Environmental Chemistry post-doc position @ University of Illinois at Chicago

Nominations and applications are invited for three (3) Postdoctoral Research Associates in the College of Engineering (CoE) and School of Public Health (SPH) at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC). The successful candidates will play key roles in potentially long term, collaborative, exciting and challenging environmental research projects involving aquatic sediments in lakes and rivers. We are looking for self-motivated, energetic, highly responsible professionals with team‐work spirit.

In addition to the Post‐doctoral Associate Positions below, we are also looking for PhD student research
assistants for the same projects. 

Postdoctoral Associate Position #1 ‐ Environmental Organic Chemistry. The Responsibilities include: (1) participating and coordinating environmental sampling activities, (2) developing laboratory procedures and quality control protocols for the analyses of hydrophobic and hydrophilic organic pollutants in sediment samples, (3) carrying out laboratory work and providing analytical results on the concentrations of the analytes in collected sediment samples in a timely manner, (4) supervising PhD or MS level research assistants working on the same project, (5) preparing and maintaining program documents, safe data storage and bookkeeping, and preparing preliminary progress reports. Qualifications includes a PhD degree in Environmental Sciences, Environmental Engineering, Analytical Chemistry, and related fields, with extensive experience in analytical method development for complex environmental samples, including the use of GC/MS and LC/MS. Experience with triple quadruple or time‐of‐fly MS is preferred. Knowledge of MS spectra interpretation as well as computer skills in database management is highly desired. A good record of publications and project management experience are helpful. Compensation includes annual salary of $46,500, plus full fringe benefit. The starting date will be in summer 2010. The initial appointment will be one year, with possible extensions.

For consideration, please email or send a cover letter with a Curriculum Vita and three letters of
recommendation to:

Dr. An Li
Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences (MC‐922)
School of Public Health, University of Illinois at Chicago
2121 West Taylor St., Chicago, IL 60612, USA
Phone: 312‐996‐9597, Fax: 312‐413‐9898, Email: anli@uic.edu

Post‐doctoral Associate Position #2 ‐ Metals analysis. The Responsibilities include sampling and analysis of mercury, methyl Hg, and other metals in aqueous water, wastewater and solids samples; speciation modeling, fate and transport modeling; supervising PhD research assistant(s) working on the same project; assisting the PI in the coordination and management of the project; and preparing and maintaining program documents, safe data storage and bookkeeping. Possibilities exist for utilization of advanced imaging and analytical work at the Advanced Photon Source at the nearby Argonne laboratory, as well as environmental magnetic resonance imaging using a newly acquired MRI system. Qualifications include a PhD degree in Environmental Sciences, Environmental, Chemical or Bio‐Engineering, Analytical Chemistry, and related fields, with extensive experience in chemical analysis in environmental samples. A good record of publications and project management experience are helpful. Compensation will be commensurate with experience. The starting date will be in summer 2010. The initial appointment will be one year, with possible extensions.

Post‐doctoral Associate Position #3 ‐ Microbial population analysis. The Responsibilities include analysis of microbial population dynamics in mercury‐impacted systems using molecular biological techniques; supervising PhD research assistant(s) working on the same project; assisting the PI in the coordination and management of the project; and preparing and maintaining program documents, safe data storage and bookkeeping. Qualifications include a PhD degree in Environmental Microbiology, Environmental Sciences, Environmental, Chemical or Bio‐Engineering, and related fields, with extensive experience in molecular tools such as qPCR, DGGE, tRFLP, etc. A good record of publications is helpful. Compensation will be commensurate with experience. The starting date will be in summer 2010. The initial appointment will be one year, with possible extensions.

For consideration for positions 2 and 3, please email or send a cover letter with a Curriculum Vita and
three letters of recommendation/contact information to the address below.

Dr. Karl J. Rockne
Department of Civil and Materials Engineering
842 West Taylor St., M/C 246
University of Illinois at Chicago
Chicago, IL 60607
(312) 413‐0391; krockne@uic.edu

ACS Organic Division Graduate Fellowships

The Division of Organic Chemistry plans to award the 2010-2011 academic year fellowships for Ph.D. students to be held during their third or fourth year of study. Sponsors of the fellowships awarded for the current academic year are: Amgen, Boehringer Ingelheim, Eli Lilly, the Genentech Foundation, GlaxoSmithKline, Novartis Pharmaceuticals, Organic Reactions, Inc., Organic Syntheses, Inc., Roche, Sanofi-Aventis, and Schering-Plough Research Institute.

