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CHEMISTRY DISTILLATIONSThe Department of Chemistry Newsletter Fall 2001

WWW at http://www.chem.wm.edu

2 Our Faculty

3 Research Profiles

5 Research Funding;New Programs

6 Undergrad Research

7 Class of 2001

9 News of Alums

10 Other News

11 Old RogersRecollections

Yes, for those of youwho have known meat some point overmy seventeen yearsat William andMary, I know whatyou are thinking. Asa matter of fact, I

recently received an e-mail from an alumnus(Subject: Big Kahuna?) that stated “I dis-tinctly remember a conversation we hadyears ago that said that there was no way in(expletive deleted) you wanted to becomedepartment head.” Apparently my mind hasonce again failed me, but let me assure youthat I am honored to take on the challenge,just as I hope that all of you have continuedto accept the challenges associated with yourcareers, family, and society.

I feel that some reflections on my tenure atWilliam and Mary are in order to considerthe challenges for the next five years as chair,as I have been witness to phenomenal growthand success with respect to our students andfaculty. I have seen the faculty grow fromeleven to fifteen full-time faculty. We have anumber of energetic younger faculty whowill undoubtedly have bright careers, andthey are an excellent addition to the very suc-cessful senior faculty that we have within thedepartment. In fact, for the first time in thisdepartment’s history, the chemistry facultywere awarded over one million dollars in ex-ternal support from a wide variety of state,federal, and private sources in the 1999-2000fiscal year.

I have seen a number of faculty hired, retire,or leave during my time here. Our most re-cent loss was Kathleen Morgan, an organicchemist who had just received her tenure lastfall. Although Kathleen displayed a strongcommitment to the department through cur-ricular improvements and an active researchprogram, her commitment to her husband,an anthropology professor at Tulane, wasunderstandably stronger. She has accepted a

faculty position at Xavier in New Orleans,and we wish her all the success that she en-joyed while in our department. We alsowould like to extend a warm welcome toLisa Landino, our newest faculty member.Lisa’s biochemistry background and experi-ence in undergraduate chemistry while atMiddlebury College should significantly en-hance those areas of our curriculum.

The number of students that have passedthrough our halls over the years has grown aswell. A number of additional sections of gen-eral and organic lecture and lab sections havebeen added, and at one time even night labsin Instrumental Analysis and Physical Chem-istry were needed to handle the demand,when the number of majors peaked at 70 in1996. Although the numbers have gonedown somewhat in recent years, we can stillproudly state that we have been one of thetop ten producers of ACS certified chemistrydegrees in the nation throughout the pastdecade. Considering that the remainder ofthe top ten is dominated by large Ph.D.granting institutions, this is a statistic I con-tinue to be amazed by, given the size of theCollege. In fact, a recent survey sponsored byResearch Corporation indicated that we werethe number one producer of chemistry ma-jors over a ten year period for the 136predominately undergraduate institutionsparticipating in the study.

The summer undergraduate research pro-gram has experienced phenomenal growth,due in part to the generosity of the adminis-tration in providing free housing and Collegegrants and programs which have supportedsummer research stipends. My early yearssaw perhaps 10–15 students participating inour summer program, but over the past tenyears, we have averaged between 40 and 45students every summer in research (and theevening games of softball). Many under-graduates are regularly cited as co-authors inpublications and presentations, due in partto the summer research experience, and our

Remarks by the Chair

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success as faculty is largely the result of thecountless hours of undergraduate researchconducted in our laboratories.

Revenue growth within the Commonwealthof Virginia in the mid-to-late 1980’s was atremendous blessing for the department withthe establishment of the Equipment TrustFund (ETF). Numerous instruments werereplaced with state of the art equipment andnew types of instrumentation were intro-duced. Faculty grants over the years haveaugmented these holdings as well. Equip-ment needs within the lower division labsexpanded significantly and were enhancedby ETF funding. Unfortunately, the reces-sion of the early 1990’s, coupled withdiminishing state support and investmentsby the College into new programs, has cre-ated difficult allocation decisions over recentyears, which has put the department in theposition we faced upon my arrival at Williamand Mary. The vast majority of the instru-mentation purchased in the late 1980’s iseither obsolete, in some state of disrepair, ormarginally functional. The College now rec-ognizes the need to develop a long-termrecapitalization program for the basic sci-ences. I am excited by these prospects, andlook forward to developing a plan with thedepartment that will continue to put us inthe forefront of undergraduate research withstate of the art instrumentation.

