Category: Uncategorized

Please fill out the following form to request reimbursement for student registration fees for the 2020 ACS Fall National Meeting. Grants will be given out on a first come, first served basis. To be eligible, you must be a registered undergraduate student in the CALPACS territory, Camarillo to San Luis Obispo. Active student members of the American Chemical Society will be given priority.

In order to receive the grant, you must

1. Fill out and submit the form below by the end of day Wednesday, August 12, 2020.
2. Wait to receive confirmation that you have been awarded a grant.
3. Sign up to attend the Fall National Meeting. This meeting will be held virtually. No travel is involved.
4. Submit proof of payment to contact@lospadresacs.org
5. You will be reimbursed via PayPal.

The frenzy of eating, shopping and entertaining can only presage the imminent arrival of the annual CALPACS wine tasting. It happens in a mere two weeks, in fact, on Saturday, December 1, 2018. Please come to meet other members of our section, to imbibe some of the finest wines produced in Santa Barbara County, and to consume the selection of fine cheeses and soups selected by and cooked by the members of your Executive Committee.  We look forward to hearing how your year was and what you have planned  for next year. As always, we welcome your suggestions as to what you want CALPACS to do. 

Join us to learn about one of the hottest topics in alternative energy, biodiesel!  Trey Teall, the VP of Operations at Biodico, will be joining us on Saturday, May 7th to give a presentation about biodiesel production and analysis on the UC Santa Barbara campus.

RSVP HERE

Biodico specializes in Alternative Energy Solutions including the design, production, and operation of sustainable biorefineries. Their core competency is biofuel/bioenergy production. In 2003 Biodico started work under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with the US Navy, a partnership that continues fruitfully to this day at Naval Base Ventura County in California. In 2010 it became clear that the commercial byproducts of biodiesel production (such as glycerin and inedible seed meal) were significant and they began to focus on energy added uses of these byproducts rather than just disposal methods.

What:  Biodiesel Seminar

When:  Saturday, May 7th, 2016 from 12-2 pm

Where: PSBN, Room 4606, U.C. Santa Barbara

Cost:  Free.  A light lunch with be served.

Parking Information:  Visitor parking is allowed in lots #12 (in front of Phelps Hall) and #10 (Structure next to Elings Hall) on Evenings and Weekends. Permits may be purchased from dispensers in the lot.  UCSB Parking Information Campus Map

RSVP HERE

Trey Teall is the VP of Operations for Biodico. Since 2000, Biodico has developed five commercial biodiesel production facilities utilizing their patented design process in Las Vegas, Colorado, Texas, Australia, and California’s San Joaquin Valley and has worked with the US Navy under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement since 2003. Biodico is headquartered in Ventura and has an R&D center at the Ventura County Naval Base in Port Hueneme. Mr. Teall has been working for Biodico since 2004. He primarily specializes in plant design, operator training, and operation management; grant funded research procurement and project management; laboratory design, implementation, and new method development; and feedstock development and analysis for both biodiesel production and anaerobic digestion. Mr. Teall has a BS in Economics from Duke University and is a State of California Mechanical Engineering EIT.

Beyond Science Communication: What does it mean to engage with decision-makers? 

Join us for our fourth annual Pi Day Public Policy Seminar on Wednesday, March 9th, 2016 at 7:oo pm!   Dr. Ryan Meyer, our speaker, is a senior scientist at California Ocean Science Trust, a boundary organization that works with government, science, and communities to build trust and understanding in ocean and coastal science. He has worked with the Earth Institute at Columbia University; the Consortium for Science, Policy, and Outcomes in Arizona and Washington DC; and a variety of user-oriented research teams in Australia. Ryan is a former Fulbright Scholar, and co-editor of Climate In Context: Science and Society Partnering for Adaptation, due for release in April.   

What:  2016 Pi Day Public Policy Lecture

When:  Wednesday, March 9th, 2016 at 7:00 pm

Where:  Baker Center for Science (Building 180), Room 362, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo  Campus Map

RSVP HERE

Abstract:

Much of the discourse around making a difference through science focuses on effective communication, and advocacy for change. These things are important, but communication is not the only relevant skill, and advocacy is not the only entry-point. Focusing on them alone is to misread some of the fundamental challenges of making knowledge useful. This talk will explore what it means and what it takes to collaborate with decision makers. There are many different ways that scientists can become involved with decision-making, and make a real difference with their work. Especially in a place like California where there is a long history of cutting edge environmental policy, and ample political will, scientists who want not only to be relevant, but also useful, can find ways to participate. 

