Metals, Molecules, Life and Death

Graham George (Canada Research Chair in X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy, Department of Geological Sciences, University of Saskatchewan)

This lecture is available for online viewing.

31 August 2004

Abstract:
In our normal everyday lives we are exposed to an incredibly complex chemical soup consisting of an enormous variety of different chemical compounds. Many of these compounds contain metal atoms which, once inside us, can either fulfill roles that are essential to health, or act as poisons. Studies at SLAC’s Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory (SSRL) reveal the molecular details of metals in living systems; how they interact with one another, how they confer beneficial properties, and how they act as poisons.

About the speaker:
Graham George was born and raised near Portsmouth in England. He received his education at the Universities of London and Sussex. His first visit to SLAC was in December 1983 as part of his doctoral work at the University of Sussex, and he has been coming back on a more or less regular basis ever since. From 1986 to 1992 he was first a Post-doctoral fellow, then a Principal Investigator at the Exxon Research and Engineering Laboratory in Clinton New Jersey. More recently he held the position of Physicist at SLAC from 1992 to 2003. He is currently Professor and Canada Research Chair in X-ray Absorption Spectroscopy at the University of Saskatchewan, Canada, but remains a dedicated user at SLAC and SSRL. He is the father of three children aged 3, 5 and 8, and his finale lectures at SLAC’s Kids Day have earned him the informal title of "Dr. Boom".