42nd Middle Atlantic Regional Meeting

The 42nd Middle Atlantic Regional Meeting (MARM 2011) will be hosted by the ACS Chemical Society of Washington section at the University of Maryland, in College Park, from Saturday, May 21, to Tuesday, May 24. The meeting’s theme is “International Year of Chemistry.”

The meeting will feature leaders in the chemical sciences, including keynote speakers Eric E. Wachsman of the university’s Energy Research Center and Clifton E. Barry III of the Laboratory of Clinical Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health. Several symposia and workshops are planned, as well as events focusing on career development, funding opportunities, and education.

Visit the meeting website, marmacs.org/2011, for the latest program details and information about abstract submission, registration, and hotels.

The greater Washington, D.C., area—which includes College Park—is home to a large concentration of chemical scientists and a great diversity of government, industrial, and academic laboratories. MARM 2011 provides an advantageous setting for interactions between the diverse segments of the chemistry enterprise, opportunities to make connections, and occasions to explore different career opportunities.

TECHNICAL PROGRAM. Emphasis is placed on life sciences, materials sciences, and chemical education. The technical program will begin Saturday morning, May 21, with symposia on “Supramolecular Chemistry & Molecular Recognition,” “Advances in Organic Synthesis,” “Nucleic Acid Chemistry,” “Bioactive Small Molecule Design & Discovery,” and “Medicinal Chemistry & Chemical Biology of Anticancer Drugs.” In the afternoon, symposia in the life sciences continue with “Synthetic Chemistry (Across the Border),” “Damage, Repair & Mutation of DNA,” “Frontiers of Structure & Dynamics Using NMR Spectroscopy,” and “Medicinal Chemistry of Anticancer Drugs,” and “Nanoparticle Metrology” begins the symposium in materials science.

Sunday morning is primarily devoted to career development, grant writing and grant opportunities, and education. Plenary sessions are Sunday afternoon. Monday morning sessions have a materials emphasis with symposia on “New Technologies for Lithium Ion Batteries,” “Chemistry of Graphitic Materials,” and “Advances in Terahertz & IR Spectroscopy.” Afternoon symposia include “Redefining the Kilo­gram & Avogadro’s Number,” “Metal-Mediated Small Molecule Activation & Functionalization,” and “Chemistry & Materials Composition of Cultural Heritage Materials.”

Tuesday morning symposia will include “Ambient Ionization Methods in Biological Mass Spectrometry,” “Nutraceutical & Food Chemistry: An Exciting Career for Chemists,” “Applied Methods for Separation Science,” “Cheminformatics & Bioinformatics: Working Together To Address Systems Chemical Biology,” and the “Chromatography Award Symposium.” Additional symposia will be announced on the website.
■ Contributed Papers: Abstracts for presentation should be submitted to the poster session that best matches the technology. For example, a biochemical presentation could fit in bioorganic, medicinal, or physical sessions; likewise, a theoretical topic could be best suited to inorganic, organic, or physical, depending on the application. Submitted abstracts directly related to a symposium topic will be considered for inclusion as oral presentations by the symposium organizers. Time has been allocated in each of the symposia so that contributed papers can be presented in the same sessions as invited papers.

CAREER DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM. MARM 2011 will include a number of symposia and workshops that will aid attendees in career development. On Sunday morning, workshops will be offered on grant writing and career development. A symposium on “Degree Opportunities at Federal Laboratories” will also be featured. Representatives of government funding agencies will be available to answer questions about opportunities and programs.

UNDERGRADUATE PROGRAM. The “Undergraduate Research Symposium” will be held Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning. Student poster presentations will be held in the meeting area that adjoins vendor booths.

HIGH SCHOOL TEACHER PROGRAM. MARM 2011 will offer programs for high school teachers beginning Saturday morning with a symposium on “Chemical Education” followed by “Chemistry Curriculum in the High School” in the afternoon. The Teacher Award Luncheon will also be held on Saturday.

Registered high school teachers are urged to attend the MARM 2011 Awards Banquet on Monday evening. For a complete schedule, visit the website at ­marmacs. org/2011/precollege.html.

The University of Maryland’s department of chemistry and biochemistry holds an annual workshop for Maryland high school and middle school science teachers called REACTS (Reaching Educators for the Advancement of Chemistry Teaching Statewide). This workshop, which includes a hands-on event on Sunday morning, will be held in conjunction with MARM 2011.

ENTREPRENEURSHIP. Two symposia will be presented on Monday. “Enabling Science at Startup Companies” will feature case histories of several of the firms. “Expiration of Patent Protection” will zero in on a major challenge for chemical and pharmaceutical industries in the 21st century.

WORKSHOPS. Included in MARM 2011 will be workshops on “Laboratory Waste Management & How To Be a More Effective Chemical Hygiene Officer,” “Building the NSF Grant Proposal,” “Validation of Chromatographic Methods in Pharmaceutical Chemistry,” “Facilitating Improved Lab-Scale Purification,” “Career Development,” and “Career Opportunities at the Federal Laboratories.”

SOCIAL EVENTS. Tickets may be purchased during registration or on-site.
■ Saturday: A teacher award luncheon will be held at noon. A welcome reception will be held from 7:30 to 9 PM.
■ Sunday: An ice cream social following the plenary lectures will provide an opportunity to meet ACS governance.
■ Monday: The MARM 2011 Awards Banquet will be held from 7 to 9 PM in conjunction with the May dinner meeting of the Chemical Society of Washington. The banquet will be preceded by a reception from 6 to 7 PM that is open to all.

EXHIBITION & SPONSORSHIPS. The exhibition will run from Saturday morning through Monday afternoon. Exhibitor booths will be in the Grand Ballroom of the Adele H. Stamp Student Union center, next to poster sessions and near major symposia. Contact Dolores Jackson at dej@umd.edu or (301) 405-4530 for more details about exhibiting at the meeting.

In addition to or in lieu of exhibiting, vendors have the opportunity to sponsor MARM 2011 events and provide financial sponsorship. Printed posters will identify companies that sponsor a specific activity. Contact Michael P. Doyle at mdoyle3@umd.edu or (301) 405-1788 for details.

To reserve exhibit space or for further information, visit marmacs.org/2011.

LODGING. Accommodations are available at several local hotels. Please visit the meeting website at marmacs.org/2011/housing.html for additional information and to make a reservation.

REGISTRATION. Advance online registration is available at marmacs.org/2011/­register.html. On-site registration will take place from 8 AM to 7 PM on Saturday, May 21, and from 8 AM to 5 PM on Sunday and Monday, May 22 and 23.