CINTACS Newsletter of the Cincinnati Section of the American Chemical Society Vol. 37, No. 4 - December, 1999

In this issue

December Meeting Details	Organic Discussion Group Details	From the Chair....
Reservations	Teaching Award Nominations Sought	Regional Award Nominees Sought
Abstract & Biography	2000 Regional Meeting Update	Career Services
Parking Pass	Education Committee Meeting Notes	Job Opening
Short Course Survey	Laughlin Endows Chair at Alma Matre	News from National
ACS/AIChE Liability Insurance	Advertisers Wanted!	WCC Travel Grants

Editor.........................Bruce S. Ault
Advertising......Sameer Choudhary

CINTACS is published nine times a year (September through May) by the Cincinnati Section of the American Chemical Society. All changes of address should be sent to Emel Yakali at Raymond Walters College,  email mc.acs@uc.edu.

SUBMISSION DEADLINES

The submission deadline for the January CINTACS is set for Monday, December 6, 1999. Electronic submission is strongly preferred. (except for original photos). All materials should be sent to:

Dr. Bruce Ault
Department of Chemistry
University of Cincinnati
Cincinnati, OH 45221
E-mail: bruce.ault@uc.edu

May we please have your e-mail address? For those of you who have provided e-mail addresses, we're sending out monthly meeting notices via e-mail as a secondary distribution mechanism. Please send your e-mail address to:

We will use these addresses for meeting notices and other official section business only. Thank you.

We are looking forward to a return of our section meeting to Xavier University and appreciate its sponsorship this month. This dinner meeting will offer a lecture from Dr. David L. Schutt, Assistant Director of the ACS Office of Legislative and Government Affairs. We expect this lecture will increase our member's awareness of this function within the Society. Dr. Schutt will offer an interesting multimedia presentation including a live hookup to the Internet. Our thanks are extended to Dan McLoughlin for handling all of these logistics and setting up such an attractive dinner meeting.

This is the second meeting that will feature a discussion group presentation. Dr. Mike Natchus will present an Organic Discussion Group lecture on Matrix Metalloprotease Inhibitor research that offers insight into an exciting scientific area within the P&G Pharmaceuticals division. A number of excellent Discussion Group lectures are now also planned for the remainder of our meetings. Many of these presentations have lagged in attendance in recent years. I hope you will attend discussions in your discipline so that we have enough support to continue to organize these more technical sessions. I would also like to highlight for you this year’s discussion group leaders, whose contact information is in last months CINTACS and on the web. Please contact the following chemists with any ideas for future sessions: John Shelley, Colloid Chemistry; Bill Seibel, Organic; Tom Ridgway, Analytical; Carol Caperelli, Biochemistry; Edlyn Simmons, Chemical Information; Bill Laidig, Computational; Linda Ford, Education.

The section is very appreciative of Ed & Stephanie Fenlon for their leadership on National Chemistry Week this year and in the past. While this activity is still fresh in our mind, I would like to inform you that we have volunteers to chair next year’s NCW activities. Please contact co-chairs Soumya Patnaik, patnaiss@picard.ml.wpafb.af.mil, or Lisa Clapp lisa@vnetweb.com to offer suggestions or to volunteer to help on next year’s committee.

Congratulations to Susan Ross, whose chemistry activities were recently written up in a 2 page article in Chemistry magazine (Summer 1999, 30-31). A reporter, chartered by ACS national, discussed her technical excellence in the UC graduate program and her many contributions to section activities. As an organizer of the Younger Chemist’s Committee, a leader in the Women’s Chemists committee, an active second vice chair in 98/99, and a volunteer for section activities in education, Susan has been a role model for many of us. Now she has even added increased National exposure to the section through this recognition.

It is great to report that the September meeting was very well attended with nearly 100 participants. I really enjoyed getting to know many new attendees as well as other members. I look forward to meeting many more of you at future meetings. Please encourage your colleagues to join us at future meetings and help keep up this participation momentum. Remember also to help the membership committee in welcoming new or infrequent attendees at our meetings. As always, please do not hesitate to contact me with your suggestions or desires for additional involvement. See you at Xavier University.

