From the Dean

March madness is in the air at Purdue as we experience the first and very refreshing glimpses of spring.  The increasingly frequent bursts of sunshine and warmth are welcome distractions from our work and studies, and so it is no surprise that the main topic of discussion for many is the proximity of, and potential destinations for, spring break! 

The impending spring has not distracted the College’s strategic planning committee members from making great progress on putting together the 2008–2013 plan. Currently, the Pillar groups—on discovery, learning, engagement, and diversity—are meeting to review and revise the goals and strategies presented to them by the steering committee. I’d like to share highlights of the Pillar group meetings in the next few e-news, beginning this issue with the Discovery Pillar. I welcome your feedback.

The Discovery Pillar group, an impressive team of scientists, started the session with vigorous and insightful discussions about the definition and goals of discovery—a very large topic! It was clear the group shared common passions for finding solutions, striving to be the best, and making a difference.  Broad consensus was reached that contemporary science must first be grounded in the core disciplines to generate new knowledge and understanding. It was fantastic to be able to hear the group’s other goal: to identify and collaboratively solve multidisciplinary problems of global significance.  The College has been leading the way in building multidisciplinary research teams through strategic hiring as part of the COALESCE program. (In fact, some of the Discovery Pillar group members were COALESCE hires!) 

As part of President Córdova’s February 14 visit, the College presented three outstanding areas of multidisciplinary research—infectious disease drug discovery and delivery, information and computational science (resources include the Rosen Center, Cyber Center, and the Computational Research Institute) and student success and curriculum. 

The Pillar groups will be hosting town hall meetings on April 4 and 9 for all faculty, students, and staff in the College to provide feedback and opinions on the strategic planning effort.  We have also set up a webpage for online comments and suggestions.

Tickets are now on sale for the Centennial celebrations grand finale March 29 Elliott Hall appearance of Jane Goodall, PhD, DBE.  Don’t miss your chance to be a Centennial seat holder at the event and support the Science Centennial Scholarship Fund. Please visit the Centennial website for more information on other upcoming events.

Thanks to those of you who were able to attend the California Meet the Dean events earlier this year.  I am really enjoying helping Science alumni make connections with the College.  We have more events planned in April for Dallas and Indianapolis, and we’re looking to set one up in Boston.  Alumni should contact Bente Fein, director of advancement, at bfein@purdue.edu, if interested in attending an event or hosting another. 

Jeff Vitter

SPOTLIGHT ON NEW FACULTY

Yong P. Chen

Miller Family Assistant Professor of Nanoscience and Physics Yong P. Chen joins the Department of Physics with a courtesy appointment with Electrical and Computer Engineering as assistant professor. Chen's research explores quantum physics and nanotechnology.

 

Yuan Qi

Assistant Professor Yuan Qi joins the Department of Computer Science with a dual appointment in the Department of Statistics. Qi's main research interests include Bayesian machine learning and computational biology.

SCIENCE PEOPLE

SCIENCE NEWS

New machine excites nuclei and researchers

The Department of Chemistry is home to a piece of equipment weighing 8,000 pounds and valued at $1.2 million that allows researchers to determine the structure of the tiny building blocks of life. Full story.

 

 

Science programs ranked among the best

Computer science was ranked ninth by Ren and Taylor in the Communications of the ACM, and computational science and information technology were ranked 5 and 2, respectively, by the Chronicle of Higher Education's 2007 Top Research Universities Faculty Scholarly Productivity index.

Computer Science at Indiana Women in Computing conference

The Department of Computer Science was represented at the 2008 INWIC conference on January 25 and 26. Full story.

 

Dresselhaus encourages women in science

Speaking to a group of students and faculty as part of the Centennial Distinguished Lecture Series, Mildred Dresselhaus, Institute Professor and professor of physics and electrical engineering at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, encourged women to pursue careers in the sciences. Full story.

Mathletes compete for spot at state

A group of 71 middle school "mathletes" descended upon the Purdue University campus for the regional MATHCOUNTS competition on February 16. Full story.

 

Students go for the gold

More than 150 junior high and high school students from Indiana tested their scientific knowledge at the February 23 Science Olympiad regional competition sponsored by the College of Science. Competition results.

Centennial finale features Goodall's "Reason for Hope"

As a high point of the College of Science Centennial celebrations, internationally-renowned primatologist and humanitarian Jane Goodall, PhD, DBE will speak at 1:00 p.m. March 29 in Purdue University's Elliott Hall of Music. Full story.

 

Ten nominated for Lilly Purdue Alumni Scholarship

One lucky incoming freshman in the discipline of chemistry, biology, or computer science will be the recipient of the Lilly Purdue Alumni Scholarship (LPAS). Full story.

