January 25, 2024

Stub and Herbs

Networking: Stub and Herbs Social

Description: Happy hour and social for graduate students and post-docs in the polymer group to relax and de-stress


December 14, 2022

Smith 117/119

Networking: Craft Night

Description: Craft night and social for graduate students and post-docs in the polymer group to relax and de-stress


November 8, 2023

Smith 331

Prof. Mahesh Mahanthappa, University of Minnesota

Title of Presentaion: "How to make a good presentation"

Event Sponsor: PPG

October 2, 2023

Smith 331

Polymer Group: Advisor selection panel

Description: Are you looking for advice on how to join a research group? Do you have questions about what polymer research is like? What about co-advisement, how does that work? To help answer these questions, the POLY PMSE group will be hosting a Q&A student panel focused on the polymer research groups. We will have panelists who are representatives from a wide variety of polymer groups who you can ask your questions to, with representation from both the Chemistry and CEMS departments.

Event sponsor: PPG

September 6, 2023

Smith 331

Prof. Lynn Walker, University of Minnesota

Title of Presentation: "Engineering fluid-fluid interfaces through processing and multicomponent adsorption"

Event Sponsor: PPG

August 4, 2022

3M

Site Visit: 3M 

escription: Invited to tour 3M facilities

July 27, 2023

Smith 117/119

Workshop: How to get a job 

Speakers: Emily McGuiness, AJ Zervoudakis, Piril Ertem, Christian Grimme

Event sponsor: PPG

July 11, 2023

Smith 331

Prof. Antoine Buchard, University of Bath

Title of Presentation: "Synthetic carbohydrate polymers from xylose towards renewable functional materials"

Event Sponsor: PPG

May 24, 2023

Walter 101

Prof. Alex Jordan, University of Wisconsin-Stout

Title of Presentation: "Rheological Measurements and Modelling in Polymer Processing"

Event Sponsor: PPG

May 1, 2023

Stub and Herbs

Networking: Trivia Night

Description: Trivia night and happy hour, hosted in conjunction with the chemistry DEI committee, for graduate students and post-docs in the polymer group to relax and de-stress


March 14, 2023

Walter 402

Prof. Abigail Knight, University of North Carolina

Title of Presentation: "Biomimetic hierarchical structure in synthetic macromolecules"

Event Sponsor: PPG

March 2, 2023

Smith 117/119

Skills Workshop: Mechanical Characerization 

Speakers: Gabby Diaz, AJ Zervoudakis, Matt Hausladen, Arit Das

Event sponsor: PPG

February 8, 2023

Smith 117/119

Graphic Design Workshop

Speaker: John Beumer

Event sponsor: PPG

December 15, 2022

Minneapolis Cider Company

Networking: Minneapolis Cider Company Social

Description: Happy hour and social for graduate students and post-docs in the polymer group to relax and de-stress


November 16, 2022

Zoom

Prof. Guruswamy Kumaraswamy, IIT Bombay

Title of Presentation: "Structure Property Relations in Regenerated Cellulose Fibers from the Viscose and Lyocell processes"

Event sponsor: PPG

October 3, 2022

Amundson 287

Advisor selection panel

Description: Are you looking for advice on how to join a research group? Do you have questions about what polymer research is like? What about co-advisement, how does that work? To help answer these questions the POLY PMSE group will be hosting a Q&A student panel focused on the polymer research groups. We will have panelists who are representatives of each of the polymer groups who you can ask your questions to, with representation from both the chemistry and CEMS departments.

Event sponsor: PPG

September 7, 2022

Smith 331

Prof. Natalie Boehnke, University of Minnesota

Title of Presentation: "An integrative approach to nanomedicine: new tools for drug delivery"

Event sponsor: PPG

September 1, 2022

Zoom

Job contract and negotiation panel

Description: Come learn about how to navigate job offers and aspects to consider when signing employment contracts!

