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C&EN's Talented 12

Whether exploring early life or probing reactions in outer space, these rising stars are taking on some of the most vexing challenges in the chemical universe

Welcome to the fourth annual Talented 12 issue. We’ve spent months searching high and low for these bright, young scientific minds and are excited to finally introduce you to them.

Here, you’ll meet a dozen chemists pushing the boundaries in their fields. To say they are tackling life’s great mysteries would be an understatement. The interests of these distinguished researchers include deciphering the chemistry that enabled life on Earth, exploring molecules in far-flung parts of our solar system, designing out-of-this-world materials that can store energy or mimic human organs, and developing technology to precisely alter the code of life.

Whether exploring early life or probing reactions in outer space, these rising stars are taking on some of the most vexing challenges in the chemical universe

Welcome to the fourth annual Talented 12 issue. We’ve spent months searching high and low for these bright, young scientific minds and are excited to finally introduce you to them.

Here, you’ll meet a dozen chemists pushing the boundaries in their fields. To say they are tackling life’s great mysteries would be an understatement. The interests of these distinguished researchers include deciphering the chemistry that enabled life on Earth, exploring molecules in far-flung parts of our solar system, designing out-of-this-world materials that can store energy or mimic human organs, and developing technology to precisely alter the code of life.

Stats & Facts

C&EN has gathered intel about this year’s class of rising stars

9
Number of languages spoken
Dutch, English, French, German, Korean, Mandarin, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish
33
Average age
353
Number of peer-reviewed papers published
13
Number of patents filed
Here are the locales our 12 have called home then and now

Key

  1. Darryl Boyd
  2. Morgan Cable
  3. Connor Coley
  4. Pedro García Barrantes
  5. Nicole Gaudelli
  6. Roxanne Kieltyka
  7. Joseph Moran
  8. Cathy Mulzer
  9. Mónica Pérez-Temprano
  10. Jose Rodriguez
  11. Luisa Whittaker-Brooks
  12. Y. Shrike Zhang

Key

  1. Darryl Boyd
  2. Morgan Cable
  3. Connor Coley
  4. Pedro García Barrantes
  5. Nicole Gaudelli
  6. Roxanne Kieltyka
  7. Joseph Moran
  8. Cathy Mulzer
  9. Mónica Pérez-Temprano
  10. Jose Rodriguez
  11. Luisa Whittaker-Brooks
  12. Y. Shrike Zhang
Credit: Will Ludwig/C&EN/Shutterstock

Lab loves

This year’s Talented 12 say they can’t survive without these things in the lab

Credit: Shutterstock

Darryl Boyd: Sticky notes

“My desk is littered with sticky notes on which I jot down new research ideas that I want to pursue.”

Credit: Shutterstock

Morgan Cable: A head scarf

“Gotta keep the wisps of hair out of the eyes when working with chemicals!”

Credit: Shutterstock

Connor Coley: Graphical processing units

Coley says this computer hardware that speeds calculations is “without a doubt” most vital to his work.

Credit: Courtesy of Pedro García Barrantes

Pedro García Barrantes: Liquid chromatograph/mass spectrometer

“It allows you to have a lot of information about your reaction in just a couple of minutes, and with minimal sample preparation.”

Credit: Shutterstock

Nicole Gaudelli: Twelve-channel pipettors

 

Credit: Courtesy of Roxanne Kieltyka

Roxanne Kieltyka: Flash chromatography system

 

Credit: Shutterstock

Joseph Moran: Gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer

“But our view of the Notre Dame de Strasbourg cathedral is a close second.”

Credit: Shutterstock

Cathy Mulzer: Paper notebook

“I love the ability to grab a pen and some paper to explain what I am working on in the lab.”

Credit: Courtesy of Mónica Pérez-Temprano

Mónica Pérez-Temprano: Nuclear magnetic resonance equipment

 

Credit: Shutterstock

Jose Rodriguez: Coffee

 

Credit: Shutterstock

Luisa Whittaker-Brooks: Glove box

 

Credit: Андрей Ильин/Business Journal/Wikimedia Commons

Y. Shrike Zhang: 3-D bioprinter

This device, Zhang says, allows his group to precisely deposit cells while building miniature versions of organs called organoids.

