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Campus
News: Week of April 23, 2001
"Model" Process for Protein Separation and Purification
 Rensselaer
researchers have developed a new paradigm for the development
of easier, more efficient protein purifications and separations
that will facilitate drug discovery that stems from the Human
Genome Project. Steve Cramer and Jon Dordick, chemical engineering,
and Curt Breneman from chemistry, received a three-year $700,000
grant from the National Science Foundation to fund their research.
This
quantitative combinatorial design (QCD) procedure begins with
high-throughput screening (HTS), a highly efficient technique
developed by Cramer, Dordick, and graduate student Kaushal Rege
that rapidly measures the effectiveness of numerous displacer
molecules used to separate proteins.
Breneman and graduate student Cecilia Mazza then calculate a variety
of molecular parameters of the displacers that, when used in conjunction
with the data from HTS, produces an advanced computer model that
predicts the efficacy of displacers with different proteins.
Once
the accuracy of the model is confirmed, it is used to evaluate
the efficacy of virtual libraries of displacer molecules on the
computer. This enables the identification of an appropriate molecular
structure, which is then used to generate actual displacer libraries
in the laboratory using combinatorial biocatalysis. This entire
procedure can then be repeated until the desired displacers are
identified.
The
QCD procedure will be used to identify displacers for a variety
of chromatographic systems. In addition, the project will identify
chemically selective displacers that will result in a dramatic
improvement in the inherent selectivity of these classes of chromatographic
materials.
"This
research project is particularly important in light of all of
the new drug candidates coming out of the Human Genome Project,"
says Cramer. Their work is part of an ongoing effort in Cramer's
laboratory to develop novel chromatographic bioseparation systems.
Cramer and Jim Moore, from chemistry, have been working together
for many years on National Institutes of Health funded projects
for designing novel displacer molecules for protein and DNA separations.
Their
research was presented at the American Chemical Society Meeting
earlier this month.
Three
Outstanding Americans to Receive Doctorates
Rensselaer
will bestow honorary doctoral degrees on Vinton G. Cerf,
widely known as the "Father of the Internet,"
entertainer and educator Bill Cosby, and renowned sociologist
and authority on social inequality William Julius Wilson.
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Rensselaer
will bestow honorary doctoral degrees on Vinton G. Cerf, widely
known as the "Father of the Internet," entertainer
and educator Bill Cosby, and renowned sociologist and authority
on social inequality William Julius Wilson.
The
honors will be conferred at Rensselaer's 195th Commencement
on May 12 at the Pepsi Arena in Albany.
Wilson,
the Lewis P. and Linda L. Geyser University Professor at Harvard
University, will be made a Doctor of Law. Cerf will receive
the honorary degree of Doctor of Engineering.
At
the same ceremony, Rensselaer will present an honorary doctorate
in Arts and Humane Letters to Bill Cosby, the world-famous entertainer
and educator, who will deliver the Commencement address. See
http://www.rpi.edu/web/News/press_releases/2001/commencement.html
for details.
 Cerf
is senior vice president of Internet Architecture and Technology
for WorldCom. His team of architects and engineers design advanced
Internet frameworks for delivering a combination of data, information,
voice, and video services for business and consumer use.
Often
called the "Father of the Internet," Cerf is the co-designer
of the TCP/IP protocols and the architecture of the Internet.
In December 1997, President Clinton presented the U.S. National
Medal of Technology to Cerf and his partner, Robert E. Kahn,
for founding and developing the Internet.
During
his tenure with the U.S. Department of Defense's Advanced Research
Projects Agency, from 1976 to 1982, Cerf played a key role leading
the development of Internet and Internet-related data packet
and security technologies.
As
vice president of MCI Digital Information Services from 1982
to 1986, he led the engineering of MCI Mail, the first commercial
e-mail service connected to the Internet.
Cerf
holds a bachelor's degree in mathematics from Stanford University,
and master's and doctoral degrees in computer science from UCLA.
 Wilson
is a distinguished scholar and authority on the racial divide
and the urban poor. He is one of only 18 University Professors,
the highest professional distinction for a Harvard faculty member.
Wilson
is the author of numerous books, including The Declining
Significance of Race, winner of the American Sociological
Association's Sydney Spivack Award; The Truly Disadvantaged;
When Work Disappears: The World of the New Urban Poor;
and The Bridge Over the Racial Divide: Rising Inequality
and Coalition Politics.
A
MacArthur Prize Fellow from 1987 to 1992, Wilson has been elected
to the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of
Arts and Sciences, the National Academy of Education, the American
Philosophical Society, and the Institute of Medicine.
At
this year's Commencement exercises, 1,029 Rensselaer students
are expected to receive bachelor's degrees; 572, master's degrees;
and 106, doctoral degrees.
