Community

On October 18, 1971, President Richard Nixon emerged from the U.S. Army Post Headquarters at Fort Detrick into the sunlight of one of Frederick’s signature autumn mornings. Nearby, a crowd of dignitaries, Army officers, and journalists from local and national news outlets had gathered to hear his remarks about the former biowarfare research facility. He greeted them, paused to make a good-natured joke about the Baltimore Orioles, then delivered an announcement that altered the course of biomedical research in the United States.

Howard Young, Ph.D., has received many awards during his tenure at NCI at Frederick—but the latest could be among the most meaningful. At the recent NCI Principal Investigators Retreat, Young was given the 2019 Mentoring Award by the Women Scientists Advisors (WSA), a group that supports and promotes career development for women in science.

Dennis Klinman, M.D., Ph.D., says science is like the surface of a sphere—there are thousands of possible connections between different points. It is fitting, therefore, that on the eve of his retirement, the senior investigator has helped a young scientist connect with her passion.

It’s half an hour to showtime in the spacious, sun-filled atrium. Glance upward and you can’t miss the painted five-foot-tall black paw print and the inscription “Panther Pride” along the open staircase’s tallest yellow wall. Clustered around the lobby, 20 presenters are steeling their nerves as best they can: pacing, fidgeting, rehearsing. Pressure to perform aside, it’s a decidedly casual event, evidenced by several shoelaces that need tying.

When Joshua Yu became a semifinalist in the 2019 Regeneron Science Talent Search, he continued a tradition he didn’t even know existed. A Werner H. Kirsten (WHK) intern, Yu is the latest in a long line of students hailing from Nadya Tarasova, Ph.D.’s lab to make the semifinals in the Regeneron competition, which bills itself as the nation’s oldest and most prestigious science and math competition for high school seniors.

Ben Orsburn, Ph.D., stood in the middle of a 180-square-foot laboratory, speaking over the white noise that flooded the room. The source of the din—large, desk-sized objects called mass spectrometers—filled nearby rows of lab benches. Orsburn pointed to one along the periphery of the room, a white-and-black box with the words “Orbitrap Fusion” emblazoned on the front in small blue text.

Technology transfer at national laboratories presents challenges, and the Frederick National Laboratory is no exception. But that hasn’t stopped Claudia Haywood, Tom Sova, and Candice Garner-Groves from notching a series of accomplishments that span their tenure at FNL.

The Educational Outreach Program, known colloquially as the EOP, gives elementary and middle school students access to and experience in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields through engaging, hands-on activities such as science fairs and community events.

Butterflies in the stomach, a cold sweat, a feeling of dread: most of us know and fear the nervousness that accompanies public speaking. It was a pleasant surprise, therefore, to see apparently fearless Werner H. Kirsten student interns speak at NCI at Frederick’s WHK Student Intern Program Winter Poster Session. The event gave the dozen or so high school students a chance to present their hard-won research to NCI at Frederick staff. For many, it was their first time speaking about their projects in public.

For Leonard Freedman, Ph.D., a lifetime in the sciences began serendipitously at Kalamazoo College, a small liberal arts school in Michigan. Freedman, who is Frederick National Laboratory’s new chief science officer, was drawn to the college’s strong science and premedical programs. However, he says many other subjects were equally attractive during his studies.