We are also very excited about the prospectsfor the renovation and expansion of RogersHall. Over this past summer a pre-planningstudy was done calling for the completerenovation of the current structure and anaddition of approximately 25,000 squarefeet. Once completed, all chemistry facultywould enjoy significantly improved researchspace within Rogers Hall, and teaching labo-ratories and ventilation will be improved tomeet modern standards (remember those or-ganic lab days on the first floor?). Our bestshot at this becoming a reality in the nearfuture is for the state to issue a bond refer-endum for public approval similar to the oneresponsible for the completion ofMcGlothlin-Street Hall. If that becomes areality and you are still a resident of Virginia,vote yes! That alone could result in an out-

standing facility being completed within the next 5–7 years and serving ournext generation of young chemists.

I hope that, five years from now when I write my last column as chair, myvisions for the department have been achieved and we continue to be oneof the premier undergraduate chemistry programs in the country. The de-partment has always been extremely impressed with the quality of thechemistry majors we have produced over the years, and knows that willcontinue with future graduating classes. You are our best medium throughwhich future generations can be made aware of the opportunities that awaitthem within Rogers Hall. I have told many of you over the years that whenyou reflect upon your past you will eventually realize that some of yourmost independent and “care free” years were at William and Mary. You areour past and your children our future; and as we reflect upon the past, youwill always be in our memories. Please keep in touch, even if only to tor-ment the Big Kahuna. Cheers!

Gary Rice

Chris Abelt, organicGarrett-Robb-Guy Professorcjabel@wm.edu

Carey Bagdassarian, biophysicalckbagd@wm.edu

Debbie Bebout, biochemistrydcbebo@wm.edu

Randy Coleman, organic, biochemDirector, Fresh/Soph Advisingracole@wm.edu

Gary DeFotis, physicalgcdefo@wm.edu

Rob Hinkle, organicrjhink@wm.edu

Dick Kiefer, radiochem, polymerrlkief @wm.edu

Steve Knudson, physicalskknud@wm.edu

Dave Kranbuehl, physical, poly-merdekran@wm.edu

Lisa Landino, biochemistrylmland@wm.edu

Bob Orwoll, physical, polymerraorwo@wm.edu

Bob Pike, inorganicrdpike@wm.edu

J. C. Poutsma, analyticaljcpout@wm.edu

Ted Putnam, dept administratortdputn@wm.edu

Gary Rice, analytical, chairgwrice@wm.edu

Bill Starnes, polymerGottwald Professorwhstar@wm.edu

Dave Thompson, inorganicChancellor Professordwthom@wm.edu

EmeritiAlfred Armstrong,1976Ed Katz, 1980Trevor Hill,1992tbhill@wm.eduCirila Djordjevic, 1992

Current Faculty

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Selected Research Profiles

Carey K. BagdassarianI am interested in theways order originates influctuating and poten-tially chaotic systems. Aspecific focus of mygroup’s work has beento understand how fluc-tuations in an enzymemolecule’s three-dimen-

sional structure contribute to catalysis. Weintroduce correlated fluctuations—a level oforder arising from the immenseinterconnectivity of any large biomolecule—into an enzyme’s “breathing modes” to explaina possible source of its enormous catalyticpower. Our work, at the intersection of chem-istry, physics, biology, mathematics, andcomputer science, marries paper and penciltheory and computer modeling through mo-lecular dynamics simulations and artificialintelligence. We have recently developed aninterdisciplinary team (Bagdassarian (Chemis-try), Kranbuehl (Chemistry and AppliedScience), Mike Trosset (Mathematics), andPatty Zwollo (Biology)) to get to the heart ofthe matter. I am also very interested in originsof broader types of order—such as conscious-ness and its evolution.

Recent Publications

M. Singla (’01) and C.K. Bagdassarian, “Dy-namical Tuning of Enzymatic ConformationalFluctuations for Maximal Catalytic Velocity”submitted to Protein Science.

K.O. Alper (’99, M.S. Computer Science ’01),M. Singla (’01), J.L. Stone (’00), and C.K.Bagdassarian, “Correlated ConformationalFluctuations During Enzymatic Catalysis: Im-plications for Catalytic Rate Enhancement”Protein Science, 10, 1319-1330 (2001).

C. K. Bagdassarian and R.D. Astumian, “Con-formational Fluctuations and ProteinFunction: the Thermodynamics of a BrownianMotor”, in Thermodynamics in Biology, ed E.Di Cera, Oxford University Press (2001).

Faculty Changes

PromotionsKathleen Morgan (but, see below)

On leave for 2001–2002Debbie Bebout 2001-2002 (Research Leave)

Bob Pike Fall 2001(Research Leave)

Part-time faculty, 2001–2002Gary Hammer Fall 2001

Kathy Sturgeon Fall 2001

Homer Smith Fall 2001

Bon Voyage!Kathleen Morgan leaves the department after avery successful six years and the receipt of ten-ure.

