MSGC News & Events

Research at Colby College plays an Important Role in Students Scientific Careers

Fri, 12 Jun 2009 13:35:00

Research plays a powerful and important pedagogical role in preparing students for success in their future scientific careers. By grappling with a "real" problem framed as a research project, and personally experiencing the frustrations and triumphs of such an activity, a student will likely learn more about the field than by any other means.

Research projects in Das Thamattoor's lab are developed with the undergraduate students in mind. They are carefully designed to not only address important questions in organic chemistry, but also have a high "education content", and be compatible with the experience-level of the students. Specifically, the projects are intended to teach students to: (a) design and set up experiments, (b) synthesize, purify, and analyze compounds, (c) use research grade instruments and other experimental equipment to obtain data, (d) become proficient in modern computational methods, (e) retrieve information from the chemical literature, (f) interpret results, (g) work collaboratively with other scientists (h) write reports, (i) give oral presentations, and (j) publish their work in peer-reviewed journals. An especially important aspect of the lab's educational goals is to help students realize their maximum potential in a friendly, supportive, and nuturing atmosphere.

Over the years, the Thamattoor lab has established a vigorous undergraduate oriented research program. The projects are varied and span organic synthesis of biologically active compounds, reactive intermediates, structural chemistry of molecules with interesting architectures, computational chemistry, and photochemistry. So far over forty students have worked in the group on a variety of challenging research projects resulting in peer-reviewed publications, and presentations at national and international meetings. The program has attracted substantial external funding from private and federal agencies including the Petroleum Research Fund administered by the American Chemical Society, Research Corporation, and the National Science Foundation.

Over the past several years, the Thamattoor lab has hosted a number of students from area high schools as summer research scholars. Currently this program is funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF). The high school students typically spend a few weeks in the lab working alongside Colby undergraduates and Das Thamattoor on original research projects in organic chemistry. This summer, the Thamattoor lab has partnered with the Maine Space Grant Consortium to host two high school students through the MERITS (Maine Research Internships for Teachers and Students) Program.

Students from Maine to Witness the Launch of STS-127 with Maine's Astronaut Onboad

Fri, 12 Jun 2009 09:49:00

A group of students from the Brunswick Junior High School (BJHS) are on their way down to Kennedy Space Center in Florida to witness Maine's Astronaut Chris Cassidy launch into space on Saturday June 13. These students make up the BJHS's Astrobiology team and are one team of 10 across the state that are involved in a new pilot program in Astrobiology, sponsored in part by the Maine Space Grant Consortium. Other key partners and important supporters include Maine's Senator Elizabeth Schneider, Lockheed Martin Corp., NASA Ames, Maine Department of Education, TERC, and the University of Maine.

The goal of the Astrobiology Program is to raise the aspiration of Maine students in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) areas. Witnessing the launch of STS-127 will compliment the curricula that students have been studying this year through the Astrobiology program. The group is being led by Ms. Sharon Eggleston, a Senior Project Engineer with Lockheed Martin Corp and the Northeast Regional Coordinator for Space Day Activities.

Commander Cassidy has never forgotten his Maine roots. He participated in Space Day Maine as a guest of Ms. Eggleston's in 2007. In a pre-flight interview by NASA, Commander Cassidy was asked about his educational steps to getting to the astronaut level. This was his response:

"I just went to a regular high school and then learned about a place called the Naval Academy where it's not only free but they pay you to go there. What a deal that was! So I applied and was able to get to the Naval Academy Prep School and on to the Naval Academy. I was a math major there and then spent a few years doing job in the SEAL teams before I went on to graduate school and at MIT I studied underwater vehicles in the Ocean Engineering Department, specifically underwater vehicle navigation which is kind of what I was doing in the Navy. I was then driving the mini-sub as a Navigator so that was a nice parallel to my graduate studies."

Pictured above is the BJHS Astrobiology team with Ms. Sharon Eggleston, Astrobiology teacher, Ms. Diane Bowen and Dr. Des Marais from NASA Ames.

Successfully Commercialized NASA Technologies highlighted in NASA Spinoff

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 13:47:00

For more than 40 years, the NASA Innovative Partnerships Program has facilitated the transfer of NASA technology to the private sector, benefiting global competition and the economy. The resulting commercialization has contributed to the development of commercial products and services in the fields of health and medicine, industry, consumer goods, transportation, public safety, computer technology, and environmental resources.

Click here For more information on NASA's Spinoff and to view a searchable database.

Maine Astronaut Chris Cassidy Prepares for Launch

Thu, 04 Jun 2009 07:22:00

June 13 at 7:17 a.m EDT is the official launch date and time for the STS-127 mission to the International Space Station. Space Shuttle Endeavour is in place at Launch Pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center, undergoing final preparations for its upcoming 16-day mission.

Mission STS-127 is the 32nd flight dedicated to station construction and the final of a series of three flights dedicated to the assembly of the Japanese Kibo laboratory complex. The payload aboard the space shuttle is the Kibo Japanese Experiment Module Exposed Facility and Experiment Logistics Module Exposed Section.

Christopher J. Cassidy is from York Maine and will serve as a Mission Specialist on this mission. Mark L. Polansky is the commander and Douglas G. Hurley is the pilot. Other Mission Specialists are Thomas H. Marshburn, David A. Wolf and Julie Payette, a Canadian Space Agency Astronaut. This flight also delivers to the Space Station, Timothy L. Kopra, a flight engineer and science officer and return Japanese astronaut Koichi Wakata to Earth.

This is the first mission for Chris and we wish him well!

Click here for more information on STS-127 and its crew members