AWARDS
▸ Stuart Croll wins Tess Award; nominations open for 2018 award Stuart Croll, professor and chair of the department of coatings and polymeric materials at North Dakota State University, is the winner of the 2017 Roy W. Tess Award in Coatings, sponsored by the ACS Division of Polymeric Materials: Science & Engineering. Croll was the first to demonstrate the connection between coating solidification and the glass transition temperature as controlled by solvent content in the coating and its impact on coating adhesion. The $3,000 cash prize and plaque recognize outstanding individual achievements and noteworthy contributions to coatings science, technology, and engineering. Croll will receive the award during the fall ACS national meeting in Washington, D.C. Nominations are sought for the 2018 Roy W. Tess Award. Scientists from all sectors of industry, government, and academia are eligible to apply and should forward nominations to Chair at Polymers & Coatings Consultants, 5645A Emerald Ridge Pkwy., Solon, Ohio 44139. For more information, contact Theodore Provder at (440) 914-0611, (440) 610-4809, or
[email protected]. Each nomination will be considered for four award years after its receipt but must be renewed for consideration beyond that time. The deadline for nominations is Sept. 1.—LINDA WANG
▸ Gibbs Award to Judith Klinman Judith P. Klinman, professor of the graduate school and Chancellor’s Professor at the University of California, Berkeley, has been awarded the 2017 Willard Gibbs Medal Award by the ACS Chicago Section. The award recognizes exceptional individuals whose pioneering work has opened new fields of chemical research. Klinman launched the field of protein-derived cofactors with the discovery
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Cui and Sanford named Blavatnik laureates ACS members Yi Cui and Melanie S. Sanford are among the three winners of the 2017 Blavatnik National Awards for Young Scientists, established by the Blavatnik Family Foundation and administered by the New York Academy of Sciences. The awards honor exceptional young scientists and engineers, and each winner receives an unrestricted cash prize of $250,000. Sanford is Moses Gomberg Distinguished University Professor of Chemistry and Arthur F. Thurnau Professor of Chemistry at the University of Michigan. She was named the 2017 Blavatnik National Laureate in Chemistry. Cui is a professor of materials science and engineering at Stanford University. He was named the Yi Cui 2017 Blavatnik National Laureate in Physical Sciences & Engineering. Sanford is developing new synthetic methods for the synthesis of organic molecules. She aims to develop methods to form bonds or put molecules together in ways that were not previously possible. “Ultimately, we aim to apply these methods in developing greener routes to important molecules, such as pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals, radiotracers, and energy storage materials,” she says. “This award is an incredible honor. It is a huge testament to the phenomenal training that I have received from my teachMelanie S. Sanford ers and mentors throughout the years as well as the amazing undergraduates, graduate students, and postdocs that I have been so fortunate to work with over the last 13 years of my independent career.” Sanford says she hopes the award will bring broader recognition to the critical importance of supporting basic research in organic and inorganic chemistry. Cui is using nanomaterial research to pursue challenges in energy and environmental sciences, particularly in the development of the next generation of batteries. Among his inventions are a cooling textile that can save electricity in air-conditioning and a technique for tuning catalyst activity in battery cells to make them more efficient. “I hope that my research can change the world with high-impact technologies generated particularly in the area of energy and environment,” Cui says. “This award will offer the resources to help me focus on what I do.” The third laureate is MIT neuroscientist Feng Zhang. The award ceremony will take place in New York City on Sept. 2.—LINDA WANG
of modified tyrosine residue, 6-hydroxydopa (referred to as TPQ) in the active site of a copper-containing amine oxidase that mediates the enzyme’s redox chemistry. Her laboratory has made breakthroughs concerning the fundamental nature of enzyme catalysis. Her group has also explored the relationship between protein structure and tunneling, presenting evidence for the role of specific active-site residues in the tunneling process.—LINDA
WANG
▸ Hammond Award to David Whitten David G. Whitten, Distinguished Professor of Chemical & Biological Engineering at the University of New Mexico, is the recipient of the 2017 George S. Hammond Award, presented by the Inter-American Photochemical Society. Whitten is a leader in the field of photochemistry, and his research ranges from fundamental studies of photoinduced
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