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Meeting of the Princeton ACS Section
Wednesday, December 21, 2022
GoToMeeting
6:00 PM – 7:30 PM
"To Think Anew, An Autodidact's Discourse on the Actinide Element Plutonium”
David Jones, VP of Business Development, Sannova Analytical
Biography: David Jones is currently Vice President of Business Development at Sannova Analytical Inc. a contract research organization (CRO). He advises sponsors on choosing appropriate analytical approaches to support developmental efforts for both small molecule and large molecule programs for the treatment of human disease.
After completing his education at SUNY Stony Brook, he worked on the production of original ligand binding assays, radioimmunoassay, (RIA), for Diagnostic Products, now part of Siemens. He then moved to the technology development company, Bioresearch, where he worked on the synthesis of a series of urethane protected N-carboxyanhydrides, (UNCAs) novel reagents for fast, clean peptide synthesis. He has since worked for a variety of companies in roles ranging from chemical synthesis, to laboratory management and business development. These included Immunopharmaceutics, now part of Pfizer, SNPE/Isochem, a French fine chemical company, CRO Frontage Labs, Primera, and finally, for the last eight years, Sannova Analytical. His non-professional interests include environmental chemistry
Abstract: In December of 1862, Abraham Lincoln, one of history’s greatest autodidacts, sent a message to Congress just as he was about to formally change the direction of the American Civil War to confront a then widely held, yet criminally absurd, belief. The belief in question was the popular opinion, North and South, that it was acceptable to treat a group of magnificent human beings little better, and sometimes worse, than farm animals. While overall, the message to Congress was largely a dry technical document hardly as eloquent as other Lincolnian rhetoric, much of the language in the soaring final two paragraphs might well speak to any time.
In this talk, I will appropriate, (or misappropriate and scramble) excerpts from these two paragraphs from the 1862 message, taking them completely out of context to address some widely held beliefs about the 94th element in the Periodic Table, the synthetic (or not so synthetic) element plutonium. I will attempt to briefly review howthe history of the element played into the reasons that the element is negatively viewed by the general public today, touch upon some aspects of plutonium chemistry including its large-scale industrial processing, consider how its unique phase diagrams dictate its use and possible use while offering a path to preventing abuse, and finally, discuss its nuclear properties, to make the argument, surely controversial, that access to the element may prove to be “the last best hope of earth.”
Registration: Registration for the meeting is required. Prior to the meeting, all who have registered will receive information on how to join the virtual platform. To register go to our website at https://www.princeton-acs.org/events/wednesday-december-21-2022
Chair’s End-of-Year Message
By Lisa Veliath
Greetings and salutations PACS members and readers alike! We are wrapping up a year of events and activities in which I had the sincere pleasure of leading as the Chair for the Princeton ACS. Overall, I’m happy we were able to bring a variety of events and meetings for people to attend not only for interest and enjoyment, but also hopefully for some enlightenment. My sincere thanks go to the volunteers I worked with to help bring these events to you.
The year started with the Synthesis on Scale Process Chemistry Symposium, hosted by Professor Spencer Knapp, that was offered virtually in January. We heard technical talks from Fabrice Gallou from Novartis, Megan Smyth from Almac, Candice Joe from Bristol-Myers Squibb, and Matthey Bearer from Amgen.
In February, we hosted Professor Paul Falkowski from Rutgers University, who gave a virtual lecture entitled, “Searching for the LEGOS of Life”. During the spring months, we were able to host a variety of speakers from the flavor and fragrance area from both industry and academia: Carolyn Crosby, Adam Toth, Dana Daneker Gasiorowski, Kelly Carroll Jr. and Neil DaCosta from IFF, Marshal Ligare from John I Haas, and Katie Uhl, a PhD candidate in Food Science from the University of California at Davis. In celebration of Earth Day, we hosted an Earth Day Eve event in recognition of the 52nd International Earth Day to continue the conversation about sustainability of the quality of life in the face of climate change. Professor Maurie Cohen from NJIT provided the keynote address during the April event. Thank you to Randy Weintraub and Barbara Ameer for organizing a wonderful workshop.
In June, we also heard from Dr. Geeta Govindarajoo from Rutgers University, who gave a virtual talk, entitled "Skin – a Different Canvas. The Art and Chemistry of Tattoos, Inks, Removal and Potential Uses for Health.” After the summer break, we were able to host our first in-person monthly meeting at the Princeton Public Library. Dr. Michelle DiMeo from the Science History Institute gave a fascinating lecture on women in chemistry the entitled “Where were Women in Chemistry in the 1600s?”
The year also included events that PACS is typically involved with, such as the Middle Atlantic Regional Meeting (MARM), that was held at the TCNJ campus during early June, and the MARM Chemagination competition with high school students. In addition, National Chemistry Week in October offered the Poem Contest for which students of many age groups composed poetry on the chemistry of fabrics. Thank you to Louise Lawter for assisting in organizing these events.
To round out the year, our final meeting will be held by our new Chair Elect, David Jones, who will give a virtual presentation on Dec. 21st. Please join us for this last virtual meeting to close out a successful year!
Lastly, I need to say thank you to the members for continuing to join our programming, and to our board for the work and support in keeping this local section a wonderful resource for connection and chemistry content. There have been many other contributions from our PACS volunteers, however there are too many to name individually. Thank you for your dedication and work.