Applicants must meet all of the following criteria: (1) be starting their 3rd or 4th year of Ph. D. studies in Fall 2010, (2) be US citizens or green card holders, and (3) be members of the ACS Division of Organic Chemistry. Applications from women and minorities are especially encouraged.

Applications will consist of:

1. An application form (MS Word) completed by the applicant with details about the applicant's background and training.
2. A short essay on a research area of the candidate's choice and prepared by the candidate. Directions for preparing the essays can be found here.
3. Three letters of recommendation (the Ph. D. advisor's and two others). Letters of reference should comment on the academic record, productivity, and career potential of the applicant.

Submittal process: The student candidate should complete this application form and write the short essay. The candidate's Ph.D. thesis advisor should then submit 1) this application form, 2) the short essay, and 3) their letter of recommendation each as a separate pdf file (pdf file names should include the applicant’s last name as part of the file name) using the Online Submission Form. Please note that the submitter needs to be a Member of the Division of Organic Chemistry to access the Online Submission Form.

The other two letters of recommendation should be sent directly by the other recommenders to sebrown@emory.edu. Please use the title "DOC graduate fellowship –nominee’s name" for all e-mail correspondence related to the nomination.

Evidence of research accomplishment will be an important factor in the selection of the fellowship holders.

All application materials must be received by May 28, 2010. Announcement of the awards will be made in August 2010.

For questions, contact Professor Melanie Sanford (mssanfor@umich.edu; Tel: 734-615-0451).

The fellowship stipend for 2010-2011 is $26,000, which includes $600 for travel to the 2011 National Organic Symposium to present a poster on their work. Each of the fellowships is sponsored by a prominent company, organization or individual endowment. Awardees are selected by an independent committee, and evidence of research accomplishments is an important factor in the selection process.

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The Division of Organic Chemistry congratulates the 2009-10 award winners, gratefully acknowledges the sponsors, and thanks Organic Letters for the opportunity to publish their biographical sketches.

The Division of Organic Chemistry annually awards fellowships to outstanding third and fourth year graduate students in organic chemistry. The program has awarded over 360 fellowships since 1981 (See the comprehensive list of the award winners).

We welcome contacts from companies, individuals and organizations interested in sponsoring annual fellowships or wishing to endow a fellowship. There are always many more deserving applicants than there are fellowships! Please contact Professor Melanie Sanford (mssanfor@umich.edu); Tel: (734) 615-0451) if you would like to sponsor a fellowship.

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Emmanuil Troyansky Fellowship

In 2003, the ACS Division of Organic Chemistry established an endowed fellowship this year in the name of Emmanuil Troyansky. The Troyansky Fellowship is identical to all of the other fellowships in terms of stipend and other features. The only difference is that the funds come from an endowment made by the family rather than from an annual donation of a company.

239th ACS National Meeting: Pictures from San Fransisco

 

Last month, I had an opportunity to attend the 239^th National Meeting of the American Chemical Society (ACS). It was held in very beautiful city, San Francisco, California from 21^st to 25^th of March, 2010. It was my second time in the ACS National Meeting. I found that the meeting was quite different than the meeting that I had attended last year in Salt Lake City. Organizer said that this meeting was the biggest ACS meeting according to the number of attendees. This year about 18,000 chemists, scientists and exhibitors were present for about a week in San Francisco. The Moscone Center, where the meeting was held, and the surrounding area up to 3-4 blocks we could see the crowed of people hanging the badges on their neck. Unlike last time, I could not get the opportunity to meet any other Nepalese chemists (except from Reno) even though there were some names listed in the catalog. 

I want to share some photos from the national meeting.

 

View of San Fransisco (National meeting venue)

Setting up friend's poster

Participants of the meeting

Fellow Nepalese Chemists

Thank you for checking my post.
Lekh N Adhikari
Graduate Student, University of Reno, Nevada

Employer-Sponsored and Self-Petitions for Green Cards for Foreign born Scientists

What do foreign-born scientists, technology entrepreneurs, and investors need to know to legally work in the US? How can one gain path to citizenship as a scientist? Foreign-born scientists and scholars have and continue to contribute to the technical wealth and economic growth in the US. According to 2005 ChemCensus, about twenty percent of chemical professionals are foreign-born. 

 

There is a webinar about this issue. A short presentation followed by Q&A with speaker Martin Lawler of Lawler & Lawler, with over thirty years of experience working on immigration visas for scientists, businesses, and investors.

Webinar Details
Date: Thursday, April 15, 2010
Time: 2:00-3:00 pm ET
Fee: Free
Don't miss out -

Register now!

