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Ray Giguere on 'Molecules that Matter'
Ray Giguere, Class of 1962 Term Professor of Chemistry, teaches the College’s introductory course in organic chemistry and administers an undergraduate research program in organic synthesis. It was his idea to create models of ten of the 20th Century’s most influential molecules two-and-a-half billion times their actual size and hang them at the Tang Teaching Museum and Art Gallery in the show called Molecules that Matter that runs through April 18. Giguere and John Weber, Dayton Director of the Tang, will lead a curator's tour of the show this Wednesday, Oct. 10, at noon.
How did you become interested in chemistry?
My interest stems from a natural curiosity as a child growing up in a very small town in northern Michigan in the 1950s. As early as I can recall, I wanted to know what the world was made of. When I was seven, my sister gave me a chemistry set, which was of course the classic way for a child to become interested in chemistry back then.
I also had a wonderful high school teacher. My high school was only 400 students from K through 12. There were 27 of us in my graduating class. All mathematics and science was taught by Mr. Gray, a retired engineer with Bethlehem Steel for 20 years who had retooled and gone into education. He was absolutely patient and supportive. He would say, “There is no stupid question if it’s asked sincerely and I will always attempt to answer it.” I still use that language when I introduce students to organic chemistry because the last thing I want is for someone to feel intimated by this material. It’s not that difficult if you make a commitment to learn it.
How did the idea for Molecules that Matter originate?
I came to Skidmore in 1988. Like many new faculty at that time, I was required to teach in the Liberal Studies program, which of course was the College’s signature interdisciplinary program for about 25 years. All science faculty were charged with developing a course of their interest that would appeal to the general Skidmore student at the first-year level. And so I thought about that, and the course that I designed was Playing Nature: Organic Synthesis and Society from 1900 to 1975. I thought it might be possible to look at the history of some important molecules and teach enough organic chemistry so that students would understand a little bit about chemical bonding and be able to ask deeper questions about our ability to synthesize materials that don’t exist in nature and that perfectly mimic natural materials.
Around 2000, I began to think how we could look at the 20th century in terms of key organic substances. When the Tang was built, Skidmore faculty were encouraged to develop ideas for exhibits. Charlie Stainback was the director of the Tang at the time and so one day I walked into his office and told him my idea. “Let’s build organic models big so that they look like abstract sculpture,” I said, “and let’s fill the rest of the exhibit with cultural artifacts that will remind us of the period and the impact these molecules have had on our lives.”
He said, “That’s a great idea. Let’s do it.” It took, on and off, seven years, but here we are, thanks to the great support we’ve gotten from Ian Berry, Barry Pritzker, John Weber, Kristen Carbone, and the Chemical Heritage Foundation, to mention only a few.
What experience were you aiming to create with MTM?
We wanted to create an experience that develops into an appreciation for the very good and hard work that has gone on before us in this very important field of organic chemistry, which is the language of the molecular world. We wanted to give the public a peek into this world and show why it is important. We’re trying to make the invisible visible. The scale models are two-and-a-half billion times the size of the actual molecules. These are infinitesimally small entities and yet chemists and other scientists know they exist and work with them on a daily basis. The ability to do that and the products that flow from that work affect our economy, our identity, and our lives every day. We wanted to give the public a richer understanding of how organic chemists work and perhaps alsoinspire young people to consider careers in the field. “Oh, if I learn about this, I might have a profession in medicine, or pharmacology, or in polymers?”
Are there similarities in the way molecular scientists and artists approach their work?
Do you have a favorite molecule?
I’m very fond of penicillin because of its role in human health. It’s pretty scary to think what life would be like without modern antibiotics. I also like buckyball because it’s the gateway to the 21st century -- the molecule that launched the nanotech revolution. Buckyballs are going to be around for a very long time.
That brings me to one last point: The molecules that we’re spotlighting in this show are, in a very real sense, timeless. Once they’ve been created and understood and reproduced, they can be passed forward from generation to generation. This is one of the great rewards of being a synthetic chemist. Once you make a discovery, it becomes absolutely grounded and timeless. Our theory about that molecule may change, but our ability to create it is an absolute you can take to the bank. That’s why entire corporations are built on these molecular discoveries.
Posted On: 10/8/2007
Tags: molecules that matter, tang
