October 7, 2004

Faculty honors

Lester I. Binder, professor of cell and molecular biology at the Feinberg School of Medicine, has received the 2004 Alzheimer Award from the editors of the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease.

The award recognizes an outstanding work published in the journal each year. The article, “Conformational changes and truncation of tau protein during tangle evolution in Alzheimer’s disease,” was co-authored by Binder and members of his laboratory.

The formation of neurofibrillary tangles of tau proteins in the brains of Alzheimer’s disease patients may play an important role in the progression of the disease. The details of how the tau molecule changes during filament and tangle formation may point to diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for physicians caring for Alzheimer’s patients.

Katherine T. Faber, professor of materials science and engineering, has been awarded the Charles L. Hosler Alumni Scholar Medal by the College of Earth and Mineral Studies at The Pennsylvania State University.

The award recognizes the very highest levels of intellectual achievement or academic service attained by those educated in the college. Faber earned her master of science degree in ceramic science there.

Faber is author of a book, a book chapter and more than 100 papers on the mechanical behavior of ceramics, ceramic composites and electronic materials, particularly in structural ceramics. She is also an expert on toughening of ceramics, interfacial properties and processing, and characterization of thermal and environmental barrier coatings.

Tobin J. Marks, the Vladimir N. Ipatieff Professor of Catalytic Chemistry and Professor of Materials Science and Engineering, has been elected to the University of Maryland’s 2005 Alumni Hall of Fame, the highest recognition the university’s alumni association bestows.

Marks, who received his B.S. in chemistry from the University of Maryland in 1966, is being honored for his distinguished career as a chemist and professor.

During his career, Marks has received numerous awards, including some of the most prestigious national and international awards in the fields of inorganic, catalytic, materials and organometallic chemistry.

Vadim Backman, assistant professor of biomedical engineering, and Teri W. Odom, assistant professor of chemistry and Dow Teacher-Scholar, have been named to the 2004 list of the world’s top 100 young innovators by Technology Review magazine.

The TR100, who are all under age 35, are selected for “innovative work in technology that has a profound impact on today’s world.”

Backman is developing advanced light scattering spectroscopy-based technologies for minimally invasive imaging, diagnosis and characterization of pre-invasive neoplastic lesions or early cancers.

Odom’s research focuses on uncovering new electronic and optical phenomena at the nanoscale (1 to 10 nanometers) and mesoscale (100 to 1,000 namometers). Her interests include the synthesis and characterization of inorganic nanoscale materials; the development of nanopatterning techniques to grow and manipulate nanomaterials; and the generation and study of meso- and nanostructures that can exhibit novel optical behavior.