Title: "How ATP-fueled Biological Motors Drive the Processes of Life"
Life requires the creation of force. From muscle contraction to the unwinding of DNA helices, many cellular processes are powered by protein motors, which transform chemical energy in the form of ATP into motion for productive work. Dr Glynn will discuss how a family of specialized ATP-fueled motors provide the force needed to drive key events in the life of the cell, and how recent advances in bioimaging are revealing the intricate mechanisms of these biological nanomachines.
Biosketch:
Dr. Steven E. Glynn is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology. His research focuses on how enzymes unfold intracellular proteins by converting chemical energy into mechanical force. Dr Glynn earned a B.S. and Ph.D from the University of Sheffield, U.K., and undertook post-doctoral training at M.I.T. His research is supported by the National Institutes of Health.
Guest Speaker: Dr. Steven Glynn, Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology
Title: "How ATP-fueled Biological Motors Drive the Processes of Life"
Date: Tuesday, February 19
Time: 1:00pm-2:00pm
Location: Special Collections Seminar Room, E-2340, second floor of the Melville Library
Please register here.
Title: "Electrochemical Energy Storage Systems: Progress and Opportunities"
Access to clean energy directly impacts quality of life for people worldwide. Ability to store energy and release it on demand is necessary to implement renewable energy sources on a wide scale. Our group investigates the science and technology of power sources that will be enabling technologies for disparate and demanding applications, ranging from lifesaving implantable medical devices, to electric vehicles, to grid level storage. Progress and opportunities in developing electrochemical energy storage materials and systems to meet the needs of these diverse applications will be discussed in this presentation.
Biosketch:
Dr. Amy C. Marschilok is currently a University Instructional Specialist at Stony Brook University, where she is a Research Associate Professor in the Departments of Materials Science and Engineering, and a Research Professor in the Department of Chemistry. Dr. Marschilok also serves as Deputy Director for the Center for Mesoscale Transport Properties at Stony Brook University (http://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/m2m/index.html), an Energy Frontier Research Center funded by the U.S. Department of Energy.
She received her B.A. in Chemistry (English Minor) and Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University at Buffalo. Dr. Marschilok was previously employed as a Senior Scientist in the Medical Battery Research and Development Group at Greatbatch Inc., where she was recognized as a Visionary of the Year. In 2007, she received a Leadership Award, Professional Service Category from the Western New York YWCA. In 2011, she was recognized as a Woman of Distinction by the Girl Scouts of Western New York. Her current research goals center on new material and electrode concepts for high power, high energy density, extended life primary and secondary batteries. She has mentored over 50 student researchers and co-authored over 150 publications, 3 book chapters, and 5 patent disclosures.
Guest Speaker: Dr. Amy Marschilok, Departments of Materials Science and Engineering, and Department of Chemistry
Title: "Electrochemical Energy Storage Systems: Progress and Opportunities"
Date: Tuesday, March 12
Time: 1:00pm-2:00pm
Location: Special Collections Seminar Room, E-2340, second floor of the Melville Library
Please register here.
Title: “The PIXL Investigation on the Mars 2020 Rover Mission: Investigating Ancient Environments and Searching for Signs of Past Life on Mars”
The Planetary Instrument for X-ray Lithochemistry, or PIXL, is a micro-focus X-ray fluorescence instrument that has been selected as part of the scientific payload of the upcoming Mars 2020 rover mission. Mounted on the end of the rover's arm, PIXL will be used to reveal chemical clues about Mars' watery past in an effort to determine whether Mars was ever home to microbial life. In this presentation, Dr. Hurowitz will discuss what it takes to mature a scientific instrument from the concept stage to the point that it has been transformed into actual flight hardware, ready to fly to Mars. He will discuss how the data produced by the PIXL instrument can be used to gain a deeper understanding of paleo-environmental conditions on Mars, and the types of chemical "biosignatures" left behind by microbial life that might be visible to PIXL. Finally, Dr. Hurowitz will briefly discuss the Jezero Crater landing site that the Mars 2020 rover mission will visit, and what this site might reveal about Mars geological past.
Biosketch:
Dr. Joel Hurowitz is a geochemist and planetary scientist working on the exploration of Mars and the study of modern and ancient Mars analog environments on Earth. Dr. Hurowitz is the deputy principal investigator of one of seven instruments, called PIXL, which was selected for the science payload of the Mars 2020 rover mission. Dr. Hurowitz received his Ph.D. from Stony Brook University working under the supervision of Dr. Scott McLennan. He was a Caltech postdoctoral scholar at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in 2006–2007 working with Dr. Albert Yen. From 2007 to 2013, Dr. Hurowitz was a research scientist at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. In 2013, he joined the faculty of the Department of Geosciences at Stony Brook University where he is an assistant professor.
Guest Speaker: Dr. Joel Hurowitz, Department of Geosciences
Title: "The PIXL Investigation on the Mars 2020 Rover Mission: Investigating Ancient Environments and Searching for Signs of Past Life on Mars"
Date: Tuesday, April 30
Time: 3:00pm-4:00pm
Location: Special Collections Seminar Room, E-2340, second floor of the Melville Library
Please register here.
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