In Brief

TSRI Investigators Top Angewandte Chemie List
Investigators at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) figure prominently in a list of the most downloaded articles in 2002 from international chemistry journal Angewandte Chemie. Articles by K.C. Nicolaou are listed as first, second, and nineteenth. Articles by K. Barry Sharpless are listed fourth, eighth, and twenty-fourth. And an article by Julius Rebek, Jr. is listed fourteenth. For the complete list, see the editorial in the May 9, 2003 issue of Angewandte Chemie.


Ollmann Saphire Wins Burroughs Wellcome Career Award
TSRI Senior Research Associate Erica Ollmann Saphire, TSRI class of 2001, has been selected as a recipient of a 2003 Burroughs Wellcome Fund Career Award in the Biomedical Sciences. The award provides $500,000 over five years for young scientists, spanning the period that includes their advanced postdoctoral training and their early years as a faculty member of an academic research institution. Ollmann Saphire is combining x-ray crystallography with virology/immunology to study the Ebola virus. Her structural analysis will give insights into the virus's extreme pathogenesis and lethality and will also provide the templates necessary for design of vaccines and inhibitors against the virus.


Power Outage: TSRI Staff Rise to the Occasion
The power outage on campus, caused by the crane accident at the I-5/805 merge in the early hours of Wednesday morning, had many members of TSRI's Facilities staff working straight through the 36-hour crisis. Emergency systems and procedures were implemented all over campus in wake of the power loss. Phone, e-mail, and web services continued throughout, providing a variety of methods to communicate the status of the situation.

"Although it was inconvenient for a lot of people and science couldn't be conducted, we got through a very serious situation," says Vice President of Facilities Services Ben Morris. "I'd like to thank everyone on our response team."


TSRI to Host Educational Web Seminar
In conjunction with San Diego City Schools, TSRI is hosting a web seminar, "Contemporary Issues in Bioscience." The seminar was created in response to middle and high school science teachers' interest in providing innovative, hands-on science activities in the classroom.

The web seminar will be presented in the following format:

MAY 1 - MAY 22: Three approximately 40-minute lectures given by TSRI scientists are available by video-on-demand to registered participants throughout California. The site, featuring synchronized PowerPoint presentations, "Ask a Question" window, and numerous links to related web sites, journal articles and news releases, is designed to assist teachers in creating fresh and comprehensive classroom activities.

MAY 22, 3 - 4 PM: Participants who have viewed "Contemporary Issues in Bioscience" will be able to participate in a live, online Q & A session with investigators Clint Potter, Karla Ewalt, and Floyd Romesberg.

TSRI employees are welcome to participate. For more information and to register online, visit the Contemporary Issues in Bioscience web page.

The webcast is best viewed using these standard settings:

  • Windows 98/ME/OO/XP,
  • Minimum screen size of 1024x768,
  • Internet Explorer 5.0 or greater,
  • Java enabled browser,
  • Browser configuration must accept cookies.


Learn the Basics of Excel
Excel is a powerful spreadsheet program that can be used for a number of functions. The Excel Basics class on Tuesday, June 3, from 8:30 to 11 AM, provides instructions and exercises on how to:

  • Maintain data lists such as for name and address information,
  • Replicate paper forms with the calculations built into the document,
  • Create a simple "checkbook" style spreadsheet,
  • Import Excel data into Word to eliminate re-keying.

To sign-up for the Excel Basics class, go to http://www.scripps.edu/rc/training/dapps.html.


Free Web Site Aims to Improve Life at Work and Home
United Behavioral Health (UBH), TSRI's mental health insurance provider offers a free resource website at https://www.liveandworkwell.com/. The site provides many tools and resources to help improve life at work and at home such as health and wellness articles, educational resources, chats with experts, and financial tools such as retirement calculators. TSRI participants may access the site by logging in with TSRI's UBH group plan number, 10730 (the group plan number is also listed on the back of the Benefits Card). If you would like to access mental health services through a UBH network provider, call UBH at 800-888-2998, the 24-hour hotline for pre-authorization. Services provided though a non-network provider do not require pre-authorization. For further information, contact UBH, Human Resources (x4-8487 or benefits@scripps.edu), or Employee and Graduate Student Counseling Services (x4-2950).


TSRI's Annual Health Fair Flexes its Muscles
TSRI's fourth annual Health Fair will be held on Wednesday, May 21 from 11 AM to 1 PM on the walkway in front of the Immunology Building. A variety of health and wellness topics will be addressed, including fitness, nutrition, and safety. There will be health and wellness screenings, fitness and recreation demonstrations, chair massages, giveaways, and food samples from local restaurants. All TSRI employees and graduate students are invited to participate in this fun and educational event.


News&Views to Begin Summer Publication Schedule
News&Views will be published every other week throughout the summer, beginning with the next issue, Monday, June 2. The deadline for announcement and calendar submissions is Wednesday at noon for the following Monday's publication.