Download the event flyer here.

RSVP HERE

The statements for the candidates in the 2015 CALPACS elections appear below. You will receive your ballot via email. Thank you for voting!

Chair-Elect:

Continue reading “2015 Candidate Statements”

You are cordially invited to attend the California Los Padres Section of the American Chemical Society’s Fall Luncheon on Saturday, September 27, 2014.  We will be honoring local section members who have been members of the ACS for over 50 years, and we will have the pleasure of learning about on-demand drug delivery from Professor Javier Read de Alaniz of UCSB’s chemistry department.

Date: Saturday, September 27, 2014
Time: 11:45 AM to 2:30 PM
Place: Firestone Walker Tap Room
620 McMurray Road
Buellton, CA 93427 (805) 686-1557 (Google Map)
This event is now closed for registration. Please use the contact link above to inquire.

Lunch will be served at approximately 12:20, and lecture at approximately 12:45. Firestone Walker beers will be available to purchase. Please use the form at the bottom of this page to reserve your place. We look forward to your company.

Abstract: The discovery and development of novel transformations for the synthesis of molecular building blocks is a major focus of my research group.  Our studies seek to accelerate drug discovery and material synthesis by developing practical and efficient methods, while incorporating renewable resources and environmentally benign protocols. We have also recently become involved in the design and synthesis of a novel photochromic material that enable the use of visible light to control the properties of micelles, polymer surfaces and small organic molecules.  A main object of this research is in the areas of drug delivery and using visible light to control catalytic transformations.

Prof. Javier Read de Alaniz received his B.S. degree from Fort Lewis College in 1999 where he conducted undergraduate research under the direction of Professor William R. Bartlett. He obtained his Ph.D. under the supervision of Professor Tomislav Rovis at Colorado State University in 2006 with a research focus on asymmetric catalysis. Javier then moved to California, where he worked in the area of total synthesis with Professor Larry E. Overman at the University of California, Irvine. Since 2009, he has been an Assistant Professor in the department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at UC-Santa Barbara.

CALPACS Coundillor, Professor Al Censullo, will be the chair of a symposium on the mole at the 248 National Meeting of the American Chemical Society in San Francisco. The symposium will take place in room 133 of the Moscone center on Monday August 11 at 8:30 AM. The symposium program is available here in pdf format.

Please join us on April 26, 2014, to lend support to all local section chemistry students who will be completing the 2014 American Chemical Society Chemistry Olympiad. The Olympiad is a  three part, 4.5-hour exam consisting of three parts that will test students on their knowledge of general chemistry, theoretical concepts, analytical problem solving skills and laboratory skills. Students who perform exceptionally well in this weeks-long test of their chemistry knowledge and chemistry skills will move on to the national and, eventually, the international chemistry Olympiads.

A light lunch will be served at noon, and it will be followed by a lecture by CalPoly chemistry Professor and CALPACS Immediate Past Chair Nanine Van Draanen on the many roles of the natural product  alginic acid.

Date: Saturday, April 26, 2014 Time: Lunch at noon, Lecture at 12:30 Place: Winter Hall, Westmont College (Campus Map, Google map) Cost: Free

Your reservation is kindly requested from the form below.

Dr. Nanine Van Draanen is Professor and Chair of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.  Before joining the faculty at Cal Poly in 1996, she worked in research and development in the pharmaceutical industry in North Carolina.  She earned her Ph.D. at Berkeley in organic chemistry and her bachelor’s degree at California Polytechnic Institute, San Luis Obispo.

Please join us on Friday March 14, 2014, (pi day) for the second installment of lectures on science in the public sphere. Our speaker is Dr. Amber Mace, deputy director of the California Council on Science and Technology and policy fellow with the UC Davis Policy Institute for Energy, Environment and the Economy. Dr. Mace’s talk will frame some of the factors that lead to a disconnect between scientists and decision-makers and provide a high-level overview of science-based decision-making in California with a focus on climate change and sea level rise. It will also highlight some opportunities for students who are considering careers beyond academia and would like to develop relevant skills and experience to help continue to break down the barriers between science and policy. (Event announcement as pdf file.)

Date: Friday, March 14, 2014
Time: 7-9 PM
Place:  Building 180, Room 101, CalPoly San Luis Obispo
Cost: Free.
Please RSVP through the form below.
A complimentary assortment of pies will be served in observance of pi day.

An interactive map is also available from the CalPoly web site.