Unfortunately, a position for her anthropologisthusband Trent, who teaches at Tulane, couldnot be found here. Not wishing to sustain along-distance marriage, Kathleen has joined thefaculty of the Chemistry Department at XavierUniversity of Louisiana, in New Orleans.Kathleen’s outstanding teaching and excellentresearch will be much missed.

Welcome!We welcome Lisa M. Landino as Assistant Pro-fessor of Chemistry this fall. Lisa received a B.S.in chemistry from Nazareth College in Roches-ter, New York and a Ph.D. (1994) in organicand biochemistry from the University of Vir-ginia, where she worked with T.L. McDonald.Lisa did postdoctoral work in biochemistry atVanderbilt, working with L.J. Marnett; she alsosuccessfully initiated research at MiddleburyCollege, receiving substantial grant support anddirecting the research of several thesis and otherundergraduate students. At William and MaryLisa plans to continue research into how oxida-tive damage to proteins affects structure andfunction, and into the ways in which the pro-tein tubulin interacts with cytochrome c. Lisa’sarrival definitely enhances the biochemistry partof the Department’s program.

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Robert J. HinkleOur research examines the chemistry ofhighly-reactive vinylic iodonium salts(e. g., 1). Iodine can adopt several oxida-tion states and this class of compoundscontains I(III). The positive charge on

iodine renders the vinylic C-I bond labile enough to makethese compounds prone to fragmentation, rearrangementand substitution. Since my arrival,we have extensively investigated thefragmentation and rearrangementreactions and are continuing to de-veloping new reactions usingorganozinc reagents as nucleophiles.We have begun to examine the ef-fects of structure (especially Ar) onreactivity as well as investigate a number of reactions be-tween iodonium salts and organometallic reagents otherthan those containing zinc.

Recent Publications

Hinkle, R. J.; McDonald, R.‡ , “(Z)-2-Methyl-1-buten-1-yl(aryl)iodonium Triflates ContainingElectron-Withdrawing Groups on the Aryl Moiety.” Sub-mitted to Acta Cryst. C.

Bykowski, D‡; McDonald, R. ‡; Hinkle, R. J.; Tykwinski,R. R. ‡ “Structural and Electronic Characteristics ofThienyl(aryl)iodonium Triflates.” Submitted to J. Org.Chem.

McNeil, A. J. (’99); Hinkle*, R. J.; Rouse, E. A. (’00);Thomas, Q. A. (’98) ; Thomas, D. B. (’98) “VinylCarbocations: Solution Studies of Alkenyl(aryl)-iodoniumTriflate Fragmenta-tions,” J. Org. Chem. 2001, 66, inpress.

Hinkle, R. J.; Leri, A. C. (’00); David, G. A. (’00); Erwin,W. M. (’99). “Addition of Benzylzinc Halides toAlkenyl(phenyl)iodonium Triflates: Stereo-selective Syn-thesis of Trisubstituted Alkenes,” Org. Lett. 2000, 2,1521-1523.

Hinkle, R. J.; McNeil, A. J. (’99); Thomas, Q. A. (’98);Andrews, M. N. (’99) “Vinyl Cations in Solution: Kineticsand Products of Alkenyl(aryl)iodonium Salt Fragmentations,”J. Am. Chem. Soc., 1999, 121, 7437-7438.

Hinkle, R. J.; Thomas, D. B. (’98) “Facile Fragmentations ofAlkenyl(aryl)iodonium Triflates,” J. Org. Chem. 1997, 62,7534-7535.‡University of Alberta

R2

R1 I ArOTf

Ar = Ph, 4-CF3-C6H4-, 3,5-(CF3)2-C6H3-

1

R1, R2 = Ph, Et, Me,

Bu, etc.

J. C. PoutsmaI am a gas phase ion chemist, and am inter-ested in the structure and energetics ofsmall organic and biological molecules. Byperforming chemistry in the gas phase, inthe absence of solvent, we can access theintrinsic reactivity and thermochemistry of

the molecules of interest. My group uses a quadrupole iontrap tandem mass spectrometer to perform our studies. Inaddition, we use computational chemistry to give us predic-tions for the thermodynamic quantities that we aremeasuring in the lab. We are currently studying non-pro-tein amino acids (NPAA), that is, amino acids that are notused by humans for peptide and protein synthesis. Manyof these species are similar in structure to one or more of thetwenty protein amino acids (PAA). As such, NPAAs cancompete with their PAA analogs in biological pathways andsome can even misincorporate into peptides and proteins.We want to understand how the structure of an amino acidaffects its chemical properties in hopes of shedding light onthe toxicity of these species to humans.

