Chemists amid coronavirus: Dave Berkowitz, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Dave Berkowitz, whose work at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln sits at the interface of synthetic organic chemistry and enzymatic chemistry, will take the helm of the chemistry division at the US National Science Foundation (NSF), which funds about one-quarter of all federally supported basic research conducted at American universities.

Yet, amid a global pandemic, on 24 May Berkowitz officially started his new job as director of the division, whose annual budget is nearly $250 million and primarily funds individual investigator awards. Although the agency is located just outside of Washington, DC in Arlington, Virginia, he is back in Lincoln working remotely. He interviewed for the job before Covid-19 struck, quashing his plan to move right after the semester ended in May.

Berkowitz is essentially on loan to the NSF from the university, where he’s been a faculty member in the school’s chemistry department since 1991 and previously served as its chair. He will continue his research program during the appointment.

Berkowitz’s lab closed due to the pandemic in mid-March. All researchers at the university started working remotely, except for essential personnel involved in Covid-19-related work. Shuttering the lab was ‘emotionally hard’, Berkowitz says. There were some safety issues that needed to be addressed ahead of time, including solvents stills that contained chemicals like sodium that needed to be quenched before shutting down. There were also regular checks of the -80°C freezer to ensure that it was running properly throughout the closure.

Read the full story from Chemistry World here.