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R E A C T I O N SVo

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The Official Department of Chemistry Newsletter October2008

>> A Few Words From The Editor

Welcome back students! We are excited to bring you the first issue of Reactions for the fall semester. In this issue, you will find an interesting politi-cal piece from a science perspective, an article about the challenges of choosing a major, a student’s recap on her summer internship, and a brief article about Relay for Life. As always, you’ll find a chem-istry game.

This year we would like to wele-come several new staff members: Marga-ret Kim, Helen Park and George Leon-ard. Margaret and Helen will be helping with newsletter layout while George will be a staff writer.

For those who are unfamiliar with Reactions, Reactions is a chemistry newsletter created by undergraduate chemistry majors. Within our issues, we would like to cover topics that range from new science research, students’ experiences, interviews with faculty, games, and current topics. We are always looking for more help and fresh ideas to help keep improving and encour-aging people to get involved. If this is something you’d like to get involved with, please let us know.

Good luck on mid-terms and we’ll see you after mid-semester break! Enjoy.

-Allen Sha, asha@andrew.cmu.edu-Camly Tran, ctran@andrew.cmu.edu Co-Editor-in-Chiefs of Reactions

>> Who to Vote for? A Science Perspective

Both candidates have made clear their positions on these pressing issues. On global warming, both candidates support the reduction of net carbon output to reduce them below previous emission levels by implement-ing a cap-and trade system. So, no real preference can be drawn here, but it must be wondered is this the best plan? We can ill afford the additional hit to our economy that carbon-control measures will impart in these already troubled times, while countries like China increase their footprint and GDP by the day. Nor is it the best plan for the environment when companies can simply pay what amounts to a carbon tax, similar to the CAFE regulations ineffectively implemented to increase fleet fuel mileage.

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>> Relay for Life:

Saturday, October 11, 2008, Relay for Life hit the track at Carnegie Mellon Gesling Stadium. Relay for life is an annual event across the whole nation that brings together entire communities to take part in the fight against cancer. It’s a time and place where people come to celebrate those who have survived cancer, remember those we’ve lost, and fight back against a disease that touches too many lives. Relay started at 6 pm Saturday night and lasted until 6 am Sunday morning. Although this seems like an impossible feat, music, food stands, and the encouragement of other walkers and runners easily kept you motivated. It was a successful night that started off with a survivor walk around the track, followed by several performances by various Carnegie Mellon students. The luminaria service then followed later in the night.

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The political posturing and prancing by both Senator Obama and McCain has reached an all-time high as both camps try to drum up support for the upcoming election. Regrettably, the issues often get swept aside in the mud and bloody shirts, and what issue could be more

“It is where the two candidates differ, under all the poli-ticking and double-speak, that matters in the end.”

important to this nation’s future than science? That so often neglected aspect of American education, economy, and policy.

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>> Chemistry-Related Games

Chemoku PuzzleRules: Fill in the grid so that every row, every column, and every 3 x 3 box contains nine separate elements: Fluorine (F), Carbon (C), Copper (Cu), Lithium (Li), Boron (B), Hydrogen (H), Sulfur (S), Iodine (I), Xenon (Xe)

-Answers found on p.6

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Luminaria are lighted bags, each having a special meaning. Some luminaria celebrate the survi-vorship of people who have battled cancer and lived to tell the tale. Many commemorate the lives of those who have been lost to this disease. All luminaria represent a person who has been affected by cancer. This year, ChemSAC was represented by a handful of chemis-try majors who dedicated their time and showed their support towards this magnificent cause. Congratula-tions to the number one team, team BioSAC, who raised $5,871.99 followed by DG and SigEp and Co. and WILLIE D. CUTIES and Pi Delta Psi and Randy Pausch in Our Hearts closely followed. Oakland has raised around $28,000 dollars. A special thanks to Stephanie Kim and Avanti Deshpande for putting together the ChemSAC team.

-Camly Tran

>> Analysis of Carnegie Mellon University Chemistry Student

Introduction:This experiment is intended to briefly introduce the life of a Carnegie Mellon University chemistry major through the observation of a sophomore student’s academic life.

