F.Y.I.

Did You Participate in the October 21 Poster Session?

I want to thank you for your participation in the Sigma Xi/HHMI poster session last Friday. It was a lot of fun. There were about 50 posters and tons of people. We learned a lot!!!!

We want to construct a virtual gallery with all the posters. I believe that most every one can e-mail their poster, so the easiest thing is for the people who presented posters to e-mail a copy to dkohen@carleton.edu. If you cannot do that, e-mail me a note and we can figure out how to proceed. We will try to collect all the posters by the end of this week and have the virtual gallery up before the end of the term.

Dani Kohen

Seminar Announcement!

Friday, October 28, 2005
3:30 p.m.
Olin 04

Shana Kelley
Boston College

Ultrasensitive Biomolecular Detection at DNA-Modified Nanostructures

Nanostructured materials provide attractive platforms for biomolecular sensing that may provide increased sensitivity and amenability to miniaturization. Electroactive nanomaterials are of particular interest given the current interest in developing clinical diagnostics (i.e., protein and DNA detection systems) with electrical readout. Our laboratory recently developed methods to functionalize different nanoscale scaffolds with synthetic DNA molecules. An electrocatalytic reporter system that permits the detection of DNA sequences and DNA-binding proteins is remarkably effective when used in conjunction with nanostructured electrodes. This process facilitates the detection of zeptomole levels of DNA and DNA-binding proteins with high specificity. The detection level achieved represents an unprecedented degree of sensitivity for an electrochemical assay and results from the unique dimensions and electrical properties of the nanostructures used for analysis. This presentation will summarize a number of discoveries made about the novel chemical and electrical properties of nanoscale objects relative to bulk materials, and will highlight the promise of nanomaterials for bioanalytical applications.

Friday’s lunch with the seminar speaker will be at noon in East Dining Hall. If you’re interested in attending, please sign up on the sheet on the Mudd computer room window.

Journal Club Meets This Week

Journal Club meets this Thursday at noon in Mudd 171 to discuss a paper relating to this week's seminar. For information about what to read beforehand, see the seminar web page: http://apps.carleton.edu/curricular/chem/seminars/.

Take me!

Want to learn some interesting aspects of how computers and electronics are applied in chemistry? Then sign up to take “Introduction to Computers and Electronics in Chemical Instrumentation,” CHEM 338, this winter. This is a great course for anyone interested in chemical instrumentation. One section of this two-credit lab course is being offered Thursday afternoon Winter Term. Note that this course can be used to fulfill your last two-credit 300-level laboratory requirement for the chemistry major and that the only prerequisite is CHEM 230. We’ll be learning about a small subset of the vast array of computer and electronics capabilities that can be applied to the chemical sciences. The topics to be covered include: LabVIEW programming, serial data communications, analog electronics, and basic data acquisition principles. The laboratory will conclude with a short laboratory project to apply what you’ve learned to an instrumentation problem of your choosing. Hope to see you on the class roster!

Steve Drew

Check This Out...

Job Opportunity – Teaching with The Princeton Review

The Princeton Review of Minneapolis is currently seeking instructors for their MCAT prep courses. They are looking for dynamic, energetic and outgoing people who have also scored high on the MCAT. They offer excellent compensation ($20/hr to start), flexible hours, full training and many opportunities for advancement. They have courses starting at St. Olaf in November and at Carleton in January. If you’re interested but have not taken the MCAT, they will provide a free qualifying exam. Apply online at www.princetonreview.com, by following the links to employment at the bottom of the page. Questions can be directed to Theresa LaFavor, Director of Operations, at TheresaL@review.com. They will be holding interviews in the coming weeks, so apply today!