We have recently completed a study of the gas phase basicityof a series of proline analogs. We find that there is a corre-lation between the size of the ring and the basicity at thenitrogen atom. We are currently studying analogs of lysine,arginine and alanine in order to gain a greater understand-ing of the effects of simple substitutions on the chemistry ofthese biologically interesting molecules.

Recent Publications

A. F. Kuntz (’00), A. W. Boynton (’00), G. A. David (‘00),K. E. Colyer (’01), and J. C. Poutsma “The Proton affinityof Proline Analogs Using the Kinetic Method with Full En-tropy Analysis” Submitted for Publication to the Journal ofthe American Society for Mass Spectrometry.

J.C. Poutsma, S. D. Upshaw (’99), R. R. Squires, P. G.Wenthold “The Absolute Heat of Formation and Singlet-Triplet splitting for HCCN” Submitted for Publication tothe Journal of Physical Chemistry A.

Flad, J. E., Everest, M. A.; Poutsma, J. C.; Zare, R. N. “Vi-brational and Collision Energy Effects in the Reaction ofAmmonia Ions with Methylamine” J. Chem. Phys. 2001,115, 124.

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Faculty Attract Nationally CompetitiveResearch FundingAs in last year’s newsletter, we make mention here of a few of the grantsreceived by chemistry faculty that were especially large and/or competitive.

Gary DeFotis received his fifth consecutive multi-yeargrant from the National Science Foundation, for alittle over $200,000 for three years. This may be thelargest NSF grant to a single individual received in thedepartment. It enables DeFotis to continue his workon various kinds of mixed and dilute magnetic systems.A great many undergraduate research students have al-ready participated in such research over the years.

Dave Kranbuehl received a National Science Founda-tion International Grant, cosponsored by the Frenchgovernment, for $20,000 over three years.

Bill Starnes received the third installment ($110,00)in a three-year grant from the Edison Polymer Innova-tion Corporation for $345,000 total.

As in the past, several faculty have obtained AmericanChemical Society Petroleum Research Fund grants orgrants from the Jeffress Momorial Trust. Others re-ceive support from NASA and Virginia state agencies.All of these grants have been crucial to providing thewherewithall to maintain the department’s research ef-forts at a level competitive with the very toppredominately undergraduate departments in thecountry. As always, additional support for the upgrad-ing of equipment, and, no less important, equipmentmaintenance, is much needed. Regular financial contri-butions from alumni and friends of the department arecrucial in helping us fulfill our educational mission.We hope you will consider allocating a regular portionof your charitable contributions to the department tohelp us maintain the success of our program.

Starnes Elected to Fellowship in Society of PlasticsEngineersGottwald Professor of Chemistry William H. Starnes received a signalhonor this past year in being elected a Fellow of the Society of Plastics En-gineers, which was bestowed at an awards luncheon at the AnnualTechnical Conference of the Society in Dallas. The SPE is the oldest andlargest organization of plastics professionals in the world, and includeschemists, physicists and other scientists working with plastics (2000 NobelLaureate in Chemistry Alan MacDiarmid is a member). Of some 31,000SPE members, including many internationally based scientists, only 155have ever been elected to Fellowship. Starnes continues to serve as a chartermember of Chemistry Advisory Council of VPI&SU in Blacksburg, as wellas consultant to European government/scientific communities.

Programmatic NotesTwo significant developments in the aca-demic program should be mentioned. One isa joint B.S./M.S. degree program which hasbeen approved by the department and nowenters subsequent review stages. The idea isto offer high caliber students who come inwith a large number of advanced placement,transfer or other credits the opportunity toobtain the higher level degree with only amodest additional committment of time atthe College (one summer following gradua-tion). Not every detail will be listed here, butthe essence is that such students can obtain ahead start in chemistry courses beyond thefreshman level immediately upon arrival, andcan also complete nonchemistry bachelorsdegree graduation requirements by the endof their third year. The fourth year and thefollowing summer are essentially directed to-ward satisfying the normal requirements fora masters degree in chemistry. It is believedthat this program will not only enhance theprospects of joint degree students as theyleave William and Mary, but will also help toattract additional top students to the depart-ment.

