science day2008

12/30/2008 Govinda Bhisetti Science Day 1

Science Day 2008December 30, 2008

10:30 AM Arrival11:00 – 11:45 AM 2006 Nobel Prizes12:00 – 12:30 PM Trivia12:30 – 1:30 PM Lunch 2:00 – 3:00 PM Breakthroughs in Science 2008 3:00 – 4:00 PM Financial Meltdown 2008 - Discussion

Govinda Bhisetti, Ph. D.Lexington, MA 02421

[email protected]


2006 Nobel Prize winners


• Monday, October 6, 2008 PHYSIOLOGY or MEDICINEHarald zur Hausen �"for his discovery of human papilloma viruses causing cervical cancer" � �FrançoiseBarré-Sinoussi and Luc Montagnier “ �for their discovery of human immunodeficiency virus”.

• Tuesday, October 7, 2008 PHYSICSYoichiro Nambu �"for the discovery of the mechanism of spontaneous broken symmetry in subatomic physics" �and �MakotoKobayashi and Toshihide Maskawa �"for the discovery of the origin of the broken symmetry which predictsthe existence of at least three families of quarks in nature”.

• Wednesday, October 8, 2008 CHEMISTRY�Osamu Shimomura, Martin Chalfie, and Roger Y. Tsien �"for the discovery and development of the green fluorescent protein, GFP".

• Monday, October 13, 2008 ECONOMICSPaul Krugman �"for his analysis of trade patterns and location of economic activity”.

• Thursday, October 9, 2008 LITERATUREJean-Marie Gustave Le Clézio �"author of new departures, poetic adventure and sensual ecstasy, explorer of a humanity beyond and below thereigning civilization”

• Friday, October 9, 2008 PEACEMartti Ahtisaari �"for his important efforts, on several continents and over more than three decades, to resolve internationalconflicts”.


PHYSIOLOGY or MEDICINEHarald zur Hausen, Françoise Barré-Sinoussi and Dr. Luc Montagnier"for discovery of viruses, HPV and HIV behind two

devastating illnesses, cervical cancer and AIDS"

Harald zur Hausen, 72Heidelberg, Germany

Françoise Barré-Sinoussi, 61Paris, France

Luc Montagnier, 76Paris, France


HPV and HIV• Professor zur Hausen discovered HPV as the main cause of cervical cancer. Over

more than a decade of experiments, the scientist successfully isolated DNA fromtwo strains of HPV in cells taken from cervical tumours.

• It is now known that the sexually-transmitted virus can be detected in 99.7 per centof the 500,000 cervical cancers that occur worldwide every year.

• It led to the development of two vaccines against the most dangerous strains,Gardasil and Cervarix.

• About 33 million people worldwide are living with HIV, and about 2.1 million eachyear die of AIDS.

• The role of the virus in causing Aids has been questioned by some scientists likePeter Duesberg and politicians such as Thabo Mbeki, ex-President of South Africa.

• Professor Barré-Sinoussi and Professor Montagnier discovered HIV in 1983. Theyisolated lymph node cells from AIDS patients, and isolated a novel retrovirus thatthey named lymphadenopathy-associated virus.

• In 1984, Professor Gallo’s group identified a similar virus, and in 1985 it wasconfirmed that both were the same. The virus, which has since been confirmed asthe cause of Aids, was renamed HIV in 1986.


HPV impacts poor worldwide


HPV infection


HIV Life Cycle


CHEMISTRY Osamu Shimomura, Roger Tsien, Martin Chalfie

"for discovery of green fluorescent protein- an important tool of modern biology”.

Osamu Shimomura, 80,Woods Hole, MA,Boston University Medical School

Martin Chalfie, 61,Columbia University, NY

Roger Y. Tsien, 56, University of California, San Diego, CA


Shimomura’s interest in greenglow of jellyfish


Chafe’s experiment withC.elegan


GFP: Green Fluorescence Protein- a molecular tag

• The green fluorescent protein (GFP) is a protein,comprised of 238 amino acids (26.9 kDa),originally isolated from the jellyfish.

consists of 238 amino acids, linked• This protein folds up into the shape of a beer can.