F. Hal Ebetino
Procter & Gamble Pharmaceuticals
ebetino.fh@pg.com

Program
 

5:30-6:30 PM	Organic Discussion Group: Dr. Michael Natchus,  Heterocycle-Based MMP Inhibitors Room 9 Williams College of Business Administration
5:30-6:30	Board Meeting - Board Room, 2nd floor, University Center
6:00	SOCIAL HOUR - Terrace Room, 2nd floor, University Center Open Beer and Wine Bar
7:00	DINNER -Cost $15.00 (New members, unemployed members, students, K-12 teachers and emeritus members half price)
8:00	Dr. David Schutt, Assistant Director, ACS Office of Legislative and Government Affairs  Government Relations Within the American Chemical Society

BUFFET DINNER MENU INCLUDES:
Tossed Salad, Pasta Bar, Cheese Lasagna Spaghetti with Meat Sauce, Fettuccine with Alfredo Sauce, Italian Green Beans, Garlic Bread, Rum Cake, Soda, Coffee, Tea

Dinner Reservations:
Make your reservations by e-mail cintacs.im@pg.com   Include your name (complete with correct spelling), phone number and affiliation. Please specify if this is your first Cincinnati ACS meeting when making your reservation. All reservations must be received by noon, Monday, December 6. If you have any difficulties, please call Vicki Libbin at (513)622-2495. As a reminder, if you decide you must miss a meeting after you have made reservations, please call to cancel. If you do not cancel, the Section will have to charge you because it will have been charged by the hotel. Payment will be received at the door. Guests are always welcome; emeritus, unemployed, new, and student members are half price.

Directions:
From I-71. Exit at Dana Road Exit, take Dana Road west to Xavier University. The entrance to the parking area is to your right just before you come to Victory Parkway. YOU MUST USE THE PARKING PASS!

From I-75. Exit at Mitchell Road, take Mitchell Road east, name will change to Dana Avenue approximately 1/4 mile after crossing Reading Road. Continue past Victory Parkway. The entrance to the parking area in on you left about half a block after Victory Parkway. YOU MUST USE THE PARKING PASS!

While some have argued that science and politics do not, or least should not mix, the reality is that they are inextricably intertwined. Policymakers have long recognized the important contributions of science and technology to national security, improved health, and a robust economy. It is this recognition that has led to the federal government's generous support of R&D and its significant emphasis on science and mathematics education. In fact, the role of science in public policy decision-making will take on increasing importance in the next decade as we tackle even more challenging social issues, such as biotechnology and the environment. As a congressionally chartered organization, the American Chemical Society has embraced its responsibility to work with federal and state governments to ensure that public policy is based on sound science, and that public policy promotes the advancement of science and enhances the scientist's ability to contribute to national and human welfare. Dr. Schutt will provide anoverview of the public policy activities of the American Chemical Society, as well as describe opportunities for members of the local section to contribute to and participate in the public policy process.

Dr. David L. Schutt is an Assistant Director at the American Chemical Society. He oversees the Office of Legislative and Government Affairs, which has responsibility for the public policy activities of the Society at the federal, state, and local levels of government. The Office serves as a liaison between scientists and the government by ensuring that public policy is based in sound science and that the interest of scientists are adequately represented within government. Additionally, Dr. Schutt works with the Office of the Executive Director as a consultant in the Society's strategic planning process. Dr. Schutt is a physical chemist, having received his doctorate in chemistry from Princeton University and his bachelor's degree from Calvin College. He also has earned an MBA from Johns Hopkins University.

The overexpression of matrix metalloproteinase enzymes (MMPs) has been implicated in the disease process for a number of pathological conditions including arthritis, tumor metastases, multiple sclerosis, reprofusion injury and other conditions where tissue degredation plays a key role. The development of inhibitors for these enzymes have thus become the focus of many research groups throughout industry and academia. The approach which will be described here was developed by partnering a focused traditional medicinal chemistry program with the aid of modern rational design techniques. These methods will be highlighted in a discussion which describes a program where peptidomimetic inhibitors of type A were transformed into much more efficaceous heterocyclic inhibitors of type B. Subtopics within this presentation will include synthetic design and execution, SAR, pharmacokinetics and in-vivo efficacy.

Mike Natchus received his Ph.D. degree in 1992 in organic synthesis from VA Tech under the guidance of Prof. Tomes Hudlicky. While there, he completed the total synthesis of numerous natural products and helped develop new methods for asymmetric induction using biocatalytic techniques. He also spent 2 years doing custom synthesis with TDC Research. From there, he went to Stanford University to do post doctoral studies under the direction of Paul Wender. While there, he worked on the total synthesis of the anti-tumor agent Taxol. Afterward in 1994, he returned to VA Tech where he was a visiting professor for one semester. He then went on to Procter and Gamble Pharmaceuticals in 1994 where he has since been developing inhibitors for the matrix metalloproteinases to be used as medicinal agents for osteoarthritis.

