Alumni News

2019 Reaxys PhD Prize winners announced

July 30, 2019

2019 Reaxys PhD Prize winnersFive UC Berkeley Ph.D. students have been announced as finalists of this year's Reaxys PhD Prize. The Prize celebrates innovative and rigorous research by ambitious young chemists. The Review Committee examined over 360 entries from around the globe to arrive at the 45 finalists.

Alum explores the costs of doing business in space

July 30, 2019

The cost of doing business in spaceThe world already benefits greatly from space technology, especially in terms of communications, positioning services, Earth observation, and economic activity related to government-funded space programs. With an explosion of more than 2,000 commercial space companies, including those building communications satellites, orbital launch vehicles, and rovers for the Moon and Mars, the world’s commercial space capabilities are quickly expanding beyond our satellite industry,

How a botched train robbery led to the birth of modern American criminology

May 1, 2019

Edward Oscar Heinrich

Following a huge manhunt to capture three train robbers, authorities called in an up-and-coming forensic scientist Edward Oscar Heinrich (BS, 1908, Chem), a UC Berkeley lecturer and alumnus, to help solve what became known as the "Last Great Train Robbery." He didn’t know that the case would put him on the map as a pioneer in modern American criminology .

Meet Frances Arnold, Teenage Rebel Turned Nobel Laureate

March 28, 2019

Frances Arnold

At 15, she was a class-skipping, catch-me-if-you-can maverick hitchhiking to D.C. to protest the Vietnam War. Looking back on those years now, Frances Arnold says, “Fifteen is one of those terrifying ages, where you’re frustrated because you know something’s wrong, but you have no idea how to fix it. So I did what I could, which is protest. “But as I’ve gone through my life,” she continues, “I know that it’s my responsibility to fix it. I’m much better at fixing things than protesting.”

Alumna Geraldine Richmond reappointed to National Science Board

November 8, 2018

Alumna Geraldine Richmond

Alumna Geraldine Richmond (Ph.D. Chem, '80) and been reappointed to the National Science Board for a second six year term. Richmond is a professor of chemistry at the University of Oregon and has held a variety of leadership positions within the scientific community.

Alum David Oxtoby named president of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences

December 5, 2018

John Adams

Alum David Oxtoby (Ph.D. Chem, ’75) has been elected President of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. One of the oldest institutions in America, the Academy was founded in 1780 by John Adams, John Hancock, and 60 other individuals who anticipated that the then young republic would need to gather knowledge and promote learning to succeed in an uncertain future.

The importance of nurturing our undergraduate students

January 13, 2019

Alexandra Brown receives Hertz Foundation FellowshipThe Fannie and John Hertz Foundation announced its new class of fellows for 2018 in the spring, naming alumna Alexandra Brown (B.S. Chem, ’17) one of ten newly minted graduate students as a recipient. As an undergraduate at Berkeley, Brown worked in the research group of Professor John Arnold studying titanium-aluminum heterobimetallics supported by bridging hydride ligands.

Alum Robin Padilla discusses his postdoc career path: meet the scientific-database developer

December 26, 2018

David SchafferRobin Padilla earned his PhD in chemistry in 2010. He worked as a postdoc and scientific editor before assuming his current role as a product manager with Springer Nature. In this position, he applies his analytical skills to developing databases that help researchers to find the information they need faster.

Spotlight on SEMI Women recognizes alum Ellie Yieh

December 26, 2018

Ellie YiehSpotlight on SEMI Women is excited to recognize Q4 2018 honoree Ellie Yieh (College of Chemistry Advisory Board member and alumna) from Applied Materials! Spotlight on SEMI Women recognizes and celebrates accomplished women working in the global microelectronics industry. Nominees include women who are beacons of knowledge, leaders of organizations and initiatives, hidden heroes and innovators in our industry. They are volunteers, protectors, intellectual disruptors and activists.

Chem alum struggled with learning disability to achieve genius

December 7, 2018

Richard HoughtenAt this year's induction ceremony for the Florida Inventors Hall of Fame, Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies founder Richard Houghten and optometry pioneer Herbert Wertheim — two individuals of unquestionable genius — shared a surprising fact about themselves: Growing up, they each struggled with severe learning challenges that easily could have sent them on a different path.