43rd Middle Atlantic Regional Meeting

The Maryland Section of the American Chemical Society will host the 43rd Middle Atlantic Regional Meeting (MARM 2012) at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), from Thursday, May 31, to Saturday, June 2.

Cochairs for the meeting are Paul J. Smith of UMBC and Stephanie S. Watson of the National Institute of Standards & Technology. Program cochairs are Bradley R. Arnold of UMBC and Kenneth D. Cole of NIST.

For evolving details about the meeting, including registration and hotel information, visit the MARM 2012 website, marmacs.org/2012.

Technical Program. The technical program will include the following:

Remsen Award Symposium, chaired by Gerald J. Meyer, Johns Hopkins University. The symposium will include presentations by Bart M. Bartlett, University of Michigan; Christopher J. Chang, University of California, Berkeley; Michelle C. Chang, UC Berkeley; Matthew W. Kanan, Stanford University; Shih-Yuan Liu, University of Oregon; Tyrel M. McQueen, Johns Hopkins; and Joel Rosenthal, University of Delaware. Daniel G. Nocera, a professor of chemistry and Henry Dreyfus Professor of Energy at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, will present the Remsen Memorial Lecture. The Remsen Award was established in 1946 by the Maryland Section of ACS to memorialize the career of Ira Remsen, the first professor of chemistry and second president of Johns Hopkins.

Biofuels for Clean Energy, chaired by Susan K. Gregurick, Office of Biological & Environmental Research, Department of Energy. The session will highlight research into fundamental principles and processes that can be harnessed to drive biological systems toward DOE’s goal of clean energy. The session will focus on understanding the metabolic pathways and bioprocesses involved in bioenergy production from a microbial and plant biomass vantage point. By taking a systems-level approach, this session will explore new ideas and methods in bioengineering from computational, experimental, and small-scale pilot processing perspectives. Discussions from this session will inform the community about biodesign principles to improve biological components and potentially enable new biohybrid systems in support of clean energy development. Speakers will include Harry Lee, Pharyx; Costas D. Maranas, Pennsylvania State University; E. Terry Papoutsakis, University of Delaware; Ganesh Sriram, University of Maryland; and Percival Zhang, Virginia Polytechnic Institute & State University.

Chemistry in the Chemical Senses, chaired by George Preti, Monell Chemical Senses Center. The chemical senses of taste, smell, and chemesthesis (irritation and burning), which are driven by small organic and inorganic compounds, are at the core of basic chemical senses research and the flavor, fragrance, and consumer products industries. Speakers will focus on the production and use of volatile organic compounds by humans and nonhuman mammals; in addition, they will describe how olfaction and taste work, as well as how to quantitatively measure responses in these senses.

The Breadth of Organic Chemistry, chaired by Cynthia S. Dowd, George Washington University. The symposium will feature eight speakers from the mid-Atlantic region who are leaders in their fields, including Gong Chen, Penn State; David M. Chenoweth, University of Pennsylvania; Elizabeth Papish, Drexel University; Marcin Ptaszek, UMBC; Herman O. Sintim, University of Maryland; and Mary P. Watson, University of Delaware.

Other symposia topics include bioanalytical chemistry, computational biochemistry, mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance of biomolecules, medicinal chemistry, and nanotechnology environmental health and safety.

General technical and poster sessions will cover analytical, inorganic, and physical chemistry; biochemistry; chemistry education; and undergraduate research.

Workshops. MARM 2012 will feature several workshops. See the meeting website for more details and to register; note that space may be limited.

Thursday’s program will include “Expanding Your Laboratory Capabilities for the Better,” offered by PerkinElmer; and several ACS workshops: “Effective Interviewing,” “Individual Résumé Review,” “Leadership Workshop: Fostering Innovation,” “Planning Your Job Search,” and “Preparing a Résumé.”

Friday’s workshops will include “Automated Serum to Purified Peptides in 10 Minutes for LCMS,” “Best Steps for the Chemical Entrepreneur,” “Chemical Start-ups,” and “Companion Software for Freshman & Organic Chemistry Texts: Enhancing Student Learning.”

On Saturday, the workshops will be “Elementary School Teachers Hands-on STEM Program,” “High School Teachers Environmental Program,” “High School Teachers Forensic Science Program,” and “Lens of Science & the Market: How To Position Your Green & Sustainable Materials.”

Social Events. Several social events and field trips have been planned for MARM 2012. Event tickets may be purchased through registration or on-site; note that space may be limited. See the meeting website for more details.

Thursday’s events include the 50-Year Member Luncheon, an all-you-can-eat cookout lunch, and the Remsen Award Dinner. Friday will feature a Women Chemists Committee luncheon, another all-you-can-eat cookout lunch, an awards dinner, and a Beers of Baltimore tasting. Saturday’s activities include the Chemagination Luncheon, an all-you-can-eat cookout lunch, and a Baltimore Inner Harbor dinner cruise.

Exhibits. The Vendor Exhibit Show will be held from 9 AM to 5 PM on Thursday through Saturday in the ballroom of the University Center. The exhibition area will include the poster sessions and will be adjacent to the areas for technical sessions and symposia. Coffee breaks will be held from 9 to 11:30 AM and 1 to 3:30 PM.

Sponsorships of meeting sessions, coffee breaks, and meals are available for purchase to financially support MARM 2012.

To reserve exhibit space or obtain further information on sponsorships, visit marmacs.org/2012/exhibitors.html.

Lodging. UMBC is located just south of Baltimore and 40 miles north of Washington, D.C.

To reach the campus from the north, take I-95 to Route 166 (Exit 47B, Catonsville) or take Interstate 83 to the Baltimore Beltway (I-695, west) and then take Exit 12C (Wilkens Ave., west); follow the signs to UMBC. From the south, take I-95 to Route 166 (Exit 47B, Catonsville); follow signs to UMBC.

Baltimore-Washington International Airport is only five minutes from the campus. Bus service is available from downtown Baltimore. Amtrak and MARC commuter trains serve the nearby BWI Marshall Rail Station. Additional information can be found at marmacs.org/2012/directions.html.

A variety of rooms will be available for MARM 2012 (see marmacs.org/2012/housing.html). They include dorm rooms on the UMBC campus and rooms at the Holiday Inn Baltimore-Inner Harbor and the Four Points by Sheraton.

Applications for undergraduate housing awards to help students pay for housing while attending MARM 2012 are available on the meeting website.

Registration. Meeting registration is available at marmacs.org/2012/register.html. Early-bird registration closes on May 6. Online registration will remain open at the on-site registration rates until May 29. After May 29, participants must register on-site.

On-site registration in the University Center will be available from 5 to 8 PM on Wednesday, May 30; 7 AM to 5 PM on Thursday, May 31, and Friday, June 1; and 7:30 to 10 AM on Saturday, June 2.