The Education Discussion Group met on October 12. Sixteen teachers were treated to a series of activities including a take-home experiment by Diane Rose, an open-ended materials experiment by Paula Butler, cool web sites by Andrew Foltz, and an equilibrium simulation activity by Chris Ennis and Linda Ford. One of the most important elements of the meeting was the sharing of professional growth opportunities. Teachers should begin now to find the PD funds within their school communities to attend the ACS 16th Biennial Conference on Chemical Education in Ann Arbor, Michigan from July 30 through August 3, 2000. This conference is very affordable since it is held on the university campus. Since several teachers from the area will be attending, a carpool could be easily arranged. Contact Seyhan Ege, the General Chair, at snege@umich.edu for information. Applications for the Fulbright Memorial Fund trip to Japan are available by calling 1-888-JAPAN-FMF; applications are due by January 11, 2000. All full time teachers, grades K-12, are eligible.

The next meeting of the group will be held on January 19 at St. Henry District High School in northern Kentucky. Cathy Fike will host. It will be a make-and-take night. Several veteran teachers will show how to make inexpensive demonstration devices. What you make, you take home. It should be great fun! Directions to St. Henry: Go south on I75; exit I75 at Exit 184 and travel highway 263 West. The school is less than one mile from the exit on the right. Any comments or questions concerning the discussion group may be addressed to Linda Ford at lkford@fuse.net.

Plans are moving ahead for the 32^nd ACS Central Regional Meeting to be held next May 16-19 at the Northern Kentucky Convention Center in Covington. Featuring 48 planned symposia and several general lecture and poster sessions, the technical program should offer something for everyone. A first-class vendor exhibit, the regional ACS employment clearinghouse, five regional awards, three short courses, and several exciting social activities will round out the meeting. Below we give just a brief sampling of what you’ll see and hear next May.

Chemical education topics will be well represented in the technical program, with 12 half-day sessions. Topics include chemical education for the year 3000 (yes!), chemistry and the law, diversity: the catalyst for success, cooperative education, recent initiatives in chemical education, a high school teachers’ program, chemistry of colors, and achieving success in chemistry. Procter & Gamble representatives will present their acclaimed workshop, "Chemistry in Industry: A Problem Solving Course."

A program for undergraduates, entitled "From Classroom to Career," will feature a graduate school fair in which representatives from invited chemistry departments will participate, and a poster session for ACS student affiliates.

Finally, ACS Career Services will hold a two-day regional employment clearinghouse, conduct one-on-one resume review sessions by appointment, and present three hour-long miniworkshops: "Targeting the Market," "Resume Preparation," and "Interviewing Skills."

Further information about the meeting and detailed instructions for submitting abstracts can be found on our Web site: www.cmacs2000.org. The abstract deadline for talks and posters is January 31, 2000.

Cornell University alumnus Robert G. Laughlin, whose research at Procter and Gamble Company has contributed to a number of well-known household products, has donated $2.5 million to endow a new Named Professorship in the University’s Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology.

The professorship will be called the Frank and Robert Laughlin Chair of Physical Chemistry. It is also named for Laughlin’s late father, Frank, a high school teacher in Sullivan, Indiana.

Some of the well-known household products to which Robert Laughlin’s research at P&G has contributed are DAWN liquid dishwashing detergent, PERT PLUS shampoo/conditioner, and DOWNY fabric softener.

The first appointment to the chair – a visiting professor – is planned for next year. Laughlin, who retired from Procter and Gamble in October after 43 years there as a research chemist, most recently as a research fellow, stated his hope that the position ultimately will be filled by a permanent faculty member who is an expert and innovator in experimental phase science. This is an important subdiscipline in the field of physical chemistry which has been critically important to the development of modern surfactant-based technologies such as shampoos, bar soaps and detergents. Currently, Cornell does not have an experimentalist in this area.

"It is my preference that this position be awarded to a new or existing faculty member whose interests and expertise in these areas, but will ideally also include the theoretical aspects of phase science", he said.

Laughlin earned his bachelor of science in chemistry from Purdue University in 1951 and received his Ph.D. in organic chemistry in 1955 from Cornell. In 1956, after a year as a postdoctoral student at Yale University, he joined the research staff at Procter & Gamble. During the 1970’s and 1980’s his research shifted from organic chemistry to phase science and physical chemistry, specializing in surfactant-based technologies.