Event sponsor: PPG

July/August 2022

HB Fuller, Stratasys, 3M

Site Visits: HB Fuller, Stratasys, 3M visits

Description: Invited to tour HB Fuller, Stratasys, 3M facilities

July 19, 2022

Zoom

Professor Mark W. Matsen, University of Waterloo

Title of Presentation: "Accurate calibration of the Flory-Huggins χ  parameter"

Event sponsor: PPG

July 19, 2022

Zoom

Professor Gregory C. Rutledge, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Title of Presentation: "Multiscale Simulation of Flow-Induced Crystallization in Polymers"

Event sponsor: PPG

June 20, 2022

Amundson 287

Polymer Science Career Panel

Speakers: Prof. Jessica Lamb, Dr. Maggie Lau. Dr. Jeffrey Ting, Dr. Boran Zhao

Event sponsor: PPG

May 23, 2022

Walter 101

Professor Arthi Jayaraman, University of Delaware

Title of Presentation: "Theory, simulations, and machine learning for design and structural characterization of macromolecular materials "

Event sponsor: PPG

April 21, 2022

Stub and Herbs

Networking: Stub and Herbs Social

Description: Happy hour and social for graduate students and post-docs in the polymer group to relax and de-stress


March 28, 2022

Virtual

Professor Shrayesh N. Patel, University of Chicago

Title of Presentation: "Role of Solvation and Dynamics on Ion Transport in Polymer Electrolytes"

Event sponsor: PPG

February 24, 2022

Virtual

Professor Jennifer E. Laaser, University of Pittsburgh

Title of Presentation: "Chemical Determinants of the Phase Behavior and Viscoelasticity of Polyelectrolyte Complex Coacervates"

Event sponsor: PPG

January 12, 2022

Smith 231

Polymer Synthesis Workshop

Speakers: Clair Dingwell, Stephanie Liffland, Andreas Mueller, Dr. Michael Sims

Event sponsor: PPG

November 18, 2021

Virtual

Startup Companies in Polymer Science Panel

Speakers: Dr. Emily Arndt, Prof. Paul Dauenhauer, Dr. Chris DeRosa, Prof. Craig Hawker, Dr. Ajay Vikar

Event sponsor: PPG

October 18, 2021

Virtual

Prof. John Torkelson, Northwestern University

Title of Presentation: "Transforming Thermosets into Thermoplastics: Dynamic Covalent Bonds Enable the Sustainable Chemical Recycling of Traditionally Non-Recyclable Polymer Materials"

Event sponsor: PPG

October 11, 2021

Virtual

Prof. Timothy Long, Arizona State University

Title of Presentation: "Biology Continues to Inspire the Design of Block and Segmented Copolymers"

Event sponsor: PPG

May 2021 - August 2021

Virtual

POLY/PMSE Student Chapter Macromolecular Seminar Series

This seminar series hosted over 30 expert speakers with research foci in polymer science and engineering from universities across the country. The event was a collaboration between the graduate student-run POLY/PMSE chapters in the United States and was spear-headed by Sofia Goodrich at the University of Florida. 

April 29, 2021

Virtual

Alumni in Industry Panel

Speakers: Ashish Jayaraman, Leon Lillie, Athena Metaxas, Derek Saxon

Event sponsor: PPG

April 1, 2021

Virtual

Polymer Scattering Workshop

Speakers: Dr. Bill Lenart, Aaron Lindsay, McKenzie Coughlin, Dr. Ron Lewis

Event sponsor: PPG

March 11, 2021

Virtual

Dr. Colin Burke, Exponent

Title of Presentation: "Intro to technical consulting: Using your Ph.D. on a variety of real-world technical problems"

Event sponsor: PPG

February 25, 2021

Virtual

Dr. Jeffrey Rosedale, Baker & Hostetler

Title of Presentation: "Jeff Rosedale, Ph.D., J.D. - Whoa, what's the J.D. for?"

Event sponsor: PPG

February 12, 2021

Virtual

Dr. Balram Suman, Chevron

Title of Presentation: "Energy Transition and Career Management"

January 28, 2021

Virtual

Dr. Christopher Maines, National Gallery of Art

Title of Presentation: "Scientific Analysis and Materials Research in the Conservation of Works of Art"

December 10, 2020

Virtual

Prof. Boya Xiong, University of Minnesota

Title of Presentation: "Bioinspired mineralization of natural polymers for biomedical applications"

December 10, 2020

Virtual

Prof. Conrado Aparicio, University of Minnesota

Title of Presentation: "Bioinspired mineralization of natural polymers for biomedical applications"