The other new development, which has beenapproved at all levels, is a joint M.S./Ph.D.program in Chemistry and Applied Science(the latter is now a department). The newdegree would be offered jointly by the twodepartments, with integrated participationby faculty from each. Incoming studentswould be approved and admitted by bothdepartments and would begin by completinga masters degree in Chemistry. Course workin the Chemistry M.S. program will satisfythe Ph.D. requirements in Applied Science.The goal is to make it attractive for more“chemically” inclined prospective students topursue an Applied Science Ph.D.

Gary DeFotis

Dave Kranbuehl

Bill Starnes

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Undergraduate Research ActivitiesAs has been the case for decades, very large numbers of chemistry majors are engaged in researchduring the academic year and during the summer in collaboration with faculty members. Thiswas once again reflected in the now traditional September (2000) event, the Verizon Under-graduate Science Research Symposium, held Friday, September 15 in the University Center, theseventh annual one in the series. As in several recent years, separate oral sessions were held fo-cusing on especially biological, chemical or physical topics, followed by a general poster session.Thirteen oral and eighty-two poster presentations were made. As in the past, chemistry had themost presentations, with biology a close second. Debbie Bebout again organized and oversawthe symposium.

Several undergraduates also presented their work in external venues. Kate Colyer displayed aposter at the American Society for Mass Spectrometry National Meeting in Chicago, in June2001. Four other students of Professor Poutsma also attended this meeting. Katie Hogdongave an invited student talk at the 67th Annual Virginia Section of the American Water WorksAssociation meeting, in Williamsburg, on October 2000, based on her work with ProfessorRice.

Mention should also be made of the impressive success of Ann Mikowski in winning both aGoldwater Scholarship and Arnold and Mabel Beckman Foundation Scholarship. She presentedher work with Professor Hinkle at the Third Annual Beckman Scholars Symposium held inIrvine, CA, in July 2001. Beckman scholars and their mentors were gathered at this event, andAnn had the opportunity to hear such world renowned figures as 1995 Nobel LaureateSherwood Roland discuss their work.

Funding for student travel to meetings is necessarily limited, and it should be mentioned thatmany, many additional undergraduates appeared as coauthors on presentations made by depart-ment faculty at a host of national and international meetings.

Dow Scholars Program at William and MaryThe Chemistry Department at the College is one of only 18 undergraduate programs nation-wide selected by Dow Chemical for its Dow Scholars program. Each year, with the generoussupport of the Dow Chemical Foundation, two Dow Scholars are selected from the incomingclass. Their selection is based upon their high school academic achievements and their intent tomajor in chemistry. Dow scholars receive $2,000 tuition scholarship during each of their fouryears in college, and support from Dow for carrying out summer research with a faculty mem-ber in the department. Many of our Dow Scholars stay to do research during two summers.

The Dow Scholars program at the College was instituted in 1990. Since then, 17 students havegraduated as Dow Scholars. We are extremely proud of these alumni, most of whom have goneon to pursue careers in chemistry. They have enrolled in graduate programs at Cal Berkeley, CalTech, Cornell, Duke, Harvard, Illinois, Northwestern, North Carolina, Stanford, Virginia andYale.

William and Mary chemistry graduate Dr. Michael Edens (’73) has recently been appointed tooversee the Dow Scholars program at the College. Mike serves as a Technical Leader in Dow’sPolyglycols Research and Development Division in Freeport, TX. This past spring, the Depart-ment welcomed Mike back for his first visit to meet our current Dow Scholars and see how wehave grown and prospered since he was a student at the College.

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Chemistry Class of 2001 and Their Destinations