He holds 26 patents and publishes and lectures extensively on an international basis. His 1994 book, The Aqueous Phase Behavior of Surfactants, is now in its second printing.

Laughlin said that the reason for the gift to Cornell is that phase science, solution physical chemistry and classical colloid chemistry, disciplines that have generated new technologies and provided scores of commercial products in the first half of the 20^th century, have virtually disappeared from the curricula of U.S. universities. Cornell, he said, "is the logical place to locate a new beginning in experimental phase science".

At the turn of the century, Cornell was one of only two U.S. universities with a professorship in physical chemistry. The university achieved preeminence in this then-new field through the work of faculty members such as Wilder D. Bancroft, whose research spawned major developments in geology, ceramics and metallurgy.

Dr. Laughlin is a 48 year member of the American Chemical Society and was honored as Cincinnati Chemist of the Year in 1985.

Press releases and photos of the announcement event at Cornell may be found at:

The short course coordinators for the Cincinnati Section are planning to offer a short course in the Spring of 2000, to the membership of the Section. To aid in the planning process, they would like to know which of the following short course topics are of high interest to you. The possible short courses are:

1) Analytical Inductively Coupled Plasma: Emission and Mass Spectrometry
2) Interpretation of Mass Spectra
3) LC/MS: Fundamentals and Applications
4) How to Develop, Validate and Troubleshoot Capillary GC and HPLC Methods
5) Good Laboratory Practices and ISO-9000 Standards: Quality Standards for Chemical Laboratories
6) Quality Assurance/ Quality Control in the Analytical Testing Laboratory
7) Technical Writing Workshop

Please send a quick e-mail or note with your preferences to:
 

Mahvash Banisalam University of Cincinnati - Department of Pathology Email: banisam@email.uc.edu

or

Rick White Procter & Gamble Email: white.dr.2@pg.com

The 32nd Central Regional Meeting to be held May 16-19, 2000, in Covington, KY, will feature four industry innovation awards for the first time. Industry innovation awards are fairly new for regional meetings. Their creation was encouraged by ACS National as part of an effort to better recognize industrial chemists and chemical engineers for their creative contributions to the field of chemistry. The four awards will be in pharmaceutical chemistry, polymer chemistry, environmental chemistry and chemical engineering. For details about the awards and nomination process, visit the Meeting's web site at www.CMACS2000.org. Questions on the Awards Program may be addressed to:

Dr. Ted J. Logan, Chairman, Awards Program
e-mail: tjlogancin@aol.com
Nomination deadline is 2/15/00.

Are you

• Unemployed?
• Thinking about a change?
• Seeking chemists?
• Aware of the need to be current on career opportunities?

Contact Jan Strobel at jds@smbimilk.com

The Department of Chemistry of the University of Cincinnati would like to invite you to the 85.5 birthday party for Professor Milt Orchin. The party will take place on Friday, December 10, 1999, at the UC Faculty Club. The party will start about 5:30 p.m. with cocktails, and dinner will be served at 7 p.m. After dinner, there will be a presentation by Prof. Orchin entitled "Teaching: A Lifetime of Learning".

The dinner selections are Grilled Marinated Chicken Breast or Filet of Norwegian Salmon. The price for the cocktails and dinner is $25 per person, payable at the door. The price for full time students is $12. If you are interested in attending, please contact Ms. Kim Carey by e-mail (careykr@email.uc.edu) before Monday, November 22, 1999. Please be sure to include your dinner selection when you contact Kim. If you have any questions, please contact Marshall Wilson wilsonrm@uc.edu .

Do you know a teacher who inspires his/her students? Fills them with a curiosity about the world of science and chemistry? The Cincinnati Section of the American Chemical Society is looking for these people - and honors three each year. The High School Chemistry Teacher of the year is awarded annually, to recognize accomplishments of those of us who teach chemistry at the secondary school level. The Middle School/Junior High School Science Teacher of the Year is awarded annually to honor science teaching at this level. The Elementary School Science Teacher of the Year is awarded for excellence in elementary teaching. All three awards recognize teaching ability, enthusiasm, mentoring skills, and other leadership activities. Nominees need not be members of the American Chemical Society. Generally speaking, anyone teaching in these capacities within 35 mile radius of downtown Cincinnati is eligible.

