholars lecturing to young people in college classrooms and conduct- ing research projects on the side. Our educational mission has expanded greatly to include graduate and postgraduate students, summer and continuing educa- tion programs (including corporate management and executive training symposia), as well as public outreach programs and teacher training seminars, not just in our own communities but across the nation. All of these activities derive from research, in one way or another, and that research has become increasingly dependent on external (i.e., federal, corporate, private) support.
Many Cornell alumni might not recognize the university they attended thirty, even twenty years ago. Some of you may be unaware that the Chemistry Department at Cornell is involved in every one of the educational activities I just listed. In the last year, for example, we helped organize a 4-H Extension Program in Chemistry, and developed teaching and research
initiatives with the Norwich Middle School and Sidney High School, respec- tively. Some of my colleagues have taught ACS short courses, or served on national panels that review science policy, or addressed corporate CEOs on new and emerging industrial technologies. Two Cornellians (one a chemist) sponsored a National Academy of Sciences forum on the importance of chemical ecology in science and society.
University trustees, and sometimes even our administrators, are occasionally surprised by the extent to which Cornell's educational and research activities are directly linked to the growing industrial strength and economic security of the country. Is it any wonder even our own students are bewildered by the range of activities on campus that make up the scholarly enterprise of academic science?
Cornell is, indeed, a world-class university and a national treasure. However, that will be a hollow slogan echoing through- out empty laboratories, institutes, and research centers on campus if we and other university scientists don't act soon. It's imperative that we inform an inter- ested and curious public much more clearly about what we do: about the faculty's many missions, about the inextricable link between teaching and research, about industry-university ties and collaborative research, about consult- ing and other outreach initiatives.
While attitudes are indeed changing in Washington about support for scientific research, a clear vision for the future of science in the United States seems to be absent. Leadership on this issue is sorely lacking. American research universities like Cornell could provide the voice of leadership, but we must earn that privi- lege. It is a challenge we cannot afford to let pass.
—Bruce Ganem
