Professor of Chemistry Emily Niemeyer, Bailey Meyer ’20, Haley White ’20, and Jared McCormack ’22 published an article titled “Catechin composition, phenolic content, and antioxidant properties of commercially-available bagged, gunpowder, and matcha green teas” in the Springer Nature journal Plant Foods for Human Nutrition. Interestingly, results showed that the lowest-cost teas in the study (such as a loose-leaf gunpowder tea made by Pure Leaf and bagged green teas produced by Allegro, Twinings, and Lipton) had significantly higher phenolic contents and antioxidant capacities than more expensive matcha green teas. The research was supported by the Robert A. Welch Foundation and Southwestern’s Herbert and Kate Dishman endowment. The article is available here.
—November 2023Southwestern University was well represented at the American Chemical Society Spring 2023 meeting in Indianapolis, IN. Five students presented a total of three posters at the meeting: Yusuf Buhari ’23, Holly Lawson ’23, Sanjana Nittala ’24, Meghana Nittala ’24, and Noor Nazeer ’24. This work was done collaboratively with Assistant Professor of Chemistry Sara Massey and Professor of Chemistry Emily Niemeyer.
—April 2023Southwestern University was well represented at the American Chemical Society Spring 2022 meeting in San Diego, California. Eight students presented a total of six posters at the meeting: Yusuf Buhari ’23, Sean Calvert ’22, Gabrielle Cano ’22, Natalie Gierat ’22, Rhoda Hijazi ’22, Jared McCormack ’22, Neha Momin ’22, and Ethan Shilgalis ’22. This work was done collaboratively with Associate Professor of Chemistry Mike Gesinski, Assistant Professor of Chemistry Sara Massey, and Professor of Chemistry Emily Niemeyer.
—April 2022Professor of Chemistry Emily Niemeyer published a chapter titled “Semester-long Projects in the Analytical Chemistry Laboratory Curriculum” in a new edited volume, Active Learning in the Analytical Chemistry Curriculum. The book was published by the American Chemical Society (ACS) as part of the ACS Symposium Series. The peer-reviewed pedagogical chapter discusses the implementation and assessment of semester-long projects in undergraduate analytical chemistry lab courses. The chapter was coauthored with Angela González-Mederos of the Inter American University of Puerto Rico–San Germán and Tom Wenzel of Bates College and stems from the group’s collaboration during national active-learning workshops for analytical chemistry faculty.
—February 2022Professor of Chemistry Emily Niemeyer, Eunice Bajomo ’19, Melanie Aing ’18, and Luke Ford ’19 published an article titled “Chemotyping of Commercially Available Basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) Varieties: Cultivar and Morphotype Influence Phenolic Acid Composition and Antioxidant properties” in Elsevier’s NFS Journal. The peer-reviewed article discusses a collaborative project that involved growing 22 basil varieties from seed (~100 plants), harvesting the basil leaves, and analyzing their chemical composition. The research was supported by the Robert A. Welch Foundation and Southwestern’s Herbert and Kate Dishman endowment.
—February 2022Professor of Chemistry Emily Niemeyer and Associate Professor of Chemistry Mike Gesinski published a chapter in the book Equity and Inclusion in Higher Education: Strategies for Teaching (University of Cincinnati Press, 2021). In their chapter, titled “Active Learning Pedagogies in the Introductory and Organic Chemistry Curriculum: Increasing Student Persistence and Success,” Niemeyer and Gesinski chronicle the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department’s move to active learning pedagogies and the effect these changes have had on improving retention of students from underrepresented groups in STEM fields. More information about the book can be found on the University of Cincinnati Libraries website.
—October 2021Professor of Chemistry and the Herbert and Kate Dishman Chair in Science Emily Niemeyer published an article titled “Hands-on Experiences for Remotely Taught Analytical Chemistry Laboratories” in the journal Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry. The article is a contribution to the “ABCs of Education and Professional Development in Analytical Science” portion of the journal and is part of a series on teaching analytical chemistry during the pandemic. Coauthored with Joel Destino and Erin Gross from Creighton University and Steven Petrovic from Southern Oregon University, the peer-reviewed pedagogical article provides an overview of different methodologies that provide hands-on laboratory experiences to students in remote and hybrid analytical chemistry courses. The collaborative article stemmed from Niemeyer’s role as a facilitator at regional and national active-learning workshops for analytical chemistry faculty. Find the article here.
—January 2021Professor of Chemistry Emily Niemeyer published an article titled “Instituting a Group Component to a Final Exam” in Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry. The article is a contribution to the “ABCs of Education and Professional Development in Analytical Science” portion of the journal and was coauthored with Tom Wenzel from Bates College. The peer-reviewed pedagogical article provides an overview of considerations for adding a collaborative group element to final exams in upper-level analytical chemistry courses. The work stemmed from Niemeyer and Wenzel’s ongoing collaboration as facilitators at regional and national active-learning workshops for analytical chemistry faculty.
—October 2020Professor of Chemistry Emily Niemeyer and Derrica McDowell ’20 published a chapter titled “Factors Influencing the Production of Phenolic Compounds within Basil (Ocimum basilicum L.)” in the forthcoming book Ocimum: An Overview. Their chapter discusses the phenolic compounds found within basil and their associated health benefits, explains various strategies to increase phytochemical levels in basil, and offers conclusions about methods that can be used to maximize basil phenolic content. The book is part of the Herbs and Herbalism series published by Nova Science Publishers. Research for the chapter was supported by the Herbert and Kate Dishman fund at Southwestern University.
—October 2020Professor of Chemistry Emily Niemeyer, Jiyoun Ahn ’17, and Andie Alford ’17 published an article titled “Variation in Phenolic Profiles and Antioxidant Properties among Medicinal and Culinary Herbs of the LamiaceaeFamily” in the most recent issue of the Journal of Food Measurement and Characterization. Ahn and Alford grew 23 common and less-well-known Lamiaceaeplants during the SCOPE summer research program and then analyzed them for their chemistry capstone research. Niemeyer completed the project by conducting mass spectral analysis of the herbs during her spring 2019 sabbatical in collaboration with colleagues at the University of Texas at Austin. The research was supported by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), the Robert A. Welch Foundation, and the Herbert and Kate Dishman endowment.
—April 2020