Stories

Robert Hugh Neilson (Bob) passed away on December 17, 2020 after a seven month battle with glioblastoma. He was born on January 24, 1948 and grew up in Pittsburgh, PA. As he grew older, his early boredom with school turned into a career in education and research. Neilson attended Carnegie Mellon University where he majored in chemistry and was a part of the Army ROTC program.

Romina Gazis ‘07 graduated from TCU with a master’s degree in environmental sciences. Her program lasted three years, instead of the traditional two years, because she was part of a team of students and researchers from the Botanical Research Institute of Texas (BRIT). They spent two semesters doing fieldwork in the Amazon at Los Amigos Biological Station, which was extremely important for the foundation of her career.

Eric Simanek, Robert A. Welch Chair of Chemistry, released a novel entitled, “The Whiskey Thieves: An American Adventure in 1871.” The novel was self-published through Amazon and is now available for purchase.

Rhiannon Mayne, Oscar and Juanita Monnig Endowed Chair of Meteoritics and Planetary Science, recently completed a seven-week online course to receive the Informal Learning in Museums Certificate. This professional certificate is earned through an innovative program that immerses museum, zoo, aquarium and science outreach professionals and volunteers in informal and free-choice learning theories.

With the ongoing outbreak of COVID-19 and the holidays around the corner, Professor and Department Chair Anne VanBeber, R.D. provides easy tips and recommendations of food and drink groups to consider when planning weeknight and holiday meals.

Due to social distancing regulations, National Chemistry Week looked a little different this year, but was a success nonetheless. For the past 10 years, DFW Chemistry Organizations have come together to serve the local community through a collaborative effort at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History (FWMSH). Thanks to volunteers from universities and high schools in the area, these organizations have served more than 27,000 museum guests.

Lieutenant Colonel (LTC) Diana Loucks ’96 graduated with a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and a minor in astrophysics from TCU. She went on to earn a master of science degree in 2008 and a Ph.D. in 2017 - both in aerospace engineering sciences, from the University of Colorado Boulder. She was commissioned at TCU in December 1996, and is married to fellow Army officer Lieutenant Colonel Gary Loucks.

The Institute of Behavioral Research (IBR) and Karyn Purvis Institute of Child Development (KPICD) have been awarded $4,460,305 of funding from The National Institute of Health (NIH) for the continuation of their project, “Preventing Opioid Use Among Justice-Involved Youth as They Transition to Adulthood: Leveraging Safe Adults (LeSA).”

The TCU Energy Institute’s mission is to promote energy research and knowledge about the energy industry, management, and related technologies through an integrated approach to examine the future of energy resources. This fall, the institute started an initiative on energy poverty led by Richard Denne, Hunter Enis Endowed Chair in Petroleum Geology and Director of the TCU Energy Institute.