Inside the beer can structure the amino acids 65,66 and 67 form the chemical group that absorbsUV and blue light, and fl uoresces green.

• GFP allows scientists to view andunderstand the inner workings of cells


PHYSICSMakoto Kobayashi, Toshihide Maskawa and Yoichiro Nambu,

"for their work exploring the hidden symmetries among elementary particles -- the deepest constituents of nature”

Yoichiro Nambu, 87University of Chicago, IL

Makoto Kobayashi, 64Tsukuba, Japan

Toshihide Maskawa, 68Kyoto Sangyo University,


The standard model


Symmetry infundamental Physics

The basic theory forelementary particlesdescribes threedifferent principles ofsymmetry:

Mirror symmetry PCharge symmetry, CTime symmetry, T


Broken (hidden) Symmetry


2008 Science Breakthroughs• 1. Reprogramming Cells. By inserting genes that turn back a cell's developmental clock,

researchers are gaining insights into disease and the biology of how a cell decides its fate.• 2. Seeing Exoplanets. Astronomers searching for planets circling other stars may have been

getting impatient with their progress toward their ultimate goal.• 3. Cancer Genes. New studies are revealing the entire genetic landscape of specific human

cancers, providing new avenues for diagnosis and treatment.• 4. New High-Temperature Superconductors. Physicists discovered a second family of

high-temperature superconductors. The advance deepened the biggest mystery in condensed-matter physics.

• 5. Watching Proteins at Work. After studying proteins for more than a century, biochemistspushed the boundaries of watching the molecules in action--and received surprises at every turn.

• 6. Water to Burn. Renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar power, have plenty goingfor them. But there is no good way to store excess electricity on an industrial scale. Researchersreported this year that they've developed a new catalyst that could begin to change that picture.

• 7. The Video Embryo. Scientists observed the ballet in unprecedented detail, recording andanalyzing movies that traced the movements of the roughly 16,000 cells that make up thezebrafish embryo by the end of its first day of development.

• 8. Fat of a Different Color. Researchers finally uncovered the mysterious roots of so-calledbrown fat. Hardly blubber, the energy-using tissue turns out to be one step away from muscle.

• 9. Proton's Mass 'Predicted’. Starting from a theoretical description of its innards, physicistsprecisely calculated the mass of the proton and other particles made of quarks and gluons.

• 10. Sequencing Bonanza. New genome-sequencing technologies that are much faster andcheaper than the approach used to decipher the first human genome are driving a boom insequencing.


A planet 100 light years away is about 1015

kilometers from Earth.

A cell spans only about 10-5 meter.

Thus, the two breakthroughs of the yearrepresent a difference of 1023 in scale .. --- a breathtaking illustration of thetremendous reach of science.

- Bruce Alberts, Editor-in-Chief of Science


10. Sequencing BonanzaNew genome-sequencing technologies are much faster and cheaper, and aredriving a boom in sequencing.

454 Sequencing is a massively-parallel sequencing-by-synthesis (SBS) technology which "grows" fluorescently labeledDNA on microscopic beads, and can sequence 100 megabasesof raw DNA sequence per 4.5-hour run.

Illumina's technology sequences DNA at a fater rate inmassively parallel reactions on glass plates.

Pacific Biosciences, provided an exciting glimpse of even fastersequencing.

Costs continue to drop; one company boasts that genomes for$5000 are in reach.

This year, researchers produced the mitochondrial genomes ofextinct cave bears and of a Neandertal, and 70% of the genomeof a woolly mammoth, first genomes of an Asian, an African,and a cancer patient.


9. Proton’s Mass Predictedlattice quantum chromodynamics

• The numbers aren't new; experimenters have been able to weigh the protonfor nearly a century. But starting from a theoretical description, physicistsprecisely calculated the mass of the proton and other particles made ofquarks and gluons.

• In simplest terms, the proton comprises three quarks with gluons zippingbetween them to convey the strong force.

• The new results show that physicists can at last make accurate calculationsof the ultracomplex strong force that binds quarks.


8. Fat of a Different Color

mysterious roots of brown fat• Anatomists first noted the distinction

between two fat types more than 400years ago.