Objectives:Some objectives of this experiment include:1. Analyzing the differences between freshman and sophomore year2. Learning the concepts of the class 09-221 Laboratory I: Introduction to Chemical Analysis3. Learning the challenges as a chemistry student

Background InformationCarnegie Mellon University (CMU) Chemistry DepartmentThe CMU Chemistry department has a reputation for its rigorous work and achievements. The faculty is known for their research and dedication to teaching, and the graduate and undergraduate students are also famous for their devotion to learning and laboratory skills. In this experiment, CMU chemistry curriculum for sophomores will be observed.

The student providing the observation is a sophomore, Margaret Kim, who recently transferred to the chemistry department from an Economics major. As most college students, Margaret was not sure what field she wanted to pursue. She loved her economics and chemistry teachers in high school, and as a result eventually entered Carnegie Mellon University as an economics major. Uncertain if she wanted to continue, she sought out many helpful com-ments from different advisors. Eventually, she met Dr. Grotzinger, who switched her to a chemistry major for her sophomore year. Her experience in her chemistry major will be analyzed in this lab (It important to note that her experience does not typically represent the experience of all chemistry students).

Procedure:1. Chemistry coursesTake typical sophomore chemistry courses, such as 09-221, 09-231, and 09-219.2. Preparation of StandardsObserve the differences between the sample student and other students over the course of the experiment (note that the observation will be relative to the view of the sample student).3. ObservationObserve the change in sample student’s appearance, state, and condition over a 4 week time period.

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Hazard Analysis:Chemical (or food) Names: Diet Pepsi and ChocolateDescription of Hazards and Toxicity: May cause addic-tion; cravings on days prior to lab report due datesSymptoms of overexposure: Endless craving; energy crash after usage.

Data Sheet:1. Change in Fashion and appearance:Weeks 1 and 2: Sample spent five to ten minutes picking out wardrobe. Flip-flops and flats were typically worn. Weeks 3 and 4: Sample spent one or two minutes pick-ing out their most comfortable clothing. Sneakers are reserved for the whole of lab days.

2. Change in Food Consumption:Weeks 1 and 2: Avoid campus food and enjoy off-campus restaurants in Oakland. Grab one or two treats during chemistry seminar. Sample is motivated to eat healthy.Weeks 3 and 4: Cannot escape from campus food. Use chemistry seminar as lunch time before lab, consuming as much as food as possible. Diet Pepsi and comfort food becomes regular. Frequently visit Professor Stump’s office for candies and chocolate. Sample expe-riences addiction to foods with quick energy boosts.

3. Change in Sleeping Times:Weeks 1 and 2: Enjoy a pretty set sleeping schedule.Weeks 3 and 4: There is no sleep schedule. Sleeps anytime possible. Sample saw the sun rising on the lab report due date. Sample was surprised to learn that many of her peers picked up their phone at that time.

4. Change in amount of time spent in lab:Weeks 1 and 2: Samples spends ~ 2-3 hours in chemistry lab as course schedule indicates.Weeks 3 and 4: Sample goes to lab as soon it opens and is forced out at the sound of the “good bye” song. Attends the extra lab session on Friday.

Analysis and Conclusion:Although the sample does not represent all chemistry students, observation indicates that Carnegie Mellon sophomore chemistry students experience a much more rigorous year than freshman students. Decreased focus on appearance and sleep indicates that workload has significantly increased, and that time management is essential for survival. Change in food consumption strongly supports increase in the amount of stress produced by the courses. Lab I introduces a different lab environment than that encountered in a high school science lab, which strongly affects the students’ lifestyles. The main challenge of chemistry students is to maintain high grades in all chemistry classes while carrying out other extracurricular activities and jobs. Through the tough curriculum, chemistry students developed a close relationship with faculty and peers while learning self-management and gaining an incred-ible amount of knowledge and skill.

-Margaret Kim

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>> Should You Get an Internship?

So maybe you are thinking that you should do something “useful” with your summers. You know, get some “real-life” chemistry-related job experience to beef up your resume, to make yourself more attractive to graduate school, or to improve your chances of scoring a full-time job when you graduate. Or even just to make money. I agree. You prob-ably should.