Electronic "Skin"
"Sensitive
skin" would sense the environment for proximity, touch,
pressure, chemical and biological hazards, and temperature.
It would enable robots to function in unstructured environments
such as nursing homes or school yards."
—Michael Shur —
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Researchers
at Rensselaer are conducting microelectronics research that
could result in electro textiles that harvest energy and "sensitive
skin" that will allow robots to work unsupervised in unpredictable
environments.
Michael
Shur, the Patricia W. and C. Sheldon Roberts '48 Professor of
Solid State Electronics, and his colleagues have developed solar
cells on fibers and on flexible substances that generate a voltage
as a result of exposure to light. They are useful for covering
surfaces of complex shapes to provide lightweight, compact local
power sources.
"A
soldier or a polar explorer could use this technology to harvest
energy from the environment that would then power wearable electronics
equipment. We could also see, in about five or 10 years, voice-activated
phones covered by solar cell films and a flexible electronic
"sensitive skin" covering robots. Such "sensitive
skin" would sense the environment for proximity, touch,
pressure, chemical and biological hazards, and temperature.
It would enable robots to function in unstructured environments
such as nursing homes or school yards," explained Shur.
Shur
and his colleagues—Remigijus Gaska, research associate
professor; Sergey Roumiantsev, research associate; Romas Rimeika,
visiting scientist, all affiliated with CIEEM and the electrical,
computer, and systems engineering department, and J. Jaunius
of the University of Vilnius, Lithuania—-have covered polymer
fiber and flexible substrates, such as view foils, up to 8.5x11
inches with their semiconducting films. This process can be
scaled up for covering larger substrates or cloth.
The
group is working with Biomedical and Information Technologies
Inc., a start-up company in New York.
LRC
Students Help Community Shed Light on Crime
In
response to increased concerns about drug trafficking and other
safety issues in the city of Troy, students of the Lighting
Research Center (LRC) at Rensselaer are collaborating with the
local community to shed some light on the situation.
 LRC
graduate students met with homeowners, tenants, neighborhood
association representatives, community police, and others to
determine how best to improve safety and overall quality of
life.
The
presentation comprised the final class projects under the direction
of world-renowned architecture lighting designer and Rensselaer
adjunct professor Howard Brandston. Among Brandston's well-known
projects is the design of lighting for the Statue of Liberty.
Increasingly,
residents have been reporting problems of illegal activities,
such as drug dealing, gambling, and prostitution in various
neighborhoods, particularly along the stretch between 15th and
9th streets, according to Troy police officer Mike Carnevale.
To
deter activities in dark alleys and other hard-to see areas,
many have asked that the wattage of streetlights be increased.
But, simply increasing wattage will not decrease crime, says
Brandston. "Lighting must be well-thought-out and well-designed
for it to be effective," he says.
The
student proposals may be used by Rensselaer and the city of
Troy to seek funding from public and private sources for implementation.
Alumni
Named to Athletic Hall of Fame
Five
former Rensselaer student-athletes were been inducted into the
school's Hall of Fame at the annual Hall of Fame Banquet April
21. The inductees were men's basketball player Aaron Bedard
'91, women's basketball player Kim Kalajanein '90, men's hockey
player Dino Serra '77, football player Mike Soucy '95, and men's
swimmer Al Stokke '43.
Five
former Rensselaer student-athletes were been inducted into
the school's Hall of Fame at the annual Hall of Fame Banquet
April 21. The inductees were men's basketball player Aaron
Bedard '91, women's basketball player Kim Kalajanein '90,
men's hockey player Dino Serra '77, football player Mike
Soucy '95, and men's swimmer Al Stokke '43.
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Captain
of the basketball team as a junior and senior, Bedard was a
two-time All-Conference selection as well as the conference
Player of the Year in 1990-91.
Kalajainen,
a guard, was a four-year starter who averaged 7.8 points with
314 assists and 97 steals in her 92-game career. As a freshman
she was named the basketball team's Most Valuable Player.
Serra
played four years on the Division I varsity hockey team. His
46 assists currently rank fifth in school history for a single
season. He was named the Rensselaer's Freshman Athlete of the
Year for the 1973-74 season.
Soucy was a two-time All-American and a three-time All-Conference
and All-League honoree. Twice he was chosen as the football
team's defensive Most Valuable Player. Soucy holds three school
records, including sacks in a game (6.5 in 1991), sacks in a
season (14 in 1991) and sacks in a career (34.5). In 1994-95,
following his senior season, he was chosen as RPI's Athlete
of the Year.
Stokke, often called the "ironman" of the team, swam
in both distances and on relays in the early 1940s. He held
the school records in the 200- and 400-meter and was the leading
scorer on the team for two consecutive seasons. Stokke was also
elected Grand Marshal as a junior.
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