George A. Abbott Lectureship

The Abbott Lectureship is designed to bring outstanding chemists to our department and to the area, to provide an opportunity for personal interaction with area students, practicing chemists, and faculty. We have been fortunate to have some of the most outstanding chemists in the country present these endowed lectures, including Nobel Prize winners in Chemistry.

The George A. Abbott Lectureship was established by gifts from the University of North Dakota Alumni.

The 2021 Abbott Chemistry Lectures

March 11 and 12, 2021
Dr. X. Chris Le

Dr. Le obtained undergraduate training from Wuhan University from 1979-1983. He obtained a M.Sc. degree from Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences from 1983-1986 before he came to Canada and pursued a second M.Sc. degree at Brock University from 1987-1988. He received his Ph.D. in Environmental/Analytical Chemistry from the University of British Columbia from 1990-1993. He was subsequently awarded a prestigious Killam Postdoctoral Fellowship and carried out postdoctoral research in the Chemistry Department at the University of Alberta (1994). He was recruited to the Faculty of Medicine in 1995 and was promoted through the ranks to Professor in 2003.

Dr. Le held an inaugural Canada Research Chair in Bio-Analytical Technology and Environmental Health (2000-2017). He was awarded an E.W.R. Steacie Fellowship (2000-2001) from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). He also received from the Canadian Society for Chemistry a McBryde Medal (2002) and a Maxxam Award (2011) for “distinguished contribution to the field of analytical chemistry”, as well as an Environment Research and Development Award (2011), Award for Excellence in Mentoring (2009) and a Martha Cook Piper Research Prize (2000), from the University of Alberta.

Dr. Le is elected Fellow of the Chemical Institute of Canada (2001), Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (UK) (2016), and Fellow of the Academy of Science, Royal Society of Canada (2010).

Dr. Le’s group actively pursues research involving bioanalytical chemistry and environmental health sciences. Current projects include (i) analytical techniques and assays for molecules of environmental and biological significance; (ii) arsenic speciation, exposure, metabolism, and health effects; (iii) DNA damage and protein biomarkers; (iv) environmental health; and (v) water and food safety. The ultrasensitive techniques and assays enable studies of the environment and human health. This group enjoys extensive collaborations with multidisciplinary research groups both on campus and internationally.

Previous Abbott Lectures

2019 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. Christopher Cummins
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• (2019 Lecture Information)

2018 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. Thomas R. Hoye
• University of Minnesota
• (2018 Lecture Information)

2017 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. Jonathan V. Sweedler
• University of Illinois, Urbana
• (2017 Lecture Information)

2016 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. David Yarkony
• John Hopkins University
• (2016 Lecture Information)

2015 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. Donald J. Darensbourg
• Texas A&M University
• (2015 Lecture Information)

2014 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. Bruce Lipshutz
• University of California, Santa Barbara
• (2014 Lecture Information)

2013 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. Debra R. Rolison
• U.S. Naval Research Laboratory
• (2013 Lecture Information)

2012 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. Michael Ward
• Molecular Design Institute, New York University
• (2012 Lecture Information)

2011 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. Thomas J. Meyer
• University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
• (2011 Lecture Information)

2010 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. Michael P. Doyle
• University of Maryland
• (2010 Lecture Information)

2009 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. Richard N. Zare
• Stanford University
• (2009 Lecture Information)

2008 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. Richard J. Saykally
• University of California, Berkeley
• (2008 Lecture Information)

2007 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. Catherine Fensealu
• University of Maryland
• (2007 Lecture Information)

2006 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. Malcolm Chisholm
• Ohio State University
• (2006 Lecture Information)

2005 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. Barry K. Carpenter
• Cornell University
• (2005 Lecture Information)

2004 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. William H. Miller
• University of California, Berkeley
• (2004 Lecture Information)

2003 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. Victor J. Hruby
• University of Arizona
• (2003 Lecture Information)
• UND Alumni (B.S. & M.S.)

2002 Abbott Lecturer

• Dr. Samuel H. Gellman
• University of Wisconsin - Madison
• (2002 Lecture Information)