• White fat is a quilt. It is the energy-caching padding that vexes doctors anddieters.

• Brown fat is an electric blanket. It burnsto generate heat that warms the body.

• Brown adipose tissue is, surprisingly,more related to skeletal muscle thanto white adipose tissue.

• The discoveries could lead toward anti-obesity treatments that melt away badwhite fat, either by firing up existing fat-burning brown cells in the body or bytransplanting new ones.


7. The video embryoBiodiversity: New understanding of how species arise.• The dance of cells as a fertilized egg becomes

an organism is at the center of developmentalbiology.

• Scientists recorded movies that traced themovements of roughly 16,000 cells that makeup the zebrafish embryo by the end of its firstday of development.

• A movie of a well-known mutant strain of fishrevealed for the first time exactly what goeswrong as the embryo develops.

• The zebrafish movies are freely available on theinternet.


6. Water to BurnThe utilization of solar energy on a large

scale requires its storage

• There is no good way to store excess electricity on an industrialscale.

• Solar energy can be used electricity to split water into hydrogenand oxygen (as in photosynthesis) using a catalyst. Hydrogen canthen be burned or fed to fuel cells that recombine it with oxygento produce electricity.

• Researchers have known for decades that precious metals such asplatinum will split water. But platinum's rarity and high cost makeit impractical for large-scale use.

• A new catalyst, a mixture of cobalt and phosphorous is reportedto be capable of splitting water - it works too slowly forindustrial use -- but just getting a cheap and abundant metal todo the job is a crucial development.


5. Watching Proteins at workConformational selection, rather than induced-fit motion, thus suffices to

explain the molecular recognition dynamics of ubiquitin.

Induced fit assumes an initialinteraction between a protein andits binding partner, followed byconformational changes that act tooptimize the interaction.

In conformational selection a weaklypopulated, higher-energyconformation interacts with thebinding partner, stabilizing thecomplex.

Relative populations ofconformations are indicated bysize. In the structural ensemble,different conformations mayinteract with distinct protein-binding partners.

The energy diagram depicted is thesimplest case; binding partnersmay have affinity for a number ofprotein sub-states that wouldfurther modify the structuralenergy landscape.


4. New High-T superconductora second family of superconductors that carry

electricity without resistance at high temperaturesJapanese scientists reported the first material, fluorine-dopedlanthanum iron arsenic oxide (LaFeAsO(1-x)Fx), superconducting upto a "critical temperature" of 26 kelvin

Within 3 months, four groups in China had replaced the lanthanumwith elements such as praseodymium and samarium and driven thetemperature for resistance-free flow up to 55 kelvin.

Others have since found compounds with different crystalstructures and have bumped the critical temperature up to 56kelvin.

The record is 138 kelvin for members of the other family ofhigh-temperature superconductors, the copper-and-oxygen,or "cuprate," compounds discovered in 1986.

The iron-based materials have created a stir, in part because theymight help solve the enduring mystery of how the cuprates work.

The question is whether the two families work the same way. Sofar, evidence points in both directions.


3. Cancer Genes The expanding catalog of cancer genes

reveals an exciting but sobering complexity

• Tumor cells are typically riddled with genetic mistakes thatdisrupt key cell pathways, removing the brakes on cell division.

• By sequencing hundreds or thousands of genes, researchersfingered dozens of mutations, both known and new. Leading thelist in 2008 were reports on pancreatic cancer and glioblastoma,the deadliest cancers.

• A new cancer gene called IDH1 appeared in a sizable 12% ofsamples from glioma brain tumors. A separate glioma studyrevealed hints as to why some patients' tumors develop drugresistance. Other studies winnowed out abnormal DNA in lungadenocarcinoma tumors and acute myeloid leukemia.

• Treatments that target biological pathways are a better bet than"silver bullet" drugs aimed at a single gene.


2. Seeing ExoplanetsAstronomers have seen exoplanets for the first time ...

about 6 of them, but not earth-like• Previously for the past 13 years, astronomers

reported indirect detection of more than 300exoplanets using ground-based telescopes tomonitor the subtle wobble a planetgravitationally induces in its star.

