Dr. Peter DePasquale, Department of Computer Science
“Introducing the TCNJ Computing Cluster”
Abstract: Through a generous dontaion of 65 computer servers, memory, and other equipment by Linode, Inc., we are fortunate to have extended our computation capability in the School of Science and TCNJ this past year. This talk will introduce the computing cluster, provide an introduction to our planned use of part of the cluster, and discuss opportunities for providing higher scale computational power for research projects across the campus.
Dr. Donald Hirsh, Department of Chemistry
“Measuring Distances in Proteins and DNA Using Molecular Magnets”
Abstract: In addition to having charge, electrons have “spin”. This combination of charge and spin means that electrons are tiny magnetic dipoles, similar to a compass needle or bar magnets marked “N” and “S” that you might have played with as a child. Like bar magnets, the strength of the interaction between electron magnetic dipoles increases as the distance between them decreases. Thus, if we measure the magnetic interaction between electrons, we can calculate the distance between them. I will describe how we detect the magnetic dipoles of electrons, measure the distances between them, and use this information to learn about the structure of proteins and DNA.
