NJ Chemistry Olympics - 2008

New Jersey Institute of Technology, American Chemical Society - North Jersey Section, and Teacher Affiliates presents the 23rd Annual NJ Chemistry Olympics - 2008, Wednesday, May 21, 2008, Tiernan Hall, NJIT.

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Environmental Policy faculty member receives grant

The New Jersey Water Resource Research Institute at Rutgers University recently awarded Dr. Zeyuan Qiu a $29,983 grant for his research project "Integrated Assessment of Economic and Water Quality Impacts of Agricultural Best Management Practices."   He will collaborate with Dr. Chris Obropta, Assistant Extension Specialist in Water Resources with Rutgers Cooperative Research & Extension, to integrate an economic model with watershed assessment data and a biophysical model to evaluate the economic and water quality impacts, as well as strategic placements of agricultural best management practices in the Neshanic River watershed in Hunterdon County, New Jersey.

Graduate Student Receives NSF Student Scholarship

Hao Wang, a Ph.D. student in Environmental Science has recently received an NSF Student Scholarship to cover a portion of his expenses to attend the 10th Annual Green Chemistry & Engineering Conference June 26-30, 2006 in Washington, D.C.  Mr. Hao is presently working on his dissertation focusing on the study of ionic liquids for bioremediation with Dr. Sanjay Malhotra.

Chemistry faculty member receives two awards

Dr. Sanjay Malhotra, Assistant Professor of Chemistry, has recently received two awards.  The first award was the 2006 Undergraduate Research Award in Organic Chemistry from BRISTOL-MYERS SQUIBB Chemistry Organization. (It is based on a competition of submitted proposals from Organic Chemistry faculty at Universities in the  NJ, NY, PA area).  The award is designed to help fund undergraduate research under the guidance of the researcher for a summer project.    The second award Dr. Malhotra received was from the North Jersey Section of the American Chemical Society.  The 2006 PRO BONO Award is given to an individual for teaching and motivating high schools students in chemical sciences and contributing to the professional activities of the NJACS section.

Students Receive Certificates from Congressman Steve Rothman, D-NJ

Washington, DC)- On Wednesday, May 10, Congressman Steve Rothman (D-NJ) presented two New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT) students with Congressional Certificates honoring their work on sustainable energy practices. The students, Ronnachai Tiyarattanachai of North Arlington and Shih-Yun Kuo of Kearny, won a research grant through the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's P3 (People, Prosperity, and the Planet) student design competition to complete one of their research proposals.

Undergraduate Student Receives Multiple Awards for Research

Ms. Camila Rohr Modenesi, working under the guidance of her advisor Dr. Lev Krasnoperov and also Dr. Larisa Krishtopa,  has recently received recognition for her work on "The Destruction of Freons in Corona Discharge".  Corona discharges produce non-thermal plasmas, where the temperature of electrons is much higher than the temperature of ions and neutral species.  In her research, Ms. Modenesi studied chemical transformations of freons in the environment similar to that occurring in the natural electrical phenomena in the stratosphere caused by severe thunderstorms.  

Ms. Modenesi took first place in the Second Annual Provost's Student Research Showcase at NJIT on April 12, 2006.  Additionally, she won second place in the McNair Symposium at NJIT on April 9, 2006 and second place at the LRIG (Laboratory of Robotics Interest Group) Mid Atlantic Chapter Student poster contest held at Montclair State University on March 23, 2006.

Department to Host Chemistry Olympics

The 21st Annual New Jersey Chemistry Olympics was held on May 17, 2006.   Last year Tenafly High School was the overall winners of the competition, and took home the Platinum Crucible trophy for the year.  Information about this year's New Jersey Chemistry Olympics can be found on the website at http://web.njit.edu/chemistryolympics

Dr. Frank Ellis Guest Speaker at Science National Honor Society's 2nd Induction Ceremony at Science Park High School

On March 23, 2006 Dr. Frank Ellis made quite a memorable speech as the guest speaker at Science Park High School's 2nd induction ceremony for the Science National Honor Society.   See the article

NJIT Student Wins First Prize in Poster Contest Sponsored by The Laboratory Robotics Interest Group of the American Chemical Society.

Nirupama Gupta, a Ph.D. student at NJIT was awarded 1st prize and $200 in a poster contest sponsored by The Laboratory Robotics Interest Group of the American Chemical Society Meeting at Montclair State University on March 23rd, 2006, 3 to 9 pm.  Ms. Gupta's poster was about   Biodegradation of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons by Bacterial Laccases Using Laccase Mediator Systems.  She is part of a research group working with Dr. Edgardo Farinas at NJIT.

Chemistry Student Yuhong Chen Wins Outstanding Research Award at NJIT Graduate Student Research Day

Ms. Yuhong Chen, Department of Chemistry and Environmental Science, won the $150.00 general travel award for her work   "Microwave Assisted Functionalization of Carbon Nanotubes".  Ms. Chen is a Ph.D. student in Chemistry working with Dr. Somenath Mitra and Dr. Zafar Iqbal. 

More information about Graduate Student Research Day and photos from the event can be found on the university website at http://gsa.njit.edu/researchday/gsrdphoto.html

TANYA MARTINEZ HAS WON THE ANNE WILEY SCHOLARSHIP

Ms.Tanya Martinez, a sophomore majoring in chemistry, has been selected to receive the first Anne Wiley Scholarship. The scholarship is named in honor of the former CSLA assistant dean and long-time co-director of NJIT’s Murray Center for Women in Technology.

A native of Scotch Plains, Ms. Martinez has maintained an A average in her chemistry courses while taking a leadership role in the campus community. She is an active member of the NJIT student section of the Society of Women Engineers (SWE), as well as HOST/SHPE, the National Society of Black Engineers, and the American Chemical society student group. She has volunteered to tutor elementary and middle school students in math, has served as a Chemistry Olympics coach, and has helped the NJIT Chemistry Department recruit students during open houses and other events. She is a member of the Cuban Lions Club, a member of the National Piano Playing Association, and—in her spare time—takes Japanese sword classes.

Graduate Student Attends Computational Biophysics Workshop

Ms. Deepangi Pandit, a Ph.D. student in Chemistry, in the Department of Chemistry and Environmental Science, was recently selected to attend the Computational Biophysics Workshop sponsored in part by the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the NIH Resource for Macromolecular Modeling and Bioinformatics. Ms. Pandit was one of twenty students chosen to attend among an applicant pool of hundreds of very competitive students. Held at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, June 9-13, 2005, the workshop explored physical models and computational approaches used for the simulation of biological systems and the investigation of their function at an atomic level.