November 24, 2020

Virtual

Prof. Michael C. McAlpine, University of Minnesota

Title of Presentation: "3D Printing Functional Materials and Devices"

November 24, 2020

Virtual

Prof. Chun Wang, University of Minnesota

Title of Presentation: "'Liquid Polymer Matrices': Design, Properties, and Application in Drug Delivery"

September 22, 2020

Virtual

Prof. Julia A. Kalow, Northwestern University

Title of Presentation: "Reactivity-property relationships in photocontrolled polymer networks"

September 9, 2020

Virtual

Prof. Jessica Lamb, University of Minnesota

Title of Presentation: "Studying Mechanism and Methodology of Controlled Polymerizations"

July 14, 2020

Virtual

Panel: How to Get a Job

Speakers: Hongyun Xu, Derek Saxon, Dr. Kyungtae Kim, and Dr. Jay Werber

April 9, 2020

Virtual

Workshop: Overview of Intellectual Property & UMN Technology Commercialization

Presenter: Henry Kostalik

February 19, 2020

Walter 402

Dr. Carlos López-Barrón, Exxon Mobile

Title of Presentation: "Bottlebrush Polyolefin Elastomers"

December 9, 2019

Walter 402

Workshop: Advanced Polymer Characterization

Presenters: Tosoh Bioscience

Topics: Multi-Angle Light-Scattering and GPC Method Development and Troubleshooting

December 4, 2019

Coffman

Networking: Bowling!

Description: Bowling to de-stress and network with other members.

November 18, 2019

Walter 101

Workshop: Block Copolymer Rheology 

Presenters: Nick Hampu, David Giles, Ashish Jayaraman, and Dr. Karthika Suresh 

Topics: Intro to BCP Rheology, Instrumental Considerations, Shear Alignment, and Magneto Shear Rheology

October 29, 2019

Town Hall Brewery

Networking: Happy Hour

Description: Happy hour to allow members to network and meet new members in a more informal setting.

September 24, 2019

Smith Hall 331

Prof. Craig Hawker, University of California, Santa Barbara

Title of Presentation: "Synthesis and Application of Multi-Functional Polymeric Materials"

September 4, 2019

Walter 101

Prof. Michelle Calabrese, University of Minnesota

Title of Presentation: "Design Guidelines for Direct Drug Delivery Hydrogels"

July 23, 2019

Walter 101

Panel: How to Get a Job and Succeeding in Industry

Panel 1: Wenjia Zhang, Dr. Cristiam Santa Chalarca, En Wang, and Ingrid Haugan Smidt

Panel 2: John McAllister, Kevin Davis, Kimberly Chaffin, and Tim Gillard

July 23, 2019

Town Hall Brewery

Networking: Happy Hour

Description: Happy hour following the panels to allow for networking among members and panelists.

June 24, 2019

Amundson 151D

Workshop: ACS Controlled Polymerization Screening

Presenters: Profs. Kris Matyjaszewski, Brent Sumerlin, Tanja Junkers, and Rachel O-Reilly

Topics: Latest advancements in controlled polymerization techniques.

May 30, 2019

Stub &  Herb's

Networking: Post-IPRIME Happy Hour

Description: Happy hour after IPRIME conference allowing for members to interact with industrial visitors, polymer faculty, and other students and post-docs that attended IPRIME.

March 13, 2019

Walter 101

Dr. Charles Black, Director of the Center for Functional Nanomaterials at Brookhaven National Labratory

Title of Presentation: "Nanoscience at the Center for Functional Nanomaterials, a National Scientific User Facility"

January 28, 2019

Walter 101

Workshop: Polymerization 101

Presenters: Dr. Christopher DeRosa, Aaron Lindsay, Aakriti Kharel, Annie Luke, Derek Saxon, Dr. Alice Chang, Colin Peterson, and Dr. Piril Ertem

Topics: Step Growth, Anionic, ROP and Cationic, Metathesis (ROMP and ADMET), and Controlled Radical (ATRP, RAFT, and NMP)

December 6, 2018

Can Can Wonderland

Networking: ACS Winter Social

Description: Social in conjuction with the MN ACS chapter to raise money for Project SEED. Project SEED allows for economically disadvantaged high school students to spend a summer working in a laboratory.  