Beth Rachelle AdamsBethany B. Barone

Andrew Wayne BoyntonElizabeth M. CornellGeoffrey Alan David

Kathleen Erin Dejong Mark Alois Fashing

Aven Walker FordChristopher Cho Fox

Melissa Marie GarlandPeter Freeman Godenschwager

Kathryn Ann GuyDaniel Keith Havey

Katie Ellen Hodgdon Brian Matthew HopkinsonRonald James Travis Houk

Timothy Jason Johnson Meisa Silviane Khoshbin

Andrew Frederic KuntzMichael Lewis Laccheo

Emily Fields LandonSteven Nathan Leff

Bradley Thomas MartsWilliam Stuart Mcbride

Donald Ryan McGlothlinJoshua Ona MirandaSarah Zayat Prunier

Michael Logan RawlinsStephen Eugene Rolando

Elizabeth Ashley RouseInder Paul Singh

Manish SinglaRebecca Lynn SmithStacey Allison Smith

Amy Elizabeth SprinkleChristopher James VandenBussche

Kristin Lawrence WeidnerGeorge Stuart Blair WilliamsZachary Nathan Woodward

medicinal chemist, Merckgraduate studies in epidemiology, Johns Hopkins (chem/kinesiology)not reportedseeking employment in D.C., then master's in chemistry, W&Mstudies at U. Montpelier, France, then at U. Lucerne, SwitzerlandAmericorpsgraduate studies in computer science, Duke (computer science/chem)not reported (chem/rel)not reported(Dec '00) medicinal chemist, Merckgraduate studies in chemistry, Cornellgraduate studies in chemistry, U. Illinois at Urbanna (chem/math)graduate studies in chemistry, U. Colorado, Boulderundecidedgraduate studies in marine chemistry, Scrippsgraduate studies in chemistry, UT Austinundecidedgraduate studies in chemistry, Northwesternmedical school, UVAmedical school, U. Kansas School of Medicine (phil/chem)pharmacy school, VCU(Dec '00) working in No. VAgraduate studies in physics, Duke (chem/math)graduate studies in mechanical engineering, Northwestern (physics/chem)graduate studies in chemistry, Stanforddental school, MCVEnglish teacher in South Korea for a yearmedical school(Dec '00) account executive, Boland Services, Rockville, MDmedicinal chemist, Merckmedical school, MCV, or master's in public health, GWU (bio/chem)medical school, Georgetown (chem/math)seeking employmentyear off, then medical school at EVMSgraduate studies in forensic science, GWUMD/PhD program, Georgetown (chem/bio)undecidedundecidedOfficer's Candidate School, USN

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Departmental Awards

William George Guy Prize in Chemistry Ryan McGlothlinVirginia ACS Award Chris VandenBusscheAmerican Institute of Chemists Award Ashley RouseAlumni Undergraduate Research Award Brian HopkinsonHypercube Award Meisa KhoshbinMerck Index Award Bethany Barone, Andy Kuntz

Monroe ScholarsBeth Adams Meisa KhoshbinMark Fashing Michael LaccheoKathryn Guy Ashley RouseKatie Hodgdon Manish SinglaBrian Hopkinson Blair Williams

Dow ScholarshipsKathryn Guy Ashley Rouse

Masters Candidates and Their DestinationsChristine Howard (Sept ’01) begins work as a medical scribe in Richmond and hopes to enter MCV in Fall ’03.

Yue (Lucy) Hu (Jul ’01)has entered the Ph.D program in Applied Science at William and Mary.

Yao Lin (Dec ’00) is in the Ph.D program in chemistry at Michigan.

Jonathan Maeyer (Jul ’01) is as yet undecided.

Andy Meyer (Dec, ’99) is a scientist at Wyatt Technologies in Santa Barbara, CA.

Lynda Payne (May ’01) is an R&D chemist for Biovail Tech. in Chantilly, VA.

Katherine Ross (Dec ’00) has accepted a job in the chemical industry.

Eugene Ward (Dec, ’99) did not report his plans.

Julie Warner (M.S. Sept ’01) has entered the Ph.D program in Applied Science at William and Mary.

PBK AwardsBethany Barone Mark FashingKathryn Guy Brian HopkinsonMeisa Khoshbin Andy KuntzRyan McGlothlin Manish Singla

Chris VandenBussche

Honors in ChemistryGeoff David Andy KuntzMelissa Garland Michael LaccheoPete Godenschwager Ryan McGlothlinKathryn Guy Logan RawlinsDan Havey Manish SinglaBrian Hopkinson Becky SmithRon Houk Chris VandenBusscheMeisa Koshbin Zach Woodward

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News of Our Alums

Kutay Alper (’99, Comp. Sci. ’01) is a programmer for IBM,with a salary twice that of his research mentor.

Pam Arnold (’95) completed her Ph.D. in chemistry atCornell in January, and will be doing a postdoc at the Uni-versity of Ottawa in Ontario, Canada.

Heather King Baker (’97), after working in industry for awhile and teaching science in the Massachussetts NewTeachers Program, is now pursuing graduate work in theChemical Biology program of Cornell University.

Emily Buehler (’96), while finishing up her thesis in chem-istry at Chapel Hill, has done a mini-grand tour of Europe,served as an intern with the National Academy of Sciencesin Washington (in the Office of Public Understanding ofScience), and is exploring a possible career as a writer.

After receiving her Ph.D. in organic chemistry at UCLA, EllenBurns (’91) has taught at Bowdoin College and The College ofWooster, where she is currently on leave, and is a congressionaland science policy fellow of the Americam Chemical Society,working in the office of Rep. Nick Smith (R-Mich.).

Stuart Chaffee (’96) completed his Ph.D. in chemistry atYale and now works as a chemist at Amgen in ThousandOaks, CA.

