Welcome New Members Update- November 2020

We would like to welcome all new NSW members who joined the RACI in Nov 2020. As a professional membership organisation, we provide networking and special interest events during the year. Details of all Branch events can be found on the website.

New Member Interviews

1. Charles Mckibbin

•  Why did you decide to join RACI?
  I wanted to learn what was at the forefront of chemistry, especially for what was coming out of NSW.

• What is your current occupation?
  Metrohm –Territory manager

• What made you get into chemistry?
  Curiosity (like most people in science) – I wanted to understand how things worked in the world and how this knowledge can be used in everyday life.
  

• Do you use chemistry in your everyday life? If so, how? Yes, it is used on nearly all aspects of my life. In my work life, it is used when setting up analytical instruments, performing application work and when communicating with clients about which analytical techniques would best suit their application.In my personal life, it is used when experimenting in the kitchen, tasting wine (acidity, tannin, etc.) and fertilising my lawn.
  

• Do you have a favourite chemical reaction?
  HCl+ NaOH --> NaCl + H₂O.This is one of the simplest and basic chemical reactions.All chemists are taught this when first introduced to chemistry.Its simplicity is what makes it brilliant and easy for everyone to understand.
  

•  What do you like to do outside of chemistry? Work out, eat good food and talk with great people.

• How can the RACI help you in your current role?
  Expand my knowledge about what is needed in terms of analytical techniques in the different community around NSW.

• How did you learn about RACI?
  I was looking online for chemistry interest groups.

2. Lyndon Wale

• Why did you decide to join RACI?
  Naturally it’s much more exciting to hear about developments in chemistry as they happen, so being amongst chemists provides a lot of interest. I also joined for a better understanding of chemistry in Australia: research, growing industries and the integration of chemistry with other national developments.
  

• What degree program are you studying?

  I’m studying a Bachelor of Science at the University of Sydney, majoring in chemistry.

• What made you get into chemistry?

  My interest began early, when I was a child I was obsessed with becoming an inventor, sketching machines, making pulleys out of string and paper, digging plumbing for sandcastles, etcetera. Over the years that interest in innovation has refined into chemistry due to the analytical tools it offers.

• Do you use chemistry in your everyday life? If so, how?

  To be honest, my most frequent use of chemistry would be cleaning: figuring out which solvents / surfactants will remove stains. Also, I use specific heat capacity to approximate how long something takes to cook and an understanding of humidity to know to bring my washing inside before it gets dark.

• Do you have a favourite reagent or a reaction?

  I love the peptide bond cleavage by chymotrypsin for its subtlety. It uses aspartic acid, histidine and serine in series to amplify the nucleophilicity of an otherwise unreactive alcohol. So instead of having an individual powerful nucleophile that champions the reaction, the protein instead acts like a tug of war team by shifting electron density around the residues. I’m fascinated by it.

• What do you like to do outside of chemistry?

  I used to dance / teach Salsa, but then Corona hit. So now I go on long jogs for the exercise and host Dungeons & Dragons games for the social life.

• How can the RACI help you in your current role?

  Talking with professionals would provide a certain sense of relevance and ambition to my studies. I’d love to take an on-site look at projects to appreciate the potential of chemistry, and to gain general insight into what can happen post-university. I’m especially interested in biochemistry: protein interactions and natural materials such as bioluminescence and spider silk.

3. Liam Adair

• Why did you decide to join RACI?
  I moved to Sydney from Glasgow just over 2 years ago after finishing my PhD. In that time, I’ve been to a few RACI events, so I thought it was about time to sign up.

• What is your current occupation?

  I’m currently a Postdoc working in the School of Chemistry at USyd with Liz New and Kate Jolliffe.

• What made you get into chemistry?
  Science in general is something I have always been interested in, so I always knew I would be a scientist. I studied Biology and Chemistry in my undergrad, but I really like synthesis, so that probably decided it for me.

• Do you use chemistry in your everyday life? If so, how?

  Every day in my research! But other than that, I like to cook which is kind of everyday chemistry.

• Do you have a favourite chemical reaction?
  All the successful ones? I’m not sure, probably something high yielding with no purification.

• What do you like to do outside of chemistry?

  I like travelling, which is hard to do at the moment, luckily there is so much of Australia to see! I also like playing guitar, live music, hiking, bouldering, the beach, eating out, and visiting Sydney’s breweries.

• How can the RACI help you in your current role?
  Help build a chemistry network, and also attend more excellent RACI events!