Then comes the question – what should you do? There is research at Mellon, or maybe an internship at a private biotech corporation. You could even do an REU program at a school close to home. They are all fantastic options. For the most part, you just have to look into them and see what you can get.

For the past two summers, I have chosen the route of the private biotech corporation. I was an intern at Genzyme Corporation, which has grown into a world-wide mega-enterprise with a diversified portfolio in rare genetic diseases, kidney disease, orthopedics, transplant, cancer, and diagnostic testing. Both summers I interned in the Therapeutic Polymer group, where each project that I worked on was to help with the development of a polymeric drug in several of these different sectors.

I totally loved it. The group had me engaged in doing real, relevant research, often on several projects at once. I was asked to refine my supervisors’ procedures, devise a multi-step design synthesis, and figure out the purification meth-ods for target compounds. My work allowed one of my group’s projects to be launched into preclinical development, and another to be sent for live testing in animals. At the end of the summer, I had the satisfaction of knowing that my own experimentation will have an extraordinary impact on patients in the future.

There are a lot of upsides to interning for a huge, biotech company. But there are also some downsides, outlined below. Hopefully, this information will help you decide whether an internship is right for you, and whether you should pursue one for an upcoming summer.

-Swati Varshney

Pros1. You are engaged in relevant, cutting-edge research.2. Inter-group collaboration is heavily stressed.3. Lots of company-sponsored group lunches, corporate outings, launch parties, networking seminars, etc.4. Money is always available! • Whatever instruments or whacky materials you need, they will buy it. • The company probably will treat you to lunch for all meetings. • You do not have to worry about writing proposals for research grants. 5. High pay with flexible hours.

Cons1. Internal, corporation politics (I guess there is no escaping that).2. Lots of high-stress deadlines!3. Your project can get scrapped if it is not deemed profitable enough. You constantly have to do presentations to prove that your project is lucrative enough.4. Confidentiality issues – you are not allowed to discuss the details of your research outside the corporation. Ever. And you have to shred all your documents.5. You will have to sign contracts that all your ideas and intellectual property belong to the company.

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On space, both candidates give lip service to the theory that we should be leaders in space exploration. Neither, how-ever, comes close to committing the resources necessary to do so, though Obama's plan is far less hedged than McCain's, so perhaps we can expect more of a drive from him. Not since Kennedy gave his speech, though, has America had the will to lead the space race. At the present pace, that predicts us landing on the moon 20 years from now (something the scientists in the 70's did in less than 10). I would not expect a real resurgence in manned-spaceflight anytime soon from either candidate.

It is where the two candidates differ, under all the politicking and double-speak, that matters in the end. McCain is sticking to his right-wing roots on stem cell research, backed by an ultra-socially conservative vice president, so his election would continue the trend of hamstringing critical medical research for pseudo-ethical and religious reasons. McCain also, in his war on the deficit, aims to freeze discretionary spending. This would effectively cut research funds for every scientist or hopeful scientist in the country. Obama, on the flip side, remains an idealist with regards to energy independence. He hopes to find a silver bullet in renewable sources while the technology for clean and safe nuclear power exists today and can reduce fossil fuel imports and carbon emissions starting now. However, he does seem more willing to throw money towards additional fields of research and scientific endeavors than his opponent. As a scientifically-minded individual, I find this a good thing.

Caveat Emptor: There are no guarantees either candidate will actually follow through on any of their campaign prom-ises, so vote with caution.

-George Leonard

-Answers to Chemoku Puzzle

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>> Staff Members

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FACULTY ADVISER Karen Stump, Teaching Professor & Director of Undergraduate Studies And Laboratories CO-EDITOR-IN-CHIEFS Allen Sha, Senior Camly Tran, Senior EDITOR Laura Kocsis, Senior WRITERS Swati Varshney, Junior George Leonard, Sophomore Margaret Kim, Sophomore GAMES DESIGER Swati Varshney, Sophomore PAGE LAYOUT DESIGNER Helen Park, Junior Margaret Kim, Sophomore