Richard Chamberlain (’91) received his Ph.D. in chemis-try from Berkeley, and is now a research scientist at EastmanKodak in Rochester, NY.

Jim Comey (’82) runs the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Rich-mond.

Randy Culp (’78) is an orthopedic hand specialist in thePhiladelphia area whose outstanding work has been recog-nized in Philadelphis Magazine’s “Top Doc” Honors Poll.

William Harris (’66), after serving as Director for Math-ematical and Physical Sciences at the NSF, holding theDirectorship of Columbia’s Biosphere 2, and the vice-presi-dency for research at the U. of South Carolina, will nowhead the new Science Foundation of Ireland.

Maria Huacani Hamilton (’95) has completed her Ph.D.in biochemistry at Duke, and is enjoying a postdoc in phar-macology at the Medical University of South Carolina.

After completing his Ph.D. in chemistry at Illinois and doing apostdoc at Harvard, Brian Hubbard (’94) has a position atMillennium Pharmaceuticals in Cambridge, MA.

Chris Kontos(’84, M.A. ’85) practices cardiology at Duke.

Sharon Lee (’98) spent some time doing research at theCancer Center of the UVA Medical School.

Matt Manning (’92) completed his residency in radiationoncology at MCV this summer and has accepted a positonin private practice at a cancer center in Greensboro, NC.

David Mantus (’85), after obtaining his Ph.D in chemistryfrom Cornell, postdoced at the U. of Washington, workedfor Procter & Gamble Pharmaceuticals, and is now Directorof Regulatory Affairs at BioChem Pharma, Inc. inNorthborough, MA.

Since completing her Ph.D. in chemistry at Northwestern,Ellen McGhee Meyer (’86) has become a Senior ResearchScientist in the Water Management Group ofBetzDearborn, Inc., in Trevose, PA.

Jon McMahon (’97) is working for the internet advertisingcompany Teknosurf.com.

Matt Miller (’99), previously working, is now a graduate stu-dent in chemistry at UMass, Amherst, where he does researchwith Richard Vachet (’93).

Shawn Mulvaney (’97) has received his Ph.D. in analyticalchemistry from Penn State and has an NRC postdoc posi-tion at the Naval Research Laboratory, Surface Nonoscienceand Sensor Technology Section.

Amy Narducci (’95), after obtaining her Ph.D. in chemis-try from Northwestern and postdocing at SmithKlineBeecham, is working at Bruker AXS.

Aileen Nicoletti (’92) earned her Ph.D. in biologicalchemistry from Michigan and did a postdoc at BoehringerIngelheim Pharmaceuticals before joining Defined Health,consultants in pharmaceutical business/franchise develop-ment headquartered in Millburn, NJ.

Caryn Prairie Outten (’95)completed her Ph.D in chemis-try at Northwestern and has assumed a postdoctoralposition at Johns Hopkins in the Department of Environ-mental Health Sciences.

After receiving his Ph.D. in chemistry at Stanford, SpencerPugh (’81) has long been associated with Eastman Kodak,where he is a team leader for several dozen researchers in theImage Reaearch and Advanced Development Division.

Eric Remy (’88) is now Instructional Technology Coordinatorat Randolph-Macon Women’s College in Lynchburg, VA.

Beatrix Slomiany (’94) received her Ph.D. in pharmacologyfrom the Medical University of South Carolina, and contin-ues in a postdoctoral position there.

Steve Tang (’82) is president and CEO of Millenium Cell,a development-stage alternative energy company inEatontown, NJ.

Tamara Tieman (’91, M.A. ’92) finished her Ph.D inpharmacology at Columbia and is working at Pfizer in NewYork City.

Jennifer Todd (’99) worked for Whitehall Robbins inRichmond before becoming a teacher in the Richmondschool system.

Rich Vachet (’93) is a chemistry professor at UMass, Amherst.

Robert Weise (’87), after a stint at Chicago and a long pe-riod in the working world (Alberto-Culver, Amway Corp.,where he received their R&D Creativity Award for applyingLeChatelier’s Principle), decided on business school as anavenue to new opportunities.

Ivana Verona Yang (’96) has completed her Ph.D in chem-istry at Chapel Hill and is doing a postdoc at the Institutefor Genomic Research in Rockville, MD.

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2000 Chemistry ReceptionChemistry was delighted to host a number of alums at our fall reception dur-ing last year’s Homecoming. Among them were Bill Mathes and JohnMarsh, both Class of ’55, Patti Pound Berry (’63), Bill Gillespie and KenNowell (’70), and Joe Stubbs, Bill Barnes and Constance O’Dorherty Barnes(’75). The Class of ’80 was well represented: David Brown and his wifeElizabeth, Jim Ewing, Carol Humphries Lindsay, Cindy Darling, SusanRappe Sullivan, Bill Weiser and his wife Sarah, Kerwin Dobbs and KathyLloyd Dobbs. Eugene Aquino (’88) also attended, as did Charles Gray (’96)and Jason Macko (’96, M.A. ’97).

