Chemistry & Biochemistry Seminars | Fall 2026

Mechanisms of Immune Protection Against Alzheimer's Disease

Wednesday, September 16

David Hansen

Brigham Young University

David Hansen completed his bachelor's degree in Molecular Biology at BYU (2000), his doctoral degree in Cancer Biology at Stanford Medical School (2006), and his postdoctoral training in neural stem cell biology at UC San Francisco (2011). From 2011–2020, he worked in the Neuroscience Department at Genentech, Inc., as a project team leader in research and drug development to understand and manipulate the activities of glial and immune cells in neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's disease (AD). Since 2020, Dr. Hansen has worked as an Associate Professor in BYU's Chemistry & Biochemistry department, establishing his academic research program to characterize the molecular and cellular functions of AD risk genes expressed by microglia, the brain's resident immune cells. Understanding how these microglia-expressed AD risk genes influence microglial cell biology to impact AD pathogenesis will identify new therapeutic approaches to treat or prevent AD.

Molecular Modeling of Interface & Spectroscopy

Wednesday, September 30

Brian Space

North Carolina State University

Dr. Brian Space is a Professor and AAAS Fellow in the Department of Chemistry and North Carolina State University. He received his PhD in Theoretical Chemistry from Boston University and did postdoc training in Computational Modeling at Princeton University. Before taking his position at North Carolina State, he worked at the University of South Florida for 20 years. His research group is an innovator in developing and applying models of porous materials and interfacial systems with an emphasis on theoretical modeling of 2026 Nobel Prize winning Metal Organic Materials and Sum Frequency Vibrational Spectroscopy. They are actively engaged in collaborative work with leading materials synthesis, spectroscopy and characterization groups internationally. Another group focus on improving simulations has led to the development of modern PHAST force fields for atomistic modeling of materials. A detailed description of their students, work and an updated list of their publications is available on Dr. Space's website along with musical performances of their group band the Space Cadets.

TBA

Wednesday, October 21

Robert Walker

Montana State University

Organic Semiconductors for Emerging Technologies

Wednesday, November 4

Thuc-Quyen Nguyen

University of California, Santa Barbara

Thuc-Quyen Nguyen is the Director of the Center for Polymers and Organic Solids, Distinguished Professor in the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, and E. Khashoggi Industries Chair in Material Chemistry at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Nguyen received her Ph.D. (2001) degree in Physical Chemistry from the University of California, Los Angeles under the guidance of Professor Benjamin Schwartz. From 2001-2004, she was a postdoc in the Department of Chemistry and the Nanocenter at Columbia University working with 2023 Chemistry Nobel Laureate Louis Brus and Professor Colin Nuckolls on molecular self-assembly. She also spent time at IBM Research Center at T. J. Watson (Yorktown Heights, NY) working with Richard Martel and Phaedon Avouris on molecular electronics. She joined the faculty of the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department at UCSB in 2004. Recognition for her research includes Office of Naval Research Young Investigator Award, National Science Foundation CAREER Award, Camille Dreyfus Teacher Scholar Award, Alfred Sloan Research Fellows, National Science Foundation American Competitiveness and Innovation Fellows, Alexander von Humboldt Senior Research Award, Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, Hall of Fame - Advanced Materials, Beaufort Visiting Scholar, St John’s College (Cambridge University), 2015-2019 World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds; Top 1% Highly Cited Researchers in Materials Science by Thomson Reuters and Clarivate Analytics, Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Wilhelm Exner Medal from Austria, de Gennes Prize in Materials Chemistry from the Royal Society of Chemistry, Suffrage Science Award, French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) Ambassador in Chemical Sciences, Henry H. Storch Award in Energy Chemistry from the American Chemical Society,Fellow of the United States National Academy of Inventors, Fellow of the European Academy of Sciences, and Elected Member of the United States National Academy of Engineering.