SCIENCE ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT

Chemistry alumna wins ACS Nobel Laureate Signature Award

Rebecca Nelson (BS '99, Chemistry) received the ACS Nobel Laureate Signature Award for Graduate Education in Chemistry. Full Story.

SPOTLIGHT ON NEW STAFF

Cheryl Spencer, administrative assistant

Cheryl Spencer was hired as the administrative assistant to the College of Science director of advancement. Cheryl was previously at the Graduate School in the dean's office.

PURDUE NEWS

Strategic plan working groups to present white papers at forum

Córdova to present global view to Economic Club in Indianapolis

$2.5 million gift to aid Purdue cancer research

Researchers at Purdue advance life sciences

New software center to open in Purdue Research Park

Students to present entrepreneurial inventions at Purdue competition

Video showcases interdisciplinary research success at Discovery Park

Technology uses live cells to detect food-borne pathogens, toxin

SCIENCE EVENTS CALENDAR

Mar. 1, 2:00 p.m.: Men's basketball vs. Northwestern, Mackey Arena. More information.

Mar. 3, 9:30–10:30 a.m.: Environmental Proteomics Seminar, STEW 318. "Analysis of Protein Expression as a Multivariable System," Professor Brian P. Bradley, University of Maryland. More information.

Mar. 3, 11:30 a.m.: Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences Seminar, CIVL 3201. "The Role of Organics in Aerosol-Cloud-Interactions," Barbara Ervens, NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory. More information.

Mar. 3, 1:30–3:30 p.m.: University Strategic Plan Public Forum, STEW 206. University strategic plan working groups will present their completed white papers. More information.

Mar. 3, 6:00–7:30 p.m.: Bioethics Seminar Series, MRGN 121. "Nanotechnologies and Medical Ethics," Dr. Nigel M. de S. Cameron, president of the Institute on Biotechnology and the Human Future; director of the Center on Nanotechnology and Society; research professor of Bioethics; and associate dean at the Chicago-Kent College of Law in the Illinois Institute of Technology. For more information and to register: http://www.purdue.edu/bioethics.

Mar. 4, 4:30–5:30 p.m.: Department of Statistics, Bioinformatics Seminar, ME 161. Professor T. M. Murali, Virginia Tech. More information.

Mar. 5, 4:30 p.m.: CERIAS Information Security Seminar, STEW G52. "Hacking the Mobil Workplace," Daniel Hoffman, Fiberlink Communications, will be the guest speaker. For more information, contact Joel Rasmus, corporate relations manager: jrasmus@purdue.edu, 765-494-7806.

Mar. 5, 4:00–5:30 p.m.: Department of Biological Sciences, MJIS 1001. "How Cathrin Coated Vesicles Form," Professor Tom Kirchhausen, Harvard Medical School. More information.

Mar. 6, 10:30–11:30 a.m.: Department of Computer Science Colloquia, LWSN 3102 A/B. Dr. Luis Ortiz, University of Puerto Rico. More information.

Mar. 6, 3:30 p.m.: Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences Seminar, CIVL 1252. "Global Climate Change and Terrestrial Ecosystems in China," Professor Guangsheng Zhou, Chinese Academy of Sciences. More information.

Mar. 6, 4:30–5:20 p.m.: Department of Chemistry, Special Seminar, WTHR 104. "Discovery and Development of Bone Active Bisphosphonates," Dr. Ray Dalonzo, Proctor and Gamble. More information.

Mar. 6, 4:30–5:30 p.m.: Department of Statistics, Research Colloquia, MATH 175. Professor Joel Horowitz, Charles E. and Emma H. Morrison Professor of Market Economics, Northwestern University. More information.

Mar. 7, 7:00 p.m.: "Beakman Live!," Loeb Playhouse. More information.

Mar. 12, 1:30–2:30 p.m.: Department of Biological Sciences, TBA. Professor Jonathan Grimes, University of Oxford. More information.

Mar. 13–15: FIRST Boilermaker Regional Competition, AR. For more information, contact the Purdue FIRST Programs Office: regional@first.purdue.org, 765-496-8324. More information.

Mar. 17, 2:00–3:00 p.m.: Department of Chemistry, Special Seminar, WTHR 104. "New Trends in Solid-State NMR Spectroscopy for Investigations of Study Membrane Proteins and Amyloid Fibrils," Dr. Bernd Reif, Leibniz-Institut für Molekulare Pharmakologie. More information.

Mar. 18, 4:30–5:30 p.m.: Department of Statistics, Bioinformatics Seminar, ME 161. "Statistical Modeling of Graph Theoretic Data in Systems Biology," Professor Denise Scholtens, Northwestern University. More information.

Mar. 19, 1:30–2:30 p.m.: Department of Biological Sciences, TBA. Professor Tom Kirchhausen, Harvard Medical School. More information.