Alfred Armstrong Turns 90On a pleasant afternoon this past July, members of the Department joinedthe Armstrong family and many other friends at the Armstrong’s house onNewport Avenue to help Alfred Armstrong celebrate his 90th birthday. Theweather was cooperative, and we gathered on their screened back porch andspilled out into the back yard for conversation and good food.

For those of you who graduated before 1995, Professor Emeritus Armstrongneeds no introduction. Our more recent graduates may not know that his isthe longest association with our department in its history, from his arrival asa freshman in 1928 until the mid nineties, when he retired from teaching.He holds a special place in the hearts of many of us. Happy birthday, Alfred!

Staff newsPat Hilger joined us in October 2000 as our newDepartmental Secretary. Originally from NewYork City, Pat moved to Williamsburg after livingin Georgia, Guam and Pennsylvania. Her priorwork experience was at law firms specializing inintellectual property law, so working on a collegecampus and for the state is definitely a big changefor her. (We assume a good one, since academi-cians can’t be as difficult to work with as attorneys,right?) Pat reports that she, her husband Gregg

and their son Philip are enjoying the Williamsburg area and looking forwardto the completion of their new home.

A LossSadly, we have learned that Norma Katz, whose husband Ed (’36) was De-partment Administrator and Instructor for many years, passed away inAugust of 2000. After Ed’s retirement in 1980, the Katzes escaped from therapidly growing Williamsburg area and settled into their present home inSeven Lakes, North Carolina.

Other News

Do you recognize the student on the right endof the first row in this photo of the Chem Club in1932?

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Lern How to SpelIndeed an embarrassing correction is re-quired from the “Old RogersRecollections” column in our last issue ofthe Newsletter (2000). To my astonish-ment, someone actually read the columnand wrote us pointing out the misspellingof pigeon, which appeared as pidgeon. Onewould presume, after correcting literallydozens of people over many years on thespelling of Rogers (versus Rodgers) , thatsurely the writer could manage the beast:pigeon.

In all fairness, Pidgeon is absolutely thecorrect spelling as found in the RandomHouse Dictionary, which the writer lookedup before writing last year’s column! Hesimply neglected to read the entry:………Walter, born 1898, U. S. movieactor born in Canada. Deeming that allspellings of similar sounds come out of thesame tap, surely there was no need tosearch the dictionary any further. Thewriter regrets the rather crass error.

Still and all, the Rogers vs. Rodgers prob-lem will not go away. Some years ago ouradministration decided to place some lovelynew signs, with backgrounds of (Williamand Mary) green with gold lettering, out-side the major campus buildings forpurposes of easy identification: you guessedit, ours read “Rodgers Hall”. Fortunatelythe name was not cast in stone or steel (apopular preoccupation on academic cam-puses), but on wood which was easilyburned in the fireplace with few to knowthe difference.

Working Conditions in Old RogersIn the early ’60s, the only air conditioner in the whole building was in Pro-fessor Armstrong’s office. This meant that the rest of the building wasuncomfortable indeed, particularly during the laboratory summer sessionsof the hot and humid summer months. Opening the laborarory windowsdid little to alleviate the situation; and besides, a lot of the windows werestuck in the shut position anyhow. One day I wandered in to find studentsin elementary laboratory, all with Bunsen burners ablaze, and whistling arousing chorus of “Frosty the Snowman“.

The safety conditions left one with an uneasy feeling: On my first day atW&M in the chemistry department I found about two liters ofchlorosulfonic acid in an open container sitting beside a laboratory sink.(The stuff reacts violently with water.) In the cluttered stockroom there wasa large bottle of benzoyl peroxide being treated as if it were table salt, andour caretaker saw no problem in sweeping the floor with an ignited cigarettein his lips: when I explained how fast his trip to heaven could be, he neversmoked in the stockroom again. In one instance a faculty member demon-strated to me how the sink drains actually supported combustion; it wasfrightening! I must admit these recollections provide no surprises, in thatold Rogers caught fire sometime in its earlier history.

Rogers PigeonWalter Pidgeon

RODGERSHALL

DEPARTMENT of CHEMISTRY

Old Rogers Recollections

…And we recently noticed thislabel on a campus network hubinstalled in the Chemistry office—an alarming trend!