• Published last month, the most secure--andsurely the most stunning--are three objectsorbiting a star called HR 8799, 128 light-years from Earth -- 5 to 10 times the mass ofJupiter, orbit 24 to 68 times farther from theirstar than Earth orbits from the sun.

• Another group reported detecting a planet ofroughly three Jupiter masses orbiting the starFomalhaut, one of the brightest stars in thesky.

• Imaging Earth-like exoplanets in Earth-likeorbits is probably still decades andcertainly billions of dollars away.


1. Programming CellsAstronomers have seen exoplanets for the first time ...

about 6 of them, but not earth-like

• Previously for the past 13 years, astronomers reported indirect detection of more than 300 exoplanets usingground-based telescopes to monitor the subtle wobble a planet gravitationally induces in its star.

• http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/322/5909/1766b


2008 Financial MeltdownThe most-memorable year for the financial world since the Great Depression

People wait in line to enter a job fair in NewYork in April. The national unemploymentrate is now at 6.3 percent.

Bernard Prinstein waits on line with other jobseekers at the Internal Revenue Service CareerOpen House on Oct. 28 in New York.


Big Banks failIndyMac Bank - second largest bank failure ever in the US

Hundreds of nervous customers waiting in line in July to get into an IndyMac Bank.... withdrew $1.9 billion.


$700 Billion Bailout

Demonstrators protest next to a statue of George Washington at the Federal HallNational Memorial on Wall Street against the $700 billion Wall Street bail-out in front ofthe New York Stock Exchange in New York on Sept. 25.


Lehman Brothers is gone

Barclays Capital logos are seen on the former Lehman Brothers building on Sept. 23. in NewYork. Lehman sold its North American banking business to Barclays and its Japanese andAustralian units to Nomura.


Auto Makers Bailout

Chrysler Chief Executive Officer Bob Nardelli arrives outside the Dirksen Senate Office Building onCapitol Hill in Washington, in a Jeep Electric Vehicle on Dec. 4, prior to testifying on a rescue package.


The worst predictions that were made about 2008

1. "A very powerful and durable rally is in the works. But it may need another couple of days to lift off.Hold the fort and keep the faith!" -- Richard Band, editor, Profitable Investing Letter, Mar. 27, 2008

2. AIG (NYSE:AIG - News) "could have huge gains in the second quarter." -- Bijan Moazami, analyst,Friedman, Billings, Ramsey, May 9, 2008.

3. "I think this is a case where Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae are fundamentally sound. They're not indanger of going under I think they are in good shape going forward." -- Barney Frank (D-Mass.),House Financial Services Committee chairman, July 14, 2008

4. "The market is in the process of correcting itself." -- President George W. Bush, in a Mar. 14, 2008speech

5. "No! No! No! Bear Stearns is not in trouble." -- Jim Cramer, CNBC commentator, Mar. 11, 20086. "Existing-Home Sales to Trend Up in 2008" -- Headline of a National Association of Realtors press

release, Dec. 9, 20077. "I think you'll see (oil prices at) $150 a barrel by the end of the year" -- T. Boone Pickens, June 20,

20088. "I expect there will be some failures. I don't anticipate any serious problems of that sort among the

large internationally active banks that make up a very substantial part of our banking system." --Ben Bernanke, Federal Reserve chairman, Feb. 28, 2008

9. "In today's regulatory environment, it's virtually impossible to violate rules." -- Bernard Madoff,money manager, Oct. 20, 2007

10. A Bound Man: Why We Are Excited About Obama and Why He Can't Win, the title of a book byconservative commentator Shelby Steele, published on Dec. 4, 2007.


Jobs Graduates seek• In the past decade, more than half of the graduates of Yale, Princeton, and Harvard who did not

go directly to professional schools chose a career in the finance industry or in managementconsulting.

• That will change. Many more of our most talented young people may decide to tackle theurgent problems in energy, environment, health, and education.

science day2008

Education

science breakthroughs

discussiongovinda bhisetti

hiv professor zur hausen

green fluorescent protein

green fluorescence protein

professor barrsinoussi

ctime symmetry

professor montagnier