Mar. 19–20: 9th Annual CERIAS Symposium. For more information, contact Joel Rasmus, corporate relations manager: jrasmus@purdue.edu, 765-494-7806.

Mar. 19, 4:00–5:30 p.m.: Department of Biological Sciences, MJIS 1001. "Inhibitors of HIV-1 Integrase: From the Bench to the Bedside, and Back Again," Professor Daria Hazuda, vice president of virus and cell biology at Merck Research Laboratories, global director for antivirals. More information.

Mar. 20, 3:30 p.m.: Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences Seminar, CIVL 1252. "Moist Convection and Eddy Mixing: How Saturation Potential Vorticity Provides New Insights into Climate Dynamics," Professor Robert Korty, Texas A&M. More information.

Mar. 20, 4:30–5:30 p.m.: Department of Chemistry, Colloquium, WTHR 104. "Using Protein Structures to Understand Enzyme Mechanisms and Evolution," Dr. Janet Thornton, EMBL–European Bioinformatics Institute. More information.

Mar. 23, 9:00 a.m.–3:30 p.m.: Mathcounts State Final, WTHR & BRWN. For more information contact Mindy Hart: mhart@cs.purdue.edu, 765-494-7802.

Mar. 24, 4:00–5:00 p.m.: Department of Biological Sciences, PHEN 241. "Looking for the Good News in Human Genome," Professor Jasper Rine, University of California Berkeley. More information.

Mar. 25, 4:00–5:00 p.m.: Department of Biological Sciences, PHEN 241. "The Epigenetic Inheritance of Transcriptional States," Professor Jasper Rine, University of California Berkeley. More information.

Mar. 25, 4:30–5:30 p.m.: Department of Statistics, Bioinformatics Seminar, ME 161. Professor Predrag Radivojac, Indiana University. More information.

Mar. 26, 10:30–11:30 a.m.: Department of Statistics, Statistics 40th Anniversary Lecture and Mathematical Statistics Seminar, LWSN B155. "Horseshoes and Politics," Persi Diaconis, Mary V. Sunseri Professor of Statistics and Mathematics, Stanford University. More information.

Mar. 26, 4:30–5:30 p.m.: Department of Statistics, Statistics 40th Anniversary Lecture and Probability Seminar, MATH 175. "What Do We Know About the Metropolis Algorithm," Persi Diaconis, Mary V. Sunseri Professor of Statistics and Mathematics, Stanford University. More information.

Mar. 27, 4:30–5:30 p.m.: Centennial Distinguished Lecture Series, MATH 175. "On Coincidences," Persi Diaconis, Mary V. Sunseri Professor of Statistics and Mathematics, Stanford University. More information.

Mar. 29, 1:00 p.m.: “Reason for Hope” with Jane Goodall, PhD, DBE, Elliott Hall of Music. More information.

Mar. 31, 3:00–8:00 p.m.: Undergraduate Research and Poster Symposium, PMU Ballrooms. Undergraduate researchers from across campus will present their posters in a competition for monetary prizes. For more information, contact Robin French: rdfrench@purdue.edu, 765-494-1735.

Apr. 3, 4:30–5:30 p.m.: Department of Statistics, Memorial Lecture, MATH 175. Professor Olga Troyanskaya, Princeton University. More information.

Apr. 3, 7:00 p.m.: Meet the Dean, Dallas, TX. For more information, contact John Fisher, director of alumni relations and special events: jrfisher@purdue.edu, 765-494-0586.

Apr. 4, 1:30–3:30 p.m.: Town hall meeting, hosted by Engagement and Learning Pillar groups, LWSN Commons. For more information, contact Lisa Robertson, 765-494-4344.

Apr. 7, 5:00 p.m.: Centennial Distinguished Lecture Series, Fowler Hall. Margaret Wright, chair and Silver Professor of Computer Science, Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences, New York University. More information.

Apr. 9, 2:30–4:30 p.m.: Town hall meeting, hosted by Diversity and Discovery Pillar groups, LWSN Commons. For more information, contact Lisa Robertson, 765-494-4344.

Apr. 11, 8:00–11:00 a.m.: Distinguished Science Alumni Awards, Buchanan Suite, Ross-Ade Stadium. For more information, contact John Fisher, director of alumni relations and special events: jrfisher@purdue.edu, 765-494-0586.

Apr. 22, 8:00 a.m.: Regenstrief Center Fourth Annual Spring Conference, MRGN. "Research Solutions in Healthcare: Challenges and Lessons Learned." More information.

Apr. 24–25: Energy Center's 2008 Hydrogen Symposium, Fowler Hall. More information.

Share your memories! If you have a favorite story or memory from your College of Science experience, we'd like to share it with others.

Are you interested in leaving a lasting legacy for future students or faculty at Purdue? If so, please visit our planned giving home page.

College of Science Seminar Calendar

Alumni and Friends

Purdue Events