Final issue of semester

This is the Reporter's final issue of the fall semester. Publication of the newspaper will resume on Jan. 24. Happy holidays!

Diver gets NSF award
Steven T. Diver, assistant professor of chemistry, has received a Young Investigator Award of $510,000 from the National Science Foundation to synthesize stable carbenes, a type of molecule that has unique chemical properties and that can be used to catalyze chemical reactions.

	DIVER

The goal of the research is to design and synthesize carbenes that can be used to catalyze organic reactions. The emphasis of organic synthesis is to develop efficient and creative methods for developing molecules or compounds with unique biological activity. In many cases, the desired compounds are chiral, meaning that they exist in different forms that are mirror images of one another, and the catalysts that are used to create them must be chiral as well.

These unique, chiral carbenes are particularly interesting to chemists because they can be used to catalyze reactions that produce new chiral carbon centers, an important process in organic chemistry called asymmetric synthesis. They also are used to bind to transition metals, reactions that are critical in synthesizing complicated natural products that contain many other reactive groups.

The NSF grant also allows Diver to proceed with plans to improve teaching in the sophomore organic chemistry laboratory by utilizing cooperative learning techniques.

UB installs phone line for closing information
The university has installed a new telephone service to provide information when office hours and class schedules will be altered as the result of inclement weather or for other reasons.

The information will be available at 645-NEWS to students, faculty and staff, as well as the public, 24 hours a day. There never will be a busy signal since the line has the capacity to handle an unlimited number of calls simultaneously.

The standard recorded message will be "Offices are open and classes are being held as scheduled today at the University at Buffalo." The message will be changed appropriately as soon as university officials decide to alter office hours and class schedules due to weather conditions or other situations.

Musicians to perform at Emeritus Center
Cellist Jonathan Golove and pianist Stephen Manes will perform at the December meeting of the Emeritus Center, to be held at 2 p.m. Tuesday in 102 Goodyear Hall, South Lounge, South Campus.

Golove, visiting assistant professor in the Department of Music, and Manes, professor and department chair, will perform music by Bach, Beethoven and Schumann.

The program is open to all members of the UB community.

Workshop for TAs scheduled for Jan. 18
"Facilitating Class Discussions," a workshop for teaching assistants, will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Jan. 18 in 120 Clemens Hall, North Campus.

The workshop, which will be free of charge, is sponsored by the Center for Teaching and Learning Resources.

The session will be led by Denise Krause, clinical assistant professor in the School of Social Work, who will discuss a variety of techniques to facilitate class discussion in both large and small settings. The impact that the events of Sept. 11 have had on teaching will be incorporated into the presentation, and participants will be asked to share their own teaching experiences.

Anyone interested in attending the workshop should register by email to Jeannette Molina, associate director of the Center for Teaching and Learning Resources, at jmolina@buffalo.edu by Dec. 31.

Candidates sought for Weinstein Award
The Emeritus Center is seeking nominations for the Rose Weinstein Award, the $500 annual prize given by the center recognizing substantial achievement by an undergraduate or graduate student in research or artistic activity relating to human aging.

Nominations may originate from either students themselves or from departmental chairs or program directors.

Nominations should be sent to Michael M. Metzger at the Emeritus Center, South Lounge, Goodyear Hall, South Campus, by Feb. 11. For further information, contact Metzger at mmetzger@acsu.buffalo.edu.

UB turns over Martin deed
UB has turned over the deed to the Darwin D. Martin House to the Martin House Restoration Corp., ending the university's 33-year stewardship of Frank Lloyd Wright's prairie-style masterpiece. The Jewett Parkway landmark will remain under the auspices of the restoration corporation until the $23 million restoration of the house is completed.

"To put it simply, without Bill Greiner's vision and the university's stewardship of the Martin House, the Martin House restoration project might never have become reality," said Robert J. Kresse, chairman of the board of the Martin House Restoration Corp., a nonprofit group overseeing the project.

UB acquired the Martin House in 1967 for use as the official residence of the university president. Later, the house was used at various times for a variety of university-related purposes, including as the alumni office, university archives and a Canadian-American Studies Center.

The university agreed in 1990 to turn over the deed to the house to the restoration corporation when the final environmental review process was completed to facilitate restoration efforts.

Once restoration is complete, the corporation will transfer the title to the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation. The house will be designated a New York State Historic Site, and will be operated by the corporation. The UB Foundation also has agreed to turn over various Martin House artifacts to the corporation.

The corporation is on track to finish the Martin House restoration in about three years and is moving ahead with plans to restore Wright's adjacent George Barton House and Gardener's Cottage, as well as resurrect three structures long missing from the complex—the pergola, conservatory and carriage house. A visitor center also will be built.

The corporation has raised $19 million of the project's cost.

ESI offers research funding
The Environment & Society Institute invites proposals for projects to be funded by its Environmental Management Alternatives Program (EMAP) and its Environmental Science Interdisciplinary Research Program (ESIRP).

The EMAP provides seed funding for interdisciplinary research and analysis on environmental problems relevant to the regional community and shares that work with groups and organizations capable of translating it into policy.

The ESIRP provides seed funding for interdisciplinary research and analysis in environmental science relevant to the regional, national and global environmental research and education priorities. Environmental science focuses on the components of the environment—air, water, soil and food. Research in the natural and social sciences that has relevance to, and overlaps with, environmental science would be eligible, including ecology, environmental chemistry, engineering, psychology, anthropology, environmental toxicology and environmental health.

All UB faculty members are eligible to conduct EMAP projects; faculty members conducting research in environmental science are eligible to apply for ESIRP funds. Applicants for both programs should become faculty affiliates of the institute if they have not already done so. Interdisciplinary teams are strongly encouraged to apply.

Proposals for both programs must be received no later than 5 p.m., Jan. 15, 2002.

For further information, contact ESI at 829-2975, ext. 602, or visit http://wings.buffalo.edu/provost/esi.

E-learning sessions set
Sessions introducing UB employees to a program offering free, Web-delivered, self-directed learning courses on a range of professional development and business-skills topics will be held from noon to 1:30 p.m. Wednesday and Dec. 13 in the Human Resources Conference Room, 142 Crofts Hall, North Campus.

The e-learning program is offered by the SUNYWest campuses—UB, Buffalo State College, Fredonia State, Geneseo State and Alfred University—as well as the United University Professions (UUP) Professional Development Committee.

The courses are provided through SkillSoft Corp., "a leading provider of critical business and professional e-learning solutions for Global 2000 companies and government organizations."

The program is open to UUP members, as well as employees from all other bargaining units, and the Research Foundation, UB Foundation and Faculty Student Association.

The curricula cover a range of topics, including communication, customer service, finance/accounting skills, human-resource management, knowledge management, leadership, marketing, personal development, project management, strategic planning and team building.

During the introductory sessions, participants will learn about the SkillSoft Web site and the types of courses available.

Space is limited. To register for a session, contact Nancy Cullis at 645-5000, ext. 1292, or at ncullis@business.buffalo.edu.