News

Raymond Andersen awarded prestigious CIC Medal

Dr. Raymond Anderson, a faculty member of both the Chemistry and Earth and Ocean Sciences Departments at UBC, has received the 2012 CIC Medal. The CIC Medal is the most prestigious award granted by the Chemical Institute of Canada, and is given annually to a person who has made an outstanding contribution to the science of chemistry in Canada.

Dr. Andersen is known for his research into the identity and structure of novel chemical compounds derived from marine organisms, the molecular...

50 Years of Xenon Chemistry

March 23, 2012 marks the 50^th Anniversary of Neil Bartlett’s groundbreaking discovery of the first noble gas compound. Prior to Bartlett's discovery, all chemistry textbooks were written with the fixed idea that the Group VIII elements He, Ne, Ar, Kr, Xe, and Rn, the Rare Gases, were chemically inert. In fact, they were often referred to as the Inert Gases. Working alone one night in the Chemistry Department, Bartlett demonstrated the first reaction of a noble gas by...

Mark MacLachlan wins Killam Research Prize

Chemistry Professor Mark MacLachlan was awarded the 2011 Killam Research Prize in the Science/Applied Science category. This award recognizes Dr. MacLachlan’s outstanding research and scholarly contributions.

The UBC Killam Research Prizes, established in 1986, are awarded annually by the Office of the Vice President Research & International to the top campus researchers. Full-time faculty members are nominated by their peers and adjudicated by the Faculty Awards Committee.

UBC Chemistry in the Top 20

UBC Chemistry is ranked 19^th in the world, according to the most recent QS World University Rankings report. The QS Rankings, published annually in October, evaluate universities around the globe based on six indicators including academic peer review, student to faculty ratio, and citations per faculty member, among others.

PhD Student wins Inorganic Chemistry Research Award

Congratulations to Kevin Shopsowitz, a PhD student in the MacLachlan group, who received the Award for Graduate Research in Inorganic Chemistry by the Inorganic Division of the Chemical Institute of Canada.

Kevin will present his award lecture at the upcoming CSC Conference (Canadian Society of Chemistry) in Calgary from May 26-30, 2012.

For more information, visit:...

Nobel Prize winner Dr. Mario Molina receives honorary degree from UBC

Dr. Mario José Molina, a prominent chemist and Nobel Prize winner, received an honorary UBC degree at the fall 2011 congregation ceremony.

Dr. Fryzuk receives the 2011 Killam Award for Excellence in Mentoring

Dr. Michael Fryzuk, Head of the Chemistry Department, recently recieved the 2011 Killam Award for Excellence in Mentoring. Awards were presented by Vice Provost David Farrar during the November congregation ceremonies.

Outstanding Undergraduates Recognized at Appreciation Event

On Tuesday, January 24th, outstanding first-year undergraduate students gathered together in the Chemistry Department to celebrate their achievements and learn about opportunities in chemistry.

The event, "Where do I go from here? Pursuing Chemistry in Second Year and Beyond" gave students the chance to discuss chemistry in a relaxed atmosphere with instructors, faculty members and graduate students.

2011 Faraday Show a Success!

For the very first time, the Chemistry Department teamed up with Physics & Astronomy to present the 2011 Faraday Show. On December 11^th, hundreds of children turned up to learn about Actions and Reactions and participate in some fun hands-on science demos.

UBC Sustainability: Shut the Sash Competition

Laboratories consume 10 times as much energy as other types of buildings on campus—from offices and classrooms to dorms. The biggest culprit? Fume hoods. Large amounts of energy are used to warm, cool and move air through fume hoods where researchers run experiments. A single fume hood can use over three times the energy of an entire household.

The Competition

CGSS Gingerbread House Contest

Happy Holidays from the Chemistry Department! There were some great entries in the 2011 CGSS Gingerbread House Contest. Congratulations to the Office Staff and the MacLachlan Group who placed 1^st and 2^nd respectively.

MacLachlan Group

Gates Group

Dr. Schafer named Canada Research Chair in Catalyst Development

Congratulations to Professor Laurel Schafer who was recently named Canada Research Chair in Catalyst Development [Tier 2].

Dr. Schafer’s research is in developing catalysts that will minimize waste generation while maximizing energy efficiency, for a variety of applications from compostable plastics to the preparation of drugs. Most importantly, her research takes advantage of the reactivity of abundant and inexpensive metals of low toxicity to make targeted chemicals with reduced...

Congratulations on Graduating!

Congratulations to the following undergraduate students from the Chemistry Department, who recently attended the November Convocation Ceremony:

Guina Chen
Yeon Jung Kim
Garson Lo
Louis Chun Yu
Elaine Yuen Ling Wong
Jean Frame
Moe Hirayama
David Joncas

Dr. Sherman makes inside cover of Chemistry – A European Journal

Dr. John C. Sherman’s research was recently featured on the inside cover of Chemistry – A European Journal. The article, “Conformationally Constrained Sequence Designs to Bias Monomer–Dimer Equilibriums in TASP Systems” was co-authored by Dr. Jon O. Freeman.

‘Take Our Kids to Work Day’ in Chemistry!

The Chemistry Department welcomed some young visitors today for 'Take Our Kids to Work' Day. This nationally recognized program provides secondary school students with the opportunity to spend a day in the workplace job shadowing their parents. Students are able to explore future career options and develop an understanding and appreciation for what their parents do at work.

Blades new Editor-in-Chief of Applied Spectroscopy

Chemistry Professor Michael Blades was recently selected as Editor-in-Chief of Applied Spectroscopy. His term will begin in the summer of 2012.

The Society for Applied Spectroscopy published the following article on Dr. Blades' appointment:

Department celebrates chemistry with Open House

Despite the chilly weather, kids of all ages turned out to the Department of Chemistry inaugural open house, “Chemistry: Beyond the Magic.” Families arrived from across Greater Vancouver to participate in the fun and celebrate chemistry.

Held on Saturday October 22, the event featured a number of hands-on activities, giveaways and chemistry shows, and was timed to coincide with the United Nations sanctioned International Year of Chemistry and Canada’s National Chemistry...

MacLachlan group discovers new type of chiral carbon

Kevin Shopsowitz, a PhD student working in Professor MacLachlan’s group, has discovered a new type of highly porous and chiral carbon, with a number of potential important applications.

The Muonic Helium Atom (The New Scientist, 2011)

Unique studies of isotopic mass effects in reaction rates: from Muonium (Mu=μ+e-), with a mass of 0.113 amu to muonic He (4Heμ), with a mass of 4.11 amu, a remarkable ratio of 36.4. The Mu atom has the same size and characteristics as the H atom, but with a positive muon as its "nucleus", instead of a proton. The muonic He atom is formed by negative muon (μ-) capture, the net effect of which is to replace one electron in He with a μ-.

UBC's Sustainability Research Fellowship

Dr. Laurel Schafer was awarded UBC's Sustainability Research Fellowship in recognition of catalyst development which focuses on atom-economic transformations that avoid the formation of wasteful byproducts

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