Dr. Catherine Drennan
“Shake, Rattle, & Roll: A Story of Molecules in Motion”
Friday November 16, 2012, 11am
UNC Chapel Hill
The SPIRE program hosted Dr. Catherine Drennan as our 2012 Distinguished Scholar speaker. Dr. Drennan is a professor of chemistry and biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and a professor and investigator with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI). The HHMI Professor program identifies professors at research universities that have innovative strategies for improving undergraduate science education. With the HHMI funding, Cathy is implementing and expanding a number of initiatives aimed at increasing the understanding of chemical principles among biology students and fostering collaboration and excitement between biologists and chemists. In 2008, Cathy was also named an HHMI Investigator, the first HHMI Professor to attain that achievement. The Drennan lab combines X-ray crystallography with techniques from biochemistry and biophysics to understand enzyme mechanisms.
The day included workshops and laboratory tours for undergraduate students from SPIRE’s partner MSI campuses.
10:00-10:30am Registration
10:30-11:00am Introductions and transition to seminar
11:00-11:50am Dr. Drennan’s seminar
Noon – 12:50pm Lunch
1:00-1:55pm Workshop on How to Find Summer Internships
2:00-3:00pm Graduate/Professional Student Panel Discussions
3:15-4:15pm Laboratory/Professional School tours
4:20-4:45pm Evaluations & Wrap-up