Nobel Laureate: David MacMillan, Ph.D. 

Register for this event here! 

Date: February 16, 2024

Times: 

• Seminar One: 10:30 - 11:45 a.m. "The Path to Invention and Discovery in Catalysis"

• Seminar Two: 3:00 - 4:15 p.m. "The Development of Asymmetric Organocatalysis and Metallaphotoredox"

Location: Rowan Glassboro Campus; Chamberlain Student Center, Eynon Ballroom. These seminars are in-person only and will not be recorded. 

Audience: Open to all. Register here to help us in our planning.

Cost: Free

Parking: Please enter through the Welcome Gate (off of Rt. 322), where the attendant will direct you to parking at the Townhouse Garages. Click for map.

Seminar Abstracts: 

• Seminar One: The Path to Invention and Discovery in Catalysis
  • This lecture, intended for a broad scientific audience, will describe the advent and development of asymmetric organocatalysis in Dr. MacMillan’s laboratory. As part of this overview, he will explore concepts of chemical reactivity, catalysis, and the asymmetry of organic molecules. Dr. MacMillan will examine the impact of organocatalysis on modern synthetic chemistry, explore real-world applications of this technology and will discuss how organocatalysis may continue to impact scientific research and society in the future.

• Seminar Two: The Development of Asymmetric Organocatalysis and Metallaphotoredox
  • Dr. MacMillan will build upon his first presentation by highlighting why organic catalysts have become widely explored in modern synthetic chemistry. He will discuss the application of visible light photocatalysis to the discovery or invention of transformations that will be conceptually or synthetically valuable (and sometimes, hopefully, both). Specifically, Dr. MacMillan will highlight recent applications of photoredox catalysis in his group including the development of new metallaphotoredox reactions and high-resolution µMap technology, which provides a powerful means to probe biological pathways at the subcellular level.

About the Speaker: David W. C. MacMillan was born in Bellshill, Scotland and received his undergraduate degree in chemistry at the University of Glasgow, where he worked with Dr. Ernie Colvin. In 1990, he began his doctoral studies under the direction of Professor Larry Overman at the University of California, Irvine, before undertaking a postdoctoral position with Professor Dave Evans at Harvard University in 1996. He began his independent career at University of California, Berkeley, in July of 1998 before moving to Caltech in 2000 as the Earle C. Anthony Chair of Organic Chemistry. In 2006, Dave moved to Princeton University as the A. Barton Hepburn Professor of Chemistry. He served as Department Chair from 2010–2015 and is currently the James S. McDonnell Distinguished University of Chemistry. Dave shares the 2021 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Benjamin List “for the development of asymmetric organocatalysis.” His research interests encompass a wide range of organic chemistry, including the development of new areas in organocatalysis and photoredox catalysis.

Event Sponsored By: Rowan University; College of Science & Mathematics

Questions? For questions about this event, please reach out to Sarah Fobes at fobes@rowan.edu. 

Previous Centennial Lectures:

"Nature's Best Hope"

Presented by Entomologist & NY Times Bestseller, Dr. Doug Tallamy

View the Recording

Date: October 4th, 2023

Time: 7:00 - 8:30 p.m. (An expo with related information will begin at 6:20 p.m.; Dr. Tallamy's books will be available for purchase by cash/check only)

Location: Rowan Glassboro Campus; Chamberlain Student Center, Eynon Ballroom. Click for map.

Audience: Open to all. Registration Required.

Cost: Free

Parking: Registrants will be emailed an event parking pass for the Townhouse Garages. Click for map.

Recent headlines about global insect declines and three billion fewer birds in North America are a bleak reality check about how ineffective our country's current landscape designs have been at sustaining the plants and animals that sustain us.  Such losses are not an option if we wish to continue our current standard of living on Planet Earth. The good news is that none of this is inevitable. Dr. Doug Tallamy, the T. A. Baker Professor of Agriculture in the Department of Entomology & Wildlife Ecology at the University of Delaware, will share how to choose the right plants for our landscapes to not only address the biodiversity crisis, but help our climate crisis as well. Tallamy will discuss simple steps that each of us can—and must—take to reverse declining biodiversity, why we must change our adversarial relationship with nature to a collaborative one, and why we, ourselves, are nature’s best hope.

Successful examples of recent biodiverse plantings on Rowan's campus will also be highlighted during this event.

About the Speaker: Dr. Doug Tallamy has authored 112 research publications and has taught insect-related courses for 42 years. Chief among his research goals is to better understand the many ways insects interact with plants and how such interactions determine the diversity of animal communities. His books include Bringing Nature Home; The Living Landscape, co-authored with Rick Darke; Nature's Best Hope, a New York Times bestseller; and The Nature of Oaks, winner of the American Horticultural Society’s 2022 book award. In 2021, he co-founded Homegrown National Park with Michelle Alfandari (https://www.homegrownnationalpark.org/). His awards include recognition from The Garden Writers Association, Audubon, The National Wildlife Federation, Allegheny College, Ecoforesters, The Garden Club of America and The American Horticultural Association.

Event Sponsored By:

College of Science & Mathematics

School of Earth & Environment

Department of Biological & Biomedical Sciences

Ric Edelman College of Communications & Creative Arts

Division of Facilities, Planning & Operations

For questions about this event, please reach out to Sarah Fobes at fobes@rowan.edu.