December 5, 2018

Walter Library 402

Lisa Zeeb, University of Minnesota

Title of Presentation: "Figure Making and Design"

November 16, 2018

Walter Library 402

Workshop: PolyAnalytik

Presenters: PolyAnalytik

Topics: "Advancements in Macromolecular Characterization Lunch and Learn"

October 22, 2018

Walter 101

Prof. Stevin H. Gehrke, University of Kansas

Title of Presentation: "Engineering Biomimetic Hydrogels for Biomedical Application"

October 8, 2018

Medtronic

Site Visit: Medtronic

Description: Invited to tour the Medtronic facilitites.

September 28, 2018

Walter 101

Prof. Theresa Reineke, University of Minnesota

Title of Presentation: "Enabling Functional Biomaterials Through Controlled Polymer Synthesis"

September 5, 2018

Stub & Herb's

Networking: Happy Hour

Description: Happy hour to allow members to network and meet new members in a more informal setting.

July 26, 2018

Amundson 151D

Dr. Kimberly Chaffin, Medtronic

Title of Presentation: "My Career Path and Life in Industry"

June 26, 2018

Walter 101

Panel: Job Search

Speakers: Dr. Megan Fieser, Dr. Piril Ertem, Jun Xu, and Peter Schmidt

May 24, 2018

Stub &  Herb's

Networking: Post-IPRIME Happy Hour

Description: Happy hour after IPRIME conference allowing for members to interact with industrial visitors, polymer faculty, and other students and post-docs that attended IPRIME.

May 24, 2018

Walter 101

Workshop: Size-Exclusion Chromatography

Presenters: Prof. Tim Lodge and Prof. Mahesh Mahanthappa

Topics: Fundamentals and practical considerations when using size-exclusion chromatography. 

April 20, 2018

Walter 101

Panel: UMN Alumni in Industry

Speakers: Dr. Haley Phillips, Dr. Dustin Sprouse, Dr. Marie Vanderlaan, Dr. John McAllister, Dr. Amanda Maxwell, and Dr. Tessie Panthanni

March 29, 2018

Boston Scientific

Site Tour: Boston Scientific

Description: A chance for our members to tour the facilities of Boston Scientific. 

March 26, 2018

Smith Hall 331

Prof. Emily B. Pentzer, Case Western Reserve University

Title of Presentation: "Using the Assembly of 2D Particles at Fluid-Fluid Interfaces to Architect Composite Materials"

March 26, 2018

Campus Club

Networking: Lunch

Description: Opportunity for members to have lunch with Prof. Pentzer and interact in a small group setting.

February 27, 2018

Amundson 287

Workshop: X-Ray Scattering

Presenters: Ceclia Hall, Dr. Seema Thakral, and Peter Schmidt

Topics: Scattering basics, types of scattering measurements, appropriate sample types, local (GANESHA) and national scattering facilities, and data analysis.

December 15, 2017

Smith 117/119

Panel: Grants, Proposals, and Fellowship Applications

Speakers: Prof. Mahesh Mahanthappa, Cecilia Hall, David Goldfeld, and Ashish Jayaraman

October  27, 2017

Amundson 151D

Prof. Marc Hillmyer, University of Minnesota

Title of Presentation: "Nanoporous Thermosets by Crosslinking Block Polymers in the Disordered State"

September 12, 2017

Smith Hall 331

Prof. Karen Wooley, Texas A&M University

Title of Presentation: "Functional polymer materials designed for advanced applications and sustainability"

September 11, 2017

Republic Gastropub

Networking: Happy Hour

Description: Happy hour to allow members to network and meet with Prof. Karen Wooley.

September 1, 2017

Stub & Herb's

Networking: Happy Hour

Description: Happy hour to allow members to network and meet new members in a more informal setting.

June 23, 2017

Walter 101

Panel: Job Search

Speakers: Dr. Madalyn Radlauer, Lindsay Johnson, Seyoung Jung, and Hallie Boyer

May 30, 2017

Stub &  Herb's

Networking: Post-IPRIME Happy Hour

Description: Happy hour after IPRIME conference allowing for members to interact with industrial visitors, polymer faculty, and other students and post-docs that attended IPRIME.

