Beyond the Forty Acres: News from Alumni
Rebecca Y. Lai, PhD 2003
Prior to joining the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2007 as an assistant
professor, Professor Lai received her PhD from the University of Texas at Austin
under the supervision of Professor Allen Bard. She then performed postdoctoral
studies at the University of California, Santa Barbara under the mentorship
of Professor Alan Heeger and Professor Kevin Plaxco. Professor Lai’s current
research focus is on the biophysics of biomolecular folding and its engineering
applications. A major aim of the Lai group’s applied research is to harness the
speed and specificity of target-induced conformational and dynamic changes in
biomolecules in the development of electrochemical biosensors.
Favorite Memory of UT Austin:
Dr. Bard—a true mentor. He made my experience at UT-Austin and I apply
lessons from his teaching into my work and everyday life! I remember this
one incident very clearly: I asked Dr. Bard which was the easier project among
the two research projects I had to choose from, and he replied, “All easy proj-
ects – have been done already!” This is now the standard response when my
students question me about the difficulty of his or her research project. Diffi-
culty, at times, cannot be avoided; but a lot of times, hardship breeds success.
Darren Johnson, BS 1996
I received my BS in Chemistry from the University of Texas at Austin in
1996. While on the 40 Acres I had a fantastic opportunity to perform under-
graduate research in Jonathan Sessler’s lab. I worked closely with Jonathan
and Mike Hoehner, a graduate student in the Sessler lab, to develop molecules
that could selectively bind and detect anions. This time in the Sessler group
was a highlight of my academic training in Austin and greatly facilitated my
transition to graduate school at the University of California at Berkeley. After
obtaining my PhD from Cal in 2000, I performed two-years of post-doctoral
training as an NIH fellow at the Scripps Research Institute prior to starting
as an Assistant Professor of Chemistry at the University of Oregon in 2003.
At Oregon, my research group focuses on supramolecular main group coordi-
nation chemistry. This includes developing design strategies that use main
group ions — including arsenic, lead and mercury — as directing elements
in self-assembly reactions, optimizing new receptors for anions, and preparing
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Joohoon Kim, PhD 2007
I received my PhD under the guidance of Professor Richard M. Crooks from
the University of Texas at Austin in 2007. During my graduate studies, my
research interests were focused on the development of miniaturized analyti-
cal devices such as DNA microarrays and microfluidic devices. Specifically, I
developed a new methodology for replication of DNA microarrays, and inves-
tigated DNA hybridization on probe-conjugated microbeads in microfluidic
chips. As a result of my research activities at UT-Austin, I published multiple
journal articles and filed one US provisional patent. I was awarded a Gradu-
ate Fellowship from the American Chemical Society Division of Analytical
Chemistry (ACS-DAC) in 2007. Upon completion of my PhD, I moved to the
University of Chicago and worked as a postdoctoral fellow under
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