Workshop Series

Workshop Schedule

• Environmental Impacts
  Pollution, air quality, climate change
  Held July 16, 2008
  University of California, San Diego
  
  Abstract: Atmospheric particles impact human health and the health of ecosystems.  They are also a major source of uncertainty in models of global climate change because particles with different chemistry behave in different ways.  They may scatter or absorb sunlight, or can act as cloud condensation nuclei—stimulating cloud formation.  Clouds also have opposing effects on global warming, reflecting incoming sunlight during the day or trapping radiant heat near the earth’s surface at night. Therefore, studying atmospheric aerosol emissions, chemistry and long-range transport is critical to understanding climate change.
   
  
  

• Biofuels
  The science of creating greener energy
  Held July 12, 2007
  University of California, San Diego
  

  Abstract.   Higher gasoline prices, dependence on foreign oil and concerns about global warming have placed biofuels in the spotlight. However, no one thinks that turning food crops into fuel is going to quench our thirst for fossil fuels. Not enough land is available. Instead, innovative, interdisciplinary research efforts are focused on discovering new sources of biofuels and developing efficient ways to produce the fuels and make them a feasible, long-term solution to our energy needs.
  

• Intelligent Nanosensors
  How do they work and how are they made?
  Held July 18, 2006
  University of California, San Diego
  
  Abstract. UCSD scientists and engineers are collaborating across disciplines to develop and network miniaturized intelligent nanosensors that can rapidly and remotely detect change in their surroundings.  These sensors have a wide range of potential applications: environmental, medical, military and transportation.  This workshop will focus on revealing the chemistry behind the synthesis and functioning of these sensors.
  
  
  
• Disease Targets
  Understanding disease at the level of individual molecules
  Held December 9, 2005
  University of California, San Diego
  
  Abstract. We may think of diseases in terms of collections of symptoms, but interactions between proteins are at the root of all diseases, from bacterial infections to Alzheimer's to cancer. Understanding how proteins function and misfunction is the essential first step toward the design of drug therapies. Please join our distinguished panel of biochemists for a fantastic voyage into the molecular mechanisms of disease.
  
  
  
• Atmospheric Chemistry
  The elements of global environmental issues
  Held July 14, 2005
  University of California, San Diego
  
  Abstract. Atmospheric chemists collect data, sometimes inventing new analytic techniques to facilitate data collection, and generate models of atmospheric processes, such as the hydrological cycle, and the impact of aerosols on global climate.  Because it provides insights that can be applied to improving air quality or controlling acid rain, this research has important implications for human health and biodiversity.
  
  

TV Broadcast Schedule

Approximately one month following each press workshop, the workshop will be broadcast on UCSD-TV and on UCTV to cable subscribers nationwide.

Workshops will be made available in streaming video on the Molecules for the Media website after their initial broadcast.