Lab mascots

Some of our 12 use these to motivate their groups

Morgan Cable: A stuffed echidna in Cable’s lab represents a collaboration with the Australian Nuclear Science & Technology Organisation, which names its instruments after native animals.

Credit: Courtesy of Morgan Cable

Cathy Mulzer: Mulzer says she will forever be a “Dichtel hummingbird.” Ph.D. adviser William Dichtel, who at the time was at Cornell University, tells his students they are a small group that continuously needs to thirst for science and knowledge, like hummingbirds.

Credit: Dichtel Research Group

Mónica Pérez-Temprano: Pérez-Temprano’s lab mascot is a stuffed unicorn, she says, because one of the biggest challenges her students face is trapping highly reactive intermediates, which is like trying to chase a unicorn.

Credit: Courtesy of Mónica Pérez-Temprano

Jose Rodriguez: Rodriguez’s lab has a pet succulent plant named Leon-II.

Credit: Courtesy of Jose Rodriguez

Luisa Whittaker-Brooks: Whittaker-Brooks’s dog, Tank, “keeps everyone in check.”

Credit: Courtesy of Luisa Whittaker-Brooks

Our 2018 selection process

To assemble this list, we consulted our staff, C&EN’s advisory board, and Talented 12 alumni. And we were blown away by the many nominations from readers submitted through an online form. A lengthy research and evaluation process of roughly 350 people led us to the names before you today.

Talented 12 contributors

Site and page design by Tchad K. Blair and Robert Bryson

Profile illustrations by Joel Kimmel

Research graphics by Yang H. Ku/Will Ludwig/C&EN

Production by Melissa T. Gilden, Samantha H. Jones, Manny I. Fox Morone, Jessica Morrison, and Alexandra A. Taylor

Profiles written by Celia Henry Arnaud, Ryan Cross, Matt Davenport, Carmen Drahl, Bethany Halford, Tien M. Nguyen, and Michael Torrice

Editing and project oversight by Lisa M. Jarvis and Lauren K. Wolf

About Funding Support

C&EN editorial staff produced this feature with funding from Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc., which did not influence any editorial decisions.

Profiles

C&EN’s Talented 12

Whether exploring early life or probing reactions in outer space, these rising stars are taking on some of the most vexing challenges in the chemical universe

by Michael Torrice
August 19, 2018 | A version of this story appeared in Volume 96, Issue 33

Logo for Talented 12.
Credit: C&EN

COVER STORY

C&EN’s Talented 12

More online

Find interactive features and nominate next year’s Talented 12 at cenm.ag/t12.

Contents

Profiles P.40–69

Stats & facts P.50–51

Laboratory loves P.60–61

Talented 12 alumni: Where are they now? P.70–71

Welcome to the fourth annual Talented 12 issue. We’ve spent months searching high and low for these bright, young scientific minds and are excited to finally introduce you to them.

In the following pages, you’ll meet a dozen chemists pushing the boundaries in their fields. To say they are tackling life’s great mysteries would be an understatement. The interests of these distinguished researchers include deciphering the chemistry that enabled life on Earth, exploring molecules in far-flung parts of our solar system, designing out-of-this-world materials that can store energy or mimic human organs, and developing technology to precisely alter the code of life.

To assemble this list, we consulted our staff, C&EN’s advisory board, and Talented 12 alumni. And we were blown away by the many nominations readers submitted through an online form. A lengthy research and evaluation process of roughly 350 people led us to the names before you today. This tenacious bunch are sure to wow the chemistry community with their discoveries for years to come.

Talented 12 contributors

Site and page design by Tchad K. Blair and Robert Bryson

Profile illustrations by Joel Kimmel

Research graphics by Yang H. Ku/Will Ludwig/C&EN

Production by Melissa T. Gilden, Samantha H. Jones, Manny I. Fox Morone, and Alexandra A. Taylor

Editing and project oversight by Lisa M. Jarvis and Lauren K. Wolf.

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