Scientists

Principal Investigators

Click on any scientist name in blue to link to their web page

James P. Ferris, Director
Research Professor, Dept. of Chemistry, Rensselaer
e-mail: ferrij@rpi.edu
Research interests: Mineral catalysis of prebiotic reactions; prebiotic synthesis of RNA; photochemical processs in the atmospheres of Titan, Jupiter and the early earth; interstellar synthesis.

Douglas C. B. Whittet, Associate Director - Rensselaer
Professor, Dept. of Physics, Applied Physics and Astronomy, Rensselaer
e-mail: doug@whittet.phys.rpi.edu
Research interests: Astrochemistry; nature and origin of interstellar dust; synthesis of prebiotic molecules in interstellar clouds; origin of low-mass stars; habitable zones around solar type stars; connections between interstellar dust and primitive material in the Solar System

John W. Delano, Associate Director - State University of NY at Albany (SUNYA)
Professor, Dept. of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences, State University of NY at Albany (SUNYA)
e-mail: jdelano@cnsvax.albany.edu
Research interests: Petrology and geochemistry of sedimentary rocks; oxidation state of Earth's upper mantle and its relation to primitive atmospheric gases; lunar volcanism and impact history.

Michael J. Gaffey
Professor, Dept. of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Rensselaer
e-mail: gaffeym@rpi.edu
Research interests: Origin and early evolution of the Solar System; spectroscopic classification of asteroids; relationship between asteroids and meteorites

Sandra A. Nierzwicki-Bauer
Interim Dean, School of Science, Professor and Director, Darrin Fresh Water Institute, Rensselaer
e-mail: nierzs@rpi.edu
Research interests: Molecular biology; group I self-splicing introns; origins of deep subsurface microorganisms

Wayne G. Roberge
Professor, Dept. of Physics, Applied Physics and Astronomy, Rensselaer
e-mail: roberw@rpi.edu
Research interests: Shock chemistry of interstellar clouds and the solar nebula.

Associated Scientists

Marlene Belfort
N.Y. State Wadsworth Center for Laboratories and Research

William J. Hagan
Associate Professor, Dept. of Chemistry, College of St. Rose
e-mail: haganw@rosnet.strose.edu
Research Interests: Photochemical processes in marine environments on the early Earth; development of laboratory models for prebiotic pathways to inorganic polyphosphates as a system for primitive solar energy conversion.

Charles R. Hauer
Assistant Professor, Structural and Cell Biology, SUNYA and Director, Biological Mass Spectrometry, N.Y. State Wadsworth Center
e-mail: hauer@wadsworth.org
Research interests: Application and further development of mass spectrometry for biomolecule structure characterization. Studies often involve protein/peptide primary structure  determination, with emphasis on the elucidation of posttranslational modifications. Instrument development is focused on improving the capability of MALDI-TOF MS for structure elucidation. Our interest is in the identification and structure/function relationship of proteins associated with disease states or specific celluar processess.

Ake Hjalmarson
Onsala Space Observatory, S-439 92 ONSALA, Sweden
e-mail: hjalmar@oso.chalmers.se
Research interests: Radio astronomy; search for prebiotic molecules in interstellar space

William H. Irvine
Professor, Dept. of Physics and Astronomy, Univ. of Massachusetts
e-mail: irvine@ferao.physast.umass.edu
Research interests: Radio astronomy; organic molecules in interstellar matter and comets

John R. Jones
Staff Scientist, NASA Johnson Space Center
Research interests: Experimental trace element partitioning studies for the purpose of understanding the geochemical evolution of Mars and the parent bodies of differentiated meteorites. In addition, Dr. Jones has been an active investigator into the early history of the Earth-Moon system.

James F. Kasting
Associate Professor, Pennsylvania State University
e-mail: kasting@essc.psu.edu
Research Interests: Origin of solar systems; planetary habitability; early Earth environment; atmospheric photochemistry and climatology

Paul R. Renne
President and Director, Berkeley Geochronology Center
Research Interests: Development and application of 40-Ar/39-Ar geochronology to problems in planetary and biotic evolution (e.g., mass extinctions; paleoclimate; bolide impacts)

Graham Ryder
Staff Scientist, Lunar and Planetary Institute
Research Interests: Active in lunar sample analysis since 1975, and is currently interested in determining the bombardment history of the Moon from isotopic analyses of lunar impact melt-rocks collected by the Apollo astronauts.

Jack W. Szostak
Dept. of Molecular Biology, Massachusetts General Hospital
Boston, MA 02114
e-mail: szostak@molbio.mgh.harvard.edu

Alexander Tielens
Scientist, University of Groningen, the Netherlands
e-mail: tielens@astro.rug.nl
Research Interests: Interstellar chemistry; synthesis of organic molecules in the solar nebula

Faith Vilas
NASA Johnson Space Center
e-mail: vilas@snmail.jsc.nasa.gov

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Center for Studies of Origins of Life, Rensselaer Polytechnic Inst., Troy, NY 12180
http://www.rpi.edu/dept/phys/Astro/origin.html
Email: Origins of Life (Origins_of_Life@rpi.edu)