Chemistry and Chemical Biology Research Day Showcases Students’ Work
Event provided stage for undergraduate and graduate chemistry and chemical biology students to discuss research with larger Stevens community
As the Spring 2024 semester neared its conclusion, students and faculty from Stevens’ Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology met on campus to share their research findings and projects with the CCB community.
The Chemistry and Chemical Biology Research Day Showcase took place on May 3 in the University Center Complex’s Tech Flex Auditorium. The event featured opening remarks from prominent Stevens faculty, including President Nariman Farvardin, School of Engineering and Science Dean Jean Zu and Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology Department Chair Woo Lee.
The event, which had more than 160 attendees, included a 45-minute lecture on T cell therapies from Michael Milone, associate professor of pathology at the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine.
The lecture was followed by an hour-long expert panel on artificial intelligence applications in the healthcare industry. The panel featured speakers from the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology External Advisory Board — Pek Lum, CEO and founder of Auransa; Oscar Puig, vice president of transnational medicine and diagnostics at Nucleai; and Benjamin Tycko, codirector of the Institute for Cancer and Infectious Diseases at Hackensack Meridian Health Center for Discovery and Innovation.
In a fireside chat format, students had the opportunity to engage this panel of leading scientists at the frontier of genomic medicine working in academia and biopharma about their thoughts on AI education, research and career opportunities.
“So many individuals interacted with each other and discussed ideas related to chemistry and biology,” said Jeffrey Lam, academic advisor and staff instructor in the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology. “Seeing students, faculty, alumni, family members, even a few visiting high school students networking with each other was an encouraging sight to see.”
The event concluded with a two-hour networking session in which students, faculty, External Advisory Board members and guests discussed their research and students presented their projects on posters. In all, 22 senior research projects and 18 graduate research projects were featured, ranging from topics such as the environmental impacts of certain sunscreens, microplastic removal from water sources, drug resistance in multiple myeloma and many more.
“We wanted an opportunity not only for our seniors to showcase their research projects, but for the entire chemistry and chemical biology community, including graduate students and faculty, to share their work,” said Lam. “By having a day dedicated to everyone's work, we can continue to cultivate a community of researchers within the Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology. I'm excited to see how we will continue to develop Chemistry and Chemical Biology Research Day and promote the work of our students and faculty.”
Learn about the Chemistry and Chemical Biology Research Day Showcase.