Oesper Symposium A National Event

The Chemistry Department’s 2005 Ralph and Helen Oesper Symposium honored Adrian Parsegian, Chief of the Laboratory of Physical and Structural Biology at the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. In addition to several other achievements, he recently authored

Van der Waals Forces: A Handbook for Biologists, Chemists, Engineers, and Physicists.

Parsegian’s address focused on biophysics, fundamental molecular interactions that lead to complex behavior in membranes, proteins, and DNA. Describing the speech as “a very nice mixture of personal interactions and science,” Tom Beck, who organized this year’s series, said “Adrian Parsegian is a great illustration of a human scientist. He has made significant contributions to our fundamental understanding of proteins, DNA, and biological membranes, and how they assemble into their complex structures. And he has done this by collaborating with talented people he really enjoys working with.”

An expert overview of the address is available

online

.

Beck also noted that during the day-long symposium, participants discussed viruses, membrane structure and biological systems at high pressure, basic molecular interactions in biology, and membrane fusion. “The importance of such discussions can’t be overestimated,” he said. “These interactions drive the assembly of all biological structures.”

Wood sculptor Peter Rand was a unique addition to the program. His “lifelong work in biophysical scientific research” inspires his abstract sculptures, one of which he presented to Parsegian. Rand’s

web site

notes, “The intellectual dualism of scientific research (where a piece of work is either right or wrong and in either case worth absolutely noting if it is not completely original) and artistic work (which, on my first refusal by a jury, led me to seek where I had gone “wrong” continues to intrigue me.”

A nationally recognized event, the Oesper Series attracts scientists, engineers, and students from the United States and Canada. The award has previously honored eight Nobel Laureates. It is sponsored by a bequest from former Chemistry Department head Ralph Oesper and his wife, Helen Wilson Oesper.