SERMACS 2009 - Program

Undergraduate Program

The Undergraduate Program events will take place at the Puerto Rico Convention Center from Wednesday. October 21 to Saturday, October 24. (Click to download the PDF version)

Wednesday, October 21

Chemistry Ethics Workshop
1:00 am – 4:00 pm Room 102B

Thursday, October 22

Nobel Laureate Plenary Lecture: Dr.Roald Hoffman, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA, “The Chemical Imagination at Work in Very Tight Places”,
8:30 – 9:30 am. Ballroom A

ACS Job Search Strategies Workshop,
9:30 – 11:00 am Room 207

ACS Resume Review Workshop,
11:00 – 12:00 Noon Room 207

Graduate School Fair. Undergraduate students can interact with representatives of different graduate schools and learn more about the research programs available at these universities as well as their chances of getting accepted into these graduate programs.
10:00 am – 5:00 pm, Exhibition Hall C

Exhibits,
10:00 am – 5:00 pm, Exhibition Hall C

Undergraduate Oral Presentations, Technical Program.
10:00 – 12:00 Noon.

Luncheon with Nobel Laureates and SAACS Recognitions (awards)
Informal luncheon with the Nobel Laureates. An excellent opportunity for students to hear an inspirational talk by a laureate and exchange ideas with the Nobel Prize winners in an informal setting on important issues and the opportunities available for them in the chemistry profession.
12:00 – 1:30 pm Place to be announced

Nobel Laureate Plenary Lecture: Dr. Harry Kroto, Florida State University, Florida, USA “Architecture in NanoSpace“. 1:30 – 2:30 pm, Ballroom A

ACS Interviewing Skills Workshop
3:00 – 5:00 pm Room 207

Undergraduate Poster Session
5:00 – 7:00 pm, Exhibit Hall C

Puertorrican Night (social)
7:30 – 11:00 pm, Ballroom

Friday, October 23

Festival de Química- NCW Celebration Outreach Event
Student Member Chapters will conduct hands on demonstrations associated with an element of the Periodic Table and related to the NCW theme: “Chemistry-It’s Elemental”
8:30 am – 12:00 pm, Convention Center's District

Exhibits
8:30 am – 4:00 pm, Exhibition Hall C

Technical Program
8:30 – 12:00 Noon.

Workshops for 4th-6th grades students: History, Chemistry, and Art of the Elements (Two sessions)
9:00 – 10:30 am and 10:30-12:00 Noon.

Awards Luncheon
12:00 – 1:30 pm, Place to be announced

University of Puerto Rico Graduate School Tour (Río Piedras Campus).
The Student Members Chapter will be in charge of hosting those interested in visiting the facilities and in learning more about graduate school opportunities at UPR- Rio Piedras.
2:00 – 4:00 pm, Departing from the Registration Area.

Simposium: History, Chemistry, and Art of the Elements
This symposium will embrace topics on elements known from ancient times and their uses today, through the spectrum of elemental discoveries to elements that exist only as a few atoms. Talks surrounding elements that never existed at all which marked the false starts along the way to actual discoveries will also be considered. Organizer: Sister Mary Virginia Orna, Department of Chemistry, College of New Rochelle, New Rochelle, NY 10805; Phone: (914) 310-0351, Email: mvorna@cnr.edu

The Periodic Table Wasn’t Always This Way, Mary Virginia Orna
1:30 pm

Short History and Update: Chemistry of Copper Art Panels, Cheryl Safren
2:00 pm

Elementeo: The Game of the Elements, Anshul Samar
2:45 pm

Intermission
3:30 pm

One-Atom-at-a-Time Chemistry of the Heaviest Elements, Darleane Hoffman
3:45 pm

The Elements, a Visual Catalog of Everything You Can Drop on Your Foot, Theo Gray
4:30 pm

Concluding Remarks
5:15 pm

Social: La Arcada, Paseo de la Princesa, Old San Juan.
5:00 – 7:00 pm

Saturday, October 24

American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Caribbean Division Annual Conference.

The AAAS-Caribbean Division will hold its 24th Annual Conference (AAAS-CD 09) jointly with SERMACS 2009. "Astronomy and the Origin of Life" will be the theme of the AAAS-CD 09 Conference to celebrate the International Year of Astronomy, the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin's birth, and the 150th anniversary of the publication of his book "On the Origin of Species". We are delighted to announce that our plenary speaker will be Professor Antonio Lazcano, from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM). In addition, this year's conference will be dedicated to Professor Daniel Altschuler, former Director of the Arecibo Observatory and an advocate for science literacy. The conference will also include scientific sessions, teachers and students workshops. The Robert I. Larus award will be presented to the best graduate student poster.

AAAS Opening Ceremony - Dedication to Dr. Daniel Altschuler and Presentation of the Robert I. Larus and the Lucy Gaspar Excellence in Education Awards
8:30 a.m. - 9:00 a.m., Room 208

AAAS Plenary Lecture: Darwin and microoganisms, Antonio Lazcano,
9:00 a.m. – 10:00 am, Room 208

AAAS General Scientific Session
10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Room 208-B

AAAS Teachers Workshop, The Chemistry of Global Warming, Josefina Arce
10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Room 204

AAAS Student Workshop: Chemistry-It’s Elemental (Elementary School) - Going green
10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Terrace

AAAS Student Workshop: Chemistry-It’s Elemental (Middle School) - Green sculptures
10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Terrace

AAAS Student Workshop: Chemistry-It’s Elemental (High School) - The green initiative
10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. Terrace

AAAS Astronomy Session:
Lecture: Extraterrestials and Extraterrestial Life, Daniel Altschuler
Workshop: Kepler and the International Year of Astronomy, Carmen Pantoja and Mayra Lebrón
1:30 - 3:30 p.m. 208-B

Organizer: Dr. Jorge L. Colón, President AAAS-Caribbean Division, Department of Chemistry, University of Puerto Rico, P.O. Box 23346, San Juan, PR 00931-3346; Phone: (787) 402-2015, Email: jlcolon@uprrp.edu

Program format and times are subject to change. Please consult the final program. All events are sponsored or co-sponsored by Student Chapter Members: University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras and Humacao Campus.

To contact the Undergraduate Program Chair, e-mail: Dr. Juan Suárez, Department of Chemistry, University of Puerto Rico, Humacao, PR. jsuarez@sermacs2009.org