News - Chemistry Department

Vassar Helps Celebrate the 200th Birthday of Vassar’s First Professor, World-renowned Astronomer, Maria Mitchell

Two members of Vassar’s science faculty and about a dozen science majors joined hundreds of others in the field recently to celebrate the 200th birthday of Vassar’s first professor, world-renowned astronomer, Maria Mitchell.

Feature Article Posted 10/18/2018 Read article

Vassar Receives $1 Million to Make Science Curriculum More Inclusive

Vassar is one of 57 colleges and universities to receive an Inclusive Excellence grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Feature Article Posted 6/20/2018 Read article

Michael Kosterlitz of Brown University to give lecture, “A Random Walk Through Physics to the Nobel Prize,” on April 23, 2018

Michael Kosterlitz, Professor of Physics at Brown University, will give a lecture titled, “A Random Walk Through Physics to the Nobel Prize,” on Monday, April 23 at 3:00pm in Taylor Hall, Room 102. This event is free and open to the public.

Announcement Posted 3/29/2018

The Science behind Centuries of Traditional Medicines

Two senior chemistry majors are investigating the structure of several plant-derived compounds to assess their antioxidant and anticancer properties.

Feature Article Posted 2/16/2018 Read article

The Case for Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Vassar and Italian Scientists Prove Its Benefits

After four years of testing extra virgin olive oil from groves in Italy and California, Chemistry Prof. Miriam Rossi and an interdisciplinary team of Vassar researchers and Italian scientists have shown that this staple of Mediterranean cuisine has some remarkable health benefits.

Feature Article Posted 2/16/2018 Read article

So You Want To Be an Engineer? The Vassar-Dartmouth Dual Degree Program

Twenty-three Vassar sophomores—a record number—are applying for admission to the dual degree program at Dartmouth’s Thayer School of Engineering. The successful candidates will spend their junior year at Thayer, return to Vassar to complete their bachelor’s, and then spend a fifth year at Thayer to earn a bachelor’s in engineering.

Feature Article Posted 2/5/2018 Read article

Professors to lead public walking tours of Vassar history on October 14, October 28, November 4

Free public walking tours of the architecturally renowned Vassar campus will be held on three upcoming Saturdays. The tour leaders will be Colton Johnson, College Historian and Professor Emeritus of English (10/14), Leslie Offutt, Associate Professor of History (10/28), and Chris Smart, Associate Professor of Chemistry and a Vassar alumnus (11/4).

Announcement Posted 10/5/2017

“Building Food,” Vassar’s upcoming food symposium, examines the relationship between food and architecture, futuristic foods, and features celebrity sushi chef Bun Lai (4/7-4/8)

A highlight of the will be the lunch panel on futuristic foods featuring celebrity chef Bun Lai of Miya’s restaurant in Connecticut, who makes sustainable sushi made from invasive species.

Announcement Posted 3/22/2017

Making the Connections - Science for the 21st Century

Vassar's new science facility, the Bridge for Laboratory Sciences, supports collaborations between the sciences by bringing the college’s various science departments and programs into closer physical proximity with shared access to state-of-the-art teaching and research facilities.

Feature Article Posted 12/21/2016 Read article

Chocolate Chemistry

Vassar students routinely collaborate with professors on original research. In this video, Miriam Rossi, Professor of Chemistry, and her students are investigating the chemical components of chocolate from a particular region of Ecuador.

Feature Article Posted 7/14/2016