Dr. Andy A Thomas, an assistant professor in the Department of Chemistry at Texas A&M University, has been appointed as an inaugural member of the Science of Synthesis Early Career Advisory Board (ECAB), effective January 2022.
Science of Synthesis is the world’s largest resource for evaluated reviews of synthetic methods dating back to the early 1800s and encompassing the entire field of organic and organometallic chemistry. The Thieme Chemistry-developed product is designed to help scientists in academia and industry maximize their time in the lab by providing a one-stop shop for finding the best way to make targeted molecules, aided by approximately 2,500 editors and authors responsible for continuous product developments and updates.
Last spring, Thieme Chemistry invited early career researchers who have completed their Ph.D.s in the past five years and are within the first 10 years of their independent research careers to apply for its latest Science of Synthesis-related improvement: an Early Career Advisory Board intended to help promote young talented chemists and provide opportunities to network with internationally renowned chemists. Selected members were notified in December of their two-year appointments, which run through December 2023.
In addition to serving as ambassadors for Science of Synthesis, board members are expected to encourage digital product usage and provide feedback to the journal’s editorial board and broader Thieme Chemistry product management team. While simultaneously defining use cases and acquiring relevant case studies, Thomas and his fellow board members will develop creative digital solutions for chemists and help the journal promote its values regarding diversity, equality and inclusion within the international chemistry community.
“I am honored and excited to join the Early Career Advisory Board for Science of Synthesis,” Thomas said. “I look forward to working with chemists across the globe and promoting organic chemistry to scientists of all levels.”
Thomas joined the Texas A&M faculty in 2020 after obtaining his Ph.D. in organic chemistry from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2017 and completing a three-year National Institutes of Health (NIH) Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His research program at Texas A&M is focused on using physical organic chemistry to develop new chemical reactions and catalyst transfer polymerization reactions by investigating the chemical reactivity of highly reactive intermediates using rapid injection NMR spectroscopy. Thomas is an international expert in rapid injection NMR spectroscopy and, as such, has one of only two RI-NMR instruments in the world. He was recognized this past summer as one of 35 recipients of the 2021 Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU) Ralph E. Powe Junior Faculty Enhancement Award.
To learn more about Thomas and his research, visit https://www.aathomasgroup.com/.
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