CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - Vickie DeRose, professor and head of chemistry and biochemistry, has been awarded a creativity extension by the National Science Foundation (NSF) for research into the structure and function of ribonucleic acid (RNA) through its interactions with metal ions. Fellow chemist Mike Pluth was awarded an NSF creativity extension in 2023 for his work on the role small sulfur-based molecules play in many biological processes. These molecules were likely key species involved in evolution, especially before there was oxygen in Earth’s atmosphere.

CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - Check out news highlights from 2024 and catch up with alumni in the latest issue of the UO Chemistry and Biochemistry newsletter!

CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - We are pleased to announce the recipients of our 2024 Graduate Student Community Builder Award - Ashley Mapile and Harrison Reid. The award recognizes graduate students for their exceptional contributions to building an inclusive, supportive, collaborative, and respectful environment within our Department.

CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - UO Chemistry and Biochemistry is pleased to welcome three new faculty members to the department in 2024! Meet Assistant Professors Dhiman Ray, Romila Mascarenhas, and Paul Kempler and learn more about the research they'll be conducting in their labs.

CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - Professor Darren Johnson is among 11 accomplished researchers selected to receive Research Corporation for Science Advancement’s Cottrell Plus SEED Award for 2024. Johnson is an academic expert in green chemistry. He studies water pollution and purification, especially agriculture and industrial waste water.

CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - In July, the Teresa Rapp Lab received a $100,000 grant from the Donald E. And Deliah B. Baxter Foundation, a charitable institution established to advance medical and scientific research at institutions of higher learning. In the Rapp Lab, the funding will support a new project modeling late-stage fibrosis with light-responsive biomaterials.

CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - College of Arts and Science remembers John Edwin Baldwin, a longtime faculty member in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and former dean of the college. Deeply interested in his field of physical organic chemistry and dedicated to the universities where he worked, as well as to his broader scholarly community, Baldwin developed a reputation as a gifted and meticulous scholar, researcher, collaborator, and legendary teacher and mentor. He died May 26, 2024. He was 86.

Three College of Arts and Sciences researchers have received the National Science Foundation’s most prestigious honor for early-career faculty members in the past year: Luca Mazzucato (biology, mathematics and physics), Brittany Erickson (computer science and earth sciences) and Julia Widom (chemistry). Known as the CAREER Awards, the organization recognizes and fosters rising stars by funding innovative research.

CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - Physics Magazine talks with faculty Paul Kempler about the Oregon Center for Electrochemistry’s Master’s Internship Program that provides students with hands-on experience working with industry partners.

CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - Six students that participated in the Chemistry and Biochemistry department's 2023 Research Experience for Undergraduates program presented their UO research at the Spring American Chemical Society Meeting.

CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - An assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Matthias Agne and his lab are using fundamental science—based on thermodynamics and microscopic physics—to improve solid-state battery developments. And his lab provides a space for students to tackle diverse technical and humanitarian problems.

CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - Artwork depicting research being conducted in the Marina Guenza lab was selected for the cover of the Feb. 8 issue of The Journal of Physical Chemistry B.

CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - University of Oregon researchers have developed a way to make iron metal for steel production without burning fossil fuels. This process could help decarbonize one of the largest and most emissions-intensive industries worldwide. The researchers reported their findings in a paper published Feb. 5 in the journal Joule.

CHEMISTRY AND BIOCHEMISTRY - Adding a squirt of water to coffee beans before grinding reduces static electric charge on the coffee grounds, according to new research from Associate Professor Christopher Hendon.

BIOCHEMISTRY AND CHEMISTRY, NEUROSCIENCE - University of Oregon senior Nayantara Arora has been awarded a Rhodes Scholarship for graduate study at the University of Oxford, making her the first Duck to earn the prized award in more than 15 years. Arora is majoring in neuroscience and minoring in global health and chemistry. At Oxford, Arora plans to pursue two master’s degrees, one in modeling for global health and the other in international health and tropical medicine.