Deadline for nominations is December 9, 1999 (at the meeting). Nomination forms for each award may be requested from, and returned to: Henry R. Greeb, Awards Committee Chair, e-Mail: n8xx@arrl.net

CINTACS is an excellent means of conveying information about your products and/or services to the community of chemical professionals in the greater Cincinnati area. With a readership of over 1600 each month, your ad will reach a broad audience of educators, researchers, technicians and other chemistry professionals. Your advertisement also provides support for the activities of the Cincinnati Section of the American Chemical Society. To place an advertisement, please contact the advertising chair, Sameer Choudhary, by phone at 513-482-7371 or by e-mail at: sameer_choudhary@hotmail.com.

The Local Section Activities Committee met at the national meeting in August, and voted to change the size categories for Local Sections, to give all sections a closer-to-level "playing field" when competing for outstanding sections awards. The new groups are:

Small sections 0 – 199 members
Medium-small 200 – 399 members
Medium 400 – 799 members
Medium-large 800 – 1599 members
Large 1600 – 3199 members
Very-large 3200 - members

The Cincinnati section currently has approximately 1650 members, so that we are now in the large category.

The Local Section Activities Committee is also looking into new ways of recognizing local sections for their accomplishments in a number of different areas of activity. While the Outstanding Section award and Phoenix awards (for National Chemistry Week) are valuable, awards for specific activities may be appropriate for sections that wish to focus in one primary area. More on this as plans develop.

At its open meeting on August 23 and at the Council meeting in New Orleans, the Joint Board/Council Committee on Copyrights announced that its "Learning Module: What Chemists Need to Know about Copyright," is complete and posted on the ACS's Publications Web site: http://pubs.acs.org (click on the Copyright and Permissions button, then click on any of the journal titles for even more copyright information and forms). The module was developed by a Task Force of the committee over the last four years to meet the needs for a college level teaching module. Text can be transferred to transparencies for classroom use and there are test questions with answers and scenarios for discussion. It is useful, easy to read, and can be accessed and used by all. The information pamphlet, "Are You Up to Date on ACS Copyright Issues," is also part of the module; it was revised and updated to accommodate recent changes to the U.S. Copyright Act. A FAQ (frequently asked questions) from the U.S. Copyright Office is part of the learning module as well.

At the ACS meeting in New Orleans, the Copyright Committee was discharged with thanks. The good news is that its functions will now be under the purview of the Joint Board/Council Committee on Publications (JBCCP). For those who will be at the ACS meeting in Washington, DC in August 2000, the Division of Chemical Information will be sponsoring a symposium on the "Copyright Implications of Electronic Information."

For post-doctoral, graduate, and undergraduate women to make their first research presentation at a scientific meeting.

Sponsored by:
Eli Lilly & Company

For more information and an application form, please contact

http://www.tamug.tamu.edu/acswcc

or Cheryl Brown, e-mail: c_brown@acs.org

Deadlines for receipt of applications for 2000 meetings:

March 15, 2000 – for meetings between July 1 and December 31, 2000 (the deadline has passed for meetings between June 1 and June 30, 2000)

A custom-designed group professional liability insurance policy for consultants who are chemists and chemical engineers. For more information, visit our web site at:

http://www.acs.org/insurance

or contact the plan administrator at 1-800-445-3393.

Givaudan Roure, the world’s largest developer and manufacturer of flavors, continues to experience substantial growth. Our ongoing quest for innovative products is reflected in this currently available position with our Flavor Research and Development laboratories.

We seek an analytical research scientist who will play a significant role in developing new and improved analytical methods for organic flavor compounds in complex mixtures. This scientist will be a significant contributor in two or more analytical disciplines (GC/MS, GC, LC, LC/MS, and others) in a high-performance analytical team environment. In addition, this person will play an effective role in cross-training and learning to expand skills of self and team members.

We require an MS in Chemistry and demonstrated skills in analytical, organic, food and flavor chemistry. We desire at least three years of industrial analytical organic method development experience along with a strong instrumentation background in mass spectrometry (GC/MS) and modern chromatography/separation sciences (GC and HPLC) using various detector technologies. We seek a quick learner who has advanced PC proficiency and excellent organizational, communication and team building abilities.

We offer a highly attractive compensation and benefits package. Please send your resume with cover letter in confidence to: 1199 Edison Drive, Cincinnati, OH 45216, Attn: Wilbur S. Harmon, Director of Human Resources. Fax: (513) 948-5607. Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/D/V.