April 14, 2017

Walter 101

Panel: Industrial Panel

Speakers: Dr. Carrie Street, Dr. Jeremy Patt, Dr. Cora Leibig, Dr. Christine Colby, and Dr. Mark Malwitz

April 13, 2017

Walter Library 101

Workshop: Light Scattering

Presenters: Dr. Jeffrey Ahlgren

Topics: Wyatt Technology presented on key challenges of polymer characterization with multi-angle light scattering and how to overcome these challenges.

March 9, 2017

Walter 101

Dr. Josh Speros, BASF

Title of Presentation: "Preparing for a Career in Industry"

February 16, 2017

Amundson 151D

Workshop: How to Give an Effective Presentation

Presenters: Prof. Mahesh Mahanthappa

Topics: Presentation followed by an interactive workshop on improving slides.

January 13, 2017

Walter 101

Workshop: Rheology

Presenters: Peter Schmidt, Dr. Sam Dalsin, and Athena Metaxas

Topics: Various rheological techniques including shear and extensional flows as well as how to conduct experiments and interpret results.

November 8, 2016

Smith Hall 331

Dr. Kathryn Beers, National Institute of Standards and Technology

Title of Presentation: "NIST Polymers and Complex Fluids Group: Using Grafted Polymers as a Measurement Platform"

October 7, 2016

Amundson 151D

Prof. Chris Ellison, University of Minnesota

Title of Presentation: "Manipulating Polymers with Light Activated Chemistries for Patterning Thin Films"

August 26, 2016

Stub & Herb's

Networking: Happy Hour

Description: Happy hour to allow members to network and to welcome the Ellison Group to UMN.

August 12, 2016

Valspar

Site Tour: Valspar Facilities

Description: A chance for our members to tour the Valspar facilities. 

August 9, 2016

Valspar

Site Tour: Valspar Facilities

Description: A chance for our members to tour the Valspar facilities. 

June 27, 2016

Amundson 151D

Panel: Job Search

Speakers: Jeff Ting, Dr. Jenny Laaser, Matt Irwin, and Tuoqi Li

May 31, 2016

Sally's Saloon

Networking: Post-IPRIME Happy Hour

Description: Happy hour after IPRIME conference allowing for members to interact with industrial visitors, polymer faculty, and other students and post-docs that attended IPRIME.

May 5, 2016

Amundson B-75

Prof. Brent Sumerlin, University of Florida

Title of Presentation: "Synthesis and Investigation of Stimuli-Responsive Polymers Capable of Structurally Dynamic Assembly"

April 13, 2016

Amundson 151D

Workshop: X-Ray Scattering at National Labs

Presenters: Ron Lewis, Grayson Jackson, and Dr. Kyungtae Kim

Topics: Practical aspects of how to run a SAXS experiment, design an experiment, and evaluate the data.

February 22, 2016

Walter 101

Dr. Jeremy Patt, Valspar

Title of Presentation: "Polymer Process Scale-Up: What You Need to Know about Mixing"

January 12, 2016

Keller Hall 3-210

Networking: Lunch

Description: Lunch with industry representatives and researchers as an opportunity for members during the IPRIME conference.

November 23, 2015

Smith Hall 117/119

Dr. Alex Todd, University of Minnesota

Title of Presentation: "One-Pot Mechanistically Distinct Polymerizations Using a Single Catalyst"

November 17, 2015

Amundson 349

Networking: Outreach 

Description: Hands-on demonstrations of polymers facilitated by members in conjunction with MRSEC IRG to  introduce American Indian High School students that were visiting UMN to polymers. 

October 27, 2015

Walter 101

Workshop: Careers at 3M

Presenters: Dr. Anila Prabhu, Dr. Brian Spiewak, and Dr. Fred LaPlant

Topics: Perspectives on career and business opportunities. Event held in collaboration with the Graduate Student Workshop Committee. 

October 15, 2015

Stub & Herb's

Networking: Happy Hour

Description: Happy hour to allow members to network and meet new members in a more informal setting.

September 30, 2015

Walter 101

Prof. Mahesh Mahanthappa, University of Minnesota

Title of Presentation: "Block Copolymer Bottlebrushes: New Routes to Even Smaller Microdomain Sizes"