Mercer Times

The Princeton Catalysis Initiative (PCI) hosted its sixth annual symposium this year, featuring research flash talks that drew Princeton faculty from various fields as presenters and audience members, and attracted industry attention. The symposium challenges speakers to present their best research stories in under eight minutes, spotlighting innovative ideas to foster new collaborations.

This year’s presenters included faculty from sociology, music, and Princeton’s School of Public and International Affairs, along with representatives from disciplines integral to PCI since its inception: computer science, molecular biology, engineering, chemistry, and genomics.

David MacMillan, the James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor of Chemistry, co-founded PCI in 2017 with several colleagues to initiate new research partnerships on campus and with industry. Today, PCI supports 500 collaborations across 12 departments with $100 million in committed funding.

“The idea was if you think of all the cutting-edge research going on in all these departments and you could connect them at the intersections, could you create new research fields?” MacMillan said during his opening remarks at this year’s event held at Frick Laboratory. “And could you do that not just once but as a routine mechanism? That’s what we call catalysis beyond chemistry. That’s why we’re here today.”

Faculty presenters shared their work in four sessions covering topics such as quantum engineering, human-centered decarbonization strategies, and the regulation of microbial proteins across the day-night cycle. They then fielded questions from peers and representatives of PCI’s six industry partners.

“The research is always so nascent, so cutting edge, and they link it in such a way that you can make the next jump,” said Callie Bryan, scientific director at Janssen/Johnson & Johnson. “You’re listening to fascinating researchers all day. When they jump from topic to topic and they riff on each other, you get all of these ideas. Put them together, and that’s when you get the lightbulbs.”

Lydia Lynch, professor of molecular biology at the Ludwig Princeton Branch attending for the first time said: “For me being new this was a great way to get a snapshot of the exciting work going on in Princeton. I have seen flash talks before but these were different. I learned so much.” She noted wide-ranging discussions afterwards connected colleagues from across the University: “I had a talk with a climate scientist who asked an immunology question.”

This year’s presenters included:

- Elizabeth Margulis: Professor of music and director of graduate studies in musicology discussed her research on music and daydreams as precursors to insight.

- Michael Skinnider: Assistant professor at Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics spoke about illuminating unknown “chemical dark matter” in small molecules through new computational tools.

- Janet Vertesi: Associate professor of sociology presented on the impact of science team organization.

- Parastoo Abtahi: Assistant professor of computer science outlined her research bringing a “sense of touch” to virtual reality.

The full collection of 2024 flash talks is archived on the PCI website for faculty, staff, and students using their Princeton Net ID.

The Princeton Catalysis Initiative acknowledges generous support from Anthony Evnin ’62 and Eric ’76 and Wendy Schmidt through the Schmidt DataX Fund.