College of Chemistry

New satellite measurements show how polluted Los Angeles’ air really is

November 15, 2019
Amina Khan | Los Angeles Times

Ron Cohen

Scientists who scanned the skies above dozens of U.S. cities have made a surprising discovery about the smog that’s suspended over Los Angeles: one of its key ingredients isn’t disappearing as fast as it once did. The finding may help explain why the once-steady improvements in air quality have come close to stalling out here even though nitrogen oxide emissions have continued to decline. It also suggests that the particular chemistry of L.A.'s air may complicate future cleanup efforts. “That’s certainly part of why we’re in a moment in Los Angeles where it’s harder to get the air cleaner,” said Professor Ronald Cohen.

Meet our faculty: John Hartwig

November 15, 2019
by Katrina Krämer | Chemistry World

John Hartwig

John Hartwig is the Henry Rapoport Professor of Chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley. He received the 2019 Wolf Prize in Chemistry. His research aims to find new metal-catalysed reactions, and he was one of the developers of the Buchwald-Hartwig amination, one of the most-used reactions in drug discovery. He spoke with Katrina Krämer at the 2019 American Chemical Society national meeting in Orlando, Florida.

Alumna Margaret Chu-Moyer in the news

November 12, 2019
By Arlene Weintraub | fiercepharma.com

Margaret Chu-Moyer

When Chu-Moyer was tapped to head up the research and chemistry groups across Amgen’s three U.S. R&D sites in 2014, she knew she would have to make some changes for the company to succeed in bringing a KRAS inhibitor into clinical trials, along with other novel treatments for cancer, cardiovascular disease and neurological disorders. For one, she needed to improve the collaboration between scientists who had different areas of expertise—and who lived and worked in different zip codes.

Reimagining “Druggability”

November 5, 2019
By Mark MacNamara | Breakthroughs, CNR magazine

Dan Nomura

In the modern age of pharmacology, some of the newest heroes in the war against human disease are biologists and chemists working in chemical proteomics. Among the leaders in this research is the Novartis-Berkeley Center for Proteomics and Chemistry Technologies (NB-CPACT), a joint venture linking Novartis, a large pharmaceutical company, and the world’s leading public research university. Launched in October 2017, the center is developing new technologies to further the discovery of next-generation therapeutics for cancer and other diseases.

Diamond Jubilee celebration at IIT Kanpur honors Nitash Balsara

November 4, 2019
UC Berkeley, College of Chemistry Press Release

Nitash Balsara

The Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IIT Kanpur), one of the first Indian Institutes of Technology and a globally acclaimed Institute of national importance, has just completed celebrating its diamond jubilee. As part of the celebrations, alumni from the College, including Professor Nitash Balsara were honored for their academic excellence, professional excellence and entrepreneurship.

Alumni Klaas Bergmann and Lisa Onishi awarded industry prizes

November 4, 2019
UC Berkeley, College of Chemistry Press Release

Alumni in the news

Professor Emeritus Klaas Bergmann has been awarded the 2020 Davisson-Germer Prize in Atomic or Surface Physics by APS Physics “for the invention of Stimulated Raman Adiabatic Passage (STIRAP) that became universally used for coherent transfer in quantum systems with unprecedented efficiency and robustness."

Dr. Lisa Onishi, Chemical Engineer, Researcher and Senior Process Engineer at Intel, has been recognized with the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award for her "dedication, achievements, and leadership as a professional engineer".

The ghost of Pimentel Hall

November 1, 2019
by Chandini Dialani |Daily Californian

Pimentel Hall

George Pimentel was a famous physical chemist and is renowned for having conducted work that is the pinnacle of UC Berkeley’s research in chemistry. The inventor of the chemical laser, Pimentel died in 1989 in Kensington, California. While the scientist did achieve great success on our campus, no one expected him to return to UC Berkeley from beyond the grave. Nonetheless, in 1990, the rumors started. Copies of the periodic table started cropping up around campus. Chemistry students in lab in Latimer Hall started hearing voices telling them how to correctly perform their experiments...."

New organometallic asymmetric synthesis research published

October 29, 2019
ACS Publications

organometallic asymmetric synthesis

In a new publication released by ACS Publications, Dean Toste (Gerald E.K.Branch Distinguished Professor of Chemistry) joins Shu-Li You (Shanghai Institute of Organic Chemistry) penning the introduction to "Asymmetric Synthesis Enabled by Organometallic Complexes", a special edition on asymmetric synthesis enabled by organometallic complexes. According to the authors, "Chiral molecules in their enantioenriched or enantiopure forms today are targets of great significance for their widespread applications, ranging from medicinal chemistry to materials science. Asymmetric synthesis enabled by organometallic complexes is one of the preeminent routes toward these targets."

College of Chemistry ranked #1 globally by US News

October 25, 2019
UC Berkeley, College of Chemistry Press Release

College of Chemistry ranked #1

UC Berkeley has announced it tops the list of public universities in global rankings by U.S. News & World Report for the fifth straight year. For the third year in a row, the campus ranks fourth-best overall among publics and privates. Across 23 subject ratings, UC Berkeley ranked first in chemistry; second in environment/ecology; third in economics and business, space science and in physics; fourth in biology and biochemistry and in plant and animal science; and fifth in mathematics, materials science and in engineering.

Richmond Brings Air Pollution Control To The People

October 23, 2019
Brett Simpson | KALW

Ron Cohen

We hear a lot about bad air quality in California. And, it’s hard to know what to do about it. But thanks to a 2017 law, two Bay Area communities known for their air pollution are helping set their own air quality policies. But what does putting air pollution in the hands of the people really look like? In this Cross Currents report from KALW, reporter Brett Simpson attends an important community air quality meeting in Richmond as a committee of residents decide how much monitoring they should do before putting stricter standards in place. Richmond, California has some of the worst air pollution in the country. The committee was divided between more monitoring and wanting to enact stricter standards now.