Dear Fellow Alum,

It’s graduation time, one of the most festive times for the college. And in honor of newly graduating students, we have been distributing “College of Chemistry” mugs with a complimentary coffee certificate to the college’s “Coffee Lab.” This was done last year as well and has been very well received. There’s nothing like a little caffeine to assist one through those last finals, and the mug serves as a favorable reminder of all the fun and dedicated times that the college years have afforded.

	New-timers: Graduating students mug with the College Mug, left.
	Eugene Rosa (B.S. ’59, Chem) attended his first Cupola Era event in March with his daughter.

Several recent events provided both fun and fantastic networking opportunities for alumni.

The second annual Young Alumni and Graduating Student Reception was held on April 27. This year’s event was a huge success with many newly graduating students being congratulated by faculty and recent alums while enjoying a delectable selection of sushi. This is an exciting time of year for those receiving their degrees after many years of hard work and dedication, and I am thrilled that we were able to recognize and celebrate their achievements together.

The Berkeley Nanotechnology Forum 2005 took place on April 30. Organized by the Berkeley Nanotechnology Club and sponsored by the Colleges of Chemistry, Engineering, and Letters & Science, and the Schools of Business and Law, this forum brought together people from the campus and community with a common interest in all things super-small. The talks and poster sessions were stimulating, and Stephen Chu, who is the Director of LBNL and a Nobel laureate in physics, gave the keynote address.

We have had many others events this past year, including Cal Day, which was held on April 16 and is a campus-wide open house for newly admitted students and their parents and the general community. The event was a great success. Lecturer Mark Kubinec and Lonnie Martin gave a demonstration lecture on “Molecules, Materials and Us” that included explosive, illuminating demonstrations and examples of ChemQuizzes. I highly recommend that you consider bringing your children or grandchildren to this event next year. Mark and Lonnie have a way of intriguing the scientist in all of us! After this lecture, Associate Dean Herbert L. Strauss gave a welcome presentation to new and prospective students of the College of Chemistry and their parents, followed by an informal question and answer session. Prior to the lectures, students from AXE and AIChE and our undergraduate advisors were available in the Latimer lobby to answer questions pertaining to the course work curriculum and life in the college. We continue to be encouraged by the quality of students that Cal is continually able to recruit, which helps to maintain the outstanding program that is offered in the College of Chemistry.

The Cupola Era alumni luncheon was held on March 3. Chemistry Professor Rich Saykally talked about “What Makes Water Wet” to a group of 65 alumni, friends and faculty. We were delighted that there were more than 15 “new-timers” at this event.

	FRIENDSHIP. Long-time friends Bob Breuer (B.S. ’43, Chem) and Daisy Quan (B.S. ’47 Chem) catch up at the G. N. Lewis Era luncheon in November.
	HARRIS SYMPOSIUM. Current and former students of chemistry chair Charles Harris recently held a symposium in honor of his 65th birthday. Dor Ben-Amotz (Ph.D. ’86, Chem) (left) and Steven George (Ph.D. ’83, Chem) (right) both attended.

The Real World Engineering event was held on February 3. Special thanks to the following chemical engineering alumni who participated as panelists: Jay Ackerman, MS ’63; Morgan Edwards, BS ’86; Carlos Hernandez, BS ’00; Clint Holzwarth, BS ’79; Jack Matkin, BS ’62; Laura Oliphant, PhD ’91; Larry Perry, BS ’56; Steve Sciamanna, BS ’79, PhD ’86; and Read Simmons, PhD ’99. More than 60 chemical engineering undergraduate students attended, and all seemed very glad to have had this opportunity to hear from “Real World Professionals.”

The Alumni of the G. N. Lewis Era luncheon on November 18 featured a talk by chemical engineering professor Clayton Radke on “Black Lines, Streaks, and Holes: The Dry Eye Syndrome” to more than 50 alumni, friends and faculty. This was a very interesting talk and gave us some “insight” into our eyesight.

The AIChE Annual Conference reception was held in Austin, Texas on November 9. With more than 200 alumni and friends in attendance, it was a great event for renewing connections and mixing with former colleagues, classmates and faculty.

The two alumni era groups Free Radicals and CHEMillenniums combined their event last year during Homecoming & Parents’ Weekend and held a brunch on October 16, following a talk by chemistry assistant professor Dirk Trauner. After the brunch, several of the guests attended a barbecue hosted by the campus, and then watched the Bears beat the Bruins! This was a fun event, full of warmth and camaraderie.

We are looking forward to another productive and festive year. Looking ahead to the fall, we have Homecoming & Parents’ Weekend on September 30 - October 1. All are invited to chemical engineering professor Doug Clark’s lecture, titled “From the Earliest Bacteria to the Latest Arrays: Old and New Opportunities for Biotechnology,” on Saturday, October 1, 9 - 10 a.m. in 180 Tan Hall. For all college alumni, this event is a terrific opportunity to bring your families back to campus and join with fellow Bears for a wide array of events throughout the weekend. The football game will be Cal vs. Arizona. There is the possibility of the Free Radicals and the CHEMillenniums alumni groups hosting a combined brunch on Saturday following Professor Clark’s lecture, and we will keep you posted. Prior to the lecture, join us from 8:30 - 9:00 a.m. in the Tan Hall lobby for a complimentary continental breakfast with an espresso bar.

Also taking place in the fall is the annual luncheon for the Alumni of the G. N. Lewis Era, which will be held on Thursday, November 17, noon - 2:00 p.m in the Heyns Room at The Faculty Club. Alumni of this era, please watch for a separate mailing as the time draws closer to the event date.

PARTICIPATION. Thank you to our panelists for this year’s Real World Engineering event.

The steering team is continuing to try to find new ways to further the participation of our fellow alums at the College of Chemistry sponsored events. My experiences with this team, and with other fellow alums, have been very favorable, and I am proud to be affiliated with such an awesome group of people.

I hope to see you at our next event!

Rebecca Zuckerman
Ph.D.’00, Chemistry