News Briefs

Keck
conference set for Sept. 21
…………………………………………………………………

Nuclear magnetic
resonance (NMR) and bioinformatics, powerful tools in biology
and medicine, will
take center stage at the W.M. Keck Center for Computational
Biology’s 2001 Annual Research Conference Friday, Sept.
21.

Held at the Tremont
House Hotel in Galveston, the conference will include several
speakers and a student research poster competition. Among
the speakers are Wah Chiu of Baylor College of Medicine,
Kevin MacKenzie of Rice University and Keith Baggerly of
The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center.

Details about
the conference will be available on the Keck Center’s Web
page at <www.bioc.rice.edu/keck>.
For more information contact Anne Smith at (713) 348-4753.

Rice
gets coverage in Scientific American
…………………………………………………………………

The groundbreaking
work of Rice University’s scientists is on display in the
September issue of Scientific American.

The issue, which
is dedicated to nanotechnology, contains a cover article
by Richard Smalley, the Gene and Norman Hackerman Professor
of Chemistry and professor of physics.

But he was not
alone. Six of the nine articles in the special nanotechnology
section mention the research of Rice faculty, including
Robert Curl, the Harry C. and Olga Keith Wiess Professor
of Natural Sciences; James Tour, the Chao Professor of Chemistry;
Naomi Halas, the Stanley C. Moore Professor in Electrical
and Computer Engineering; and Jennifer West, associate professor
of bioengineering.

Such national
attention is becoming the norm of late, as Rice faulty experts
are increasingly quoted and featured in the national media.
Even the campus took a bow in May, when Architecture magazine
devoted an entire feature article to Rice architecture in
a story on the new Humanities Building.

Flood
relief effort touches many
…………………………………………………………………

When the floods
of Tropical Storm Allison hit in June, Rice University administrators
immediately initiated a relief effort to aid employees.
The university offered zero-interest loans to those who
experienced serious damage to their property and grants
to those whose vehicles were flooded as they attempted to
make their way into work. All told, Rice gave $153,735,
with 86 people receiving a total of $145,575 in loans and
another 10 people receiving $8,160 in grants.

In addition,
more than 20 Rice families benefited from a campus collection
drive spearheaded by former Rice employee Sue Deigaard.
Staff, faculty and students volunteered over seven days
to collect, sort and deliver items. When the needs of all
flood victims were addressed, the extra items collected
were donated to the Graduate Loan Closet and Goodwill.