I would also like to welcome our newest elected and re-elected officers to their upcoming roles for 2023: Noah Bissonette as Chair, who is currently a graduate student at Princeton University in the lab of Professor David Macmillan, David Jones as Chair Elect, who is currently VP at Sannova Analytical, David Carrick as Treasurer, who is Director of Scientific Affairs and Laboratory Services at Accord Import Export Solutions, Jasodhara Bhattacharya as Secretary, who works with the Princeton Center for Complex Materials, Lauren Ancona as Member-at-Large who works at IFF, and lastly to Mukund Chorghade as Member-at-Large, who is President and Chief Scientific Officer at THINQ Pharma/THINQ Discovery. I also would like to thank Allen Jones, outgoing Past Chair for his contributions and guidance for leading PACS the past few years.
Cheers and Regards,
Lisa Veliath, PhD
Chair, PACS 2022
PACS 2022 NCW Illustrated Poem Contest
“Fabulous Fibers: The Chemistry of Fabrics”
Winners Announced!
As part of our celebration of National Chemistry Week (NCW), the Princeton Section of the ACS sponsored the 2022 NCW Illustrated Poem Contest for students in Kindergarten through 12th grade in schools within the Princeton Section. For this contest, students had to write and illustrate a poem that fit the 2022 NCW theme of “Fabulous Fibers: The Chemistry of Fabric.” Prizes would be awarded in categories K-2nd; 3rd-5th; 6th-8th and 9th-12th grades. The First Place awardees of the Princeton Section Illustrated Poem Contest would advance to the ACS National Illustrated Poem Contest.
This year, we received a total of 40 poems, in the 3rd-5th; 6th-8th and 9th-12th grade categories. The majority were in the 9th-12th category. Because of this, the category was split into 9th-10th and 11th-12th grade categories. One overall winner was selected to submit to the National ACS Contest in the 9th-12th grade category, as required, along with the First Place Winners in the 3rd-5th and 6th-8th grade categories.
The poems were judged based on artistic merit, poem message, originality, creativity, and neatness.
And the winners were:
3rd to 5th Grade Category
First Place - Rishi Khedekar, Village Elementary School
Second Place (tie) - Caleb Kim, Princeton Charter School
Second Place (tie) - Paul Kang, Johnson Park School
6th to 8th Grade Category:
First Place - Emily Gao, Princeton Charter School
Second Place - Helena Betru, Princeton Charter School
9th to 10th Grade Category:
First Place - Jiya Thakkar, West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South
Second Place - Anika Khedekar, West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South
Third Place - Vendantika Bose, West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South
11th to 12th Grade Category:
First Place - Leeann Shaw, West Windsor Plainsboro High School South
Second Place - Audrey Fu, West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South
Third Place - Anjali Ravikanti, West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South
Honorable Mention - Rebekah Wang, West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South
9th to 12th Grade Category Overall
First Place - Jiya Thakkar, West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South
PACS places at ACS National Poem Contest!
We have just been notified that Rishi Khedekar won First Place 3rd to 5th Grade category, and Emily Gao won Second Place 6th to 8thGrade Category in the National Contest! The first place and second place winners will be officially announced on Monday, November 21st at www.acs.org/ncw .
Congratulations to our winners and sincere thanks to the judges who had the very difficult task of selecting winners among the many excellent submissions. Thank you also to all the students who participated, and the parents and teachers who supported them.
The Princeton Section of the American Chemical Society
Presents
Synthesis on Scale:
Process Chemistry in the Pharmaceutical Industry
Friday, January 13th, 2023
10:00 AM – 2:45 PM
Live by Zoom
Program
10:00 AM - Welcome and opening remarks
Prof. Spencer Knapp, Rutgers University, Symposium Organizer, ACS Princeton Section
10:10 AM - Duc N. Tran, Janssen Pharmaceutical
“Process Development of Odalasvir;” Introduced by Sebastien Lemaire, J&J
11:00AM - Catherine Alder, GSK
“Green Chemistry at GSK;” Introduced by Nicole Goodwin, GSK
11:50 PM - Discussion (Duc, Catherine, Sebastian and Nikki)
12:20 PM - (Break)
12:40 PM - Branko Mitasev, Eisai
“Crystallization-based syntheses of novel bicyclic azetidine antimalarials;” Introduced by Frank Fang, Eisai
1:30 PM - Matthew Goldfogel, BMS
“Transitioning from Palladium to Sustainable Nickel Catalysis for C-B and C-C Coupling Reactions;” Introduced by Hester Dang, BMS
2:20 PM Discussion (Brank, Matt, Frank, and Hester)
2:40 PM Closing remarks – Prof. Spencer Knapp
Registration will be opening later this month. Check our website at:
PACS Elections for 2023 Officers
Results
The election for 2023 Princeton ACS Section Chair-Elect, Secretary, Treasurer, and Member-at-Large (2023-2025) was conducted from November 2 to November 19. A total of 55 votes (15% participation rate) were received and the results were:
Chair-Elect 2023:
David Jones – 55 votes
Treasurer 2023:
David Carrick – 55 votes
Secretary 2023:
Jasodhara Bhattacharya – 52 votes
Member-At-Large (2023-2025):
Mukund Chorghade – 52 votes
Congratulations to the winners and thank you to all those who supported the section by participating in this year’s election.
The PACS Executive Committee for 2023 will be:
Past-Chair: Lisa Veliath
Chair: Noah Bissonette
Chair-Elect: David Jones
Secretary: Jasodhara (Jas) Bhattacharya
Treasurer: David Carrick
Member-at-Large (2022-2023): Lauren Ancona
Member-at-Large (2023-2025): Mukund Chorghade
Councilor (2021-2023): Louise Lawter
Alt. Councilor (2021-2023): Barbara Ameer