University of Missouri-St. Louis open nanoscience center
BYLINE: By BETSY TAYLOR, Associated Press Writer
DATELINE: ST. LOUIS
The University of Missouri-St. Louis on Tuesday opened a new center to study nanoscience, which is the study of how to understand and control matter on a tiny scale.
The university had had a Center for Molecular Electronics, but is renaming and restructuring it into the Center for Nanoscience as it steps up work in the field, particularly in the areas of energy, health care and food, said Jimmy Liu, the new center's director and a professor of physics and chemistry.
It will be housed in the William L. Clay building on campus. The center aims to translate scientific breakthroughs into practical applications. The hope is to improve collaborations with companies, nonprofits and other universities, while increasing economic growth in Missouri.
Liu said there are 16 professors and more than 40 students working with the center. Projects at the center range from drug candidates that could possibly fight cancer to extremely sensitive optical detectors, which would have a variety of uses. Among them, researchers are pursuing a glucose monitor that might allow diabetics to monitor their blood sugar levels without having to draw blood, Liu said. Other work relates to alternative energy and fuel cells.
"It's a most exciting area," he said of the nanoscience work.