(https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/382353915)
Questions to speaker can be submitted during registration.

What You Will Learn
- Key evidence you can gather for winning green card cases
- Extraordinary ability compared to national interest waiver applications for scientists
- US Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) trends in assessing cases and quick processing
- Tips for submitting visa applications at US embassies or consulates

- And much more...

Who Should AttendEmployers, Executives, Entrepreneurs, Chemists, Engineers, Non-Native Scientists, and ACS Members.

If you can't attend the live event access the recordings of the past webinars.  

please visit http://boilthisdown.org/?page_id=1066

This episode of ACS Webinar is sponsored by the ACS Committee on International Activities (IAC) and the ACS Office of International Activities (OIA). Learn more about our global outreach in chemistry at
http://www.acs.org/international or contact OIA via email at intlacts@acs.org

Congratulation to recent Nepelese PhD graduates

We would like to congratulate recent graduates in chemistry and related fields for completing their doctorate study successfully. New Nepalese PhD chemists are as follows.

1. Dr. Lekh Nath Sharma: Dr. Sharma completed his PhD from Baylor University, TX, USA. He is currently a post-doc researcher at University of Georgia.
2. Dr. Rumi Chand: Dr. Chand did her doctorate study at Saga University, Japan.
3. Dr. Hom Nath Luitel: Dr. Luitel did his doctorate study at Saga University, Japan.
4. Dr. Santosh Gurung: Dr. Gurung finished his PhD from KangWon National University, South Korea.
5. Dr.Dambar Hamal: From Kansas State University, KS, USA
6. Dr.Tej B. Shrestha: From Kansas State University, KS, USA
   

All the best for your future career.

Chemistry Jokes: Humor Chemistry-I

1. What did one atom tell another? 

   - I think I lost an electron 

   - Are you sure? 

   - Yes, I'm positive. 

2. Heisenberg is out for a drive when he's stopped by a traffic cop. 

The cop says: " Do you know how fast you were going? 

Heisenberg replies: "No, but I know where I am".

 

3. A neutron walks into a bar; he asks the bartender: 

" How much for a beer?" 

The bartender looks at him and says: "For you, it's no charge". 

4. What do dipoles say in passing?
       - Have you got a moment?" 

 

5. What weapon can you make from the elements potassium, nickel and iron?
    - A KNiFe.

 

6. How do chemists do it?
         Chemists do it reactively
         Chemists do it on the bench
         Electrochemists have more potential
         Polymer chemists do it in chains

Selected from here 

Molecule of the Week: Rhodamine B

Rhodamine B  
CAS Number:509-34-2


Formula: C₂₈H₃₀N₂O₃

Molecular Weight:	442.55

IUPAC: 3',6'-Bbis(diethylamino)spiro[isobenzofuran-1(3h),9'-[9h]xanthene]-3-one

I use this dye to check electroosmotic flow (EOF) in microfluidic channels. EOF has to be  suppressed in the channels for many microfluidic experiments. Because of the charge developed on the surface of microfluidics channels buffer solution also moves when a voltage is applied. It moves from positive to negative electrode in glass microfluidic channel. RdB helps to monitor the EOF in the channel. Dye is injected into the positive electrode reservoir. Because it is a neutral dye any dye detected in the negative electrode side is due to EOF.

Rhodamine B, a neutral dye, is often used as a tracer to determine the rate and direction of flow and transport. This is fluorescent dye. It can thus be detected easily and inexpensively with instruments called fluorometers. Rhodamine dyes are used extensively in biotechnology applications such as fluorescence microscopy, flow cytometry, fluorescence correlation spectroscopy and ELISA.

Rhodamine B is used in biology as a staining fluorescent dye, sometimes in combination with auramine O, as the auramine-rhodamine stain to demonstrate acid-fast organisms, notably Mycobacterium.

Rhodamine B is tunable around 610 nm when used as a laser dye . Its luminescence quantum yield is 0.65 in basic ethanol, 0.49 in ethanol , and 0.68 in 94% ethanol. 

The solubility in water is ~50 g/l. However, the solubility in acetic acid solution (30 vol.%)  is ~400 g/l. Chlorinated tap water decomposes rhodamine B. Rhodamine B solutions adsorb to plastics and should be kept in glass. 

Other uses: Rhodamine B is being tested for use as a biomarker in oral rabies vaccines for wildlife, such as raccoons, to identify animals that have eaten a vaccine bait. The rhodamine is incorporated into the animal's whiskers and teeth.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhodamine_B