Four years ago, I was interviewing John Anthony in chemistry about his work on solar cells and light-emitting diodes (LEDs). He mentioned this crazy undergraduate student, who used to work in his lab, who constantly dyed her hair. She made bright orange and fluorescent pink LEDs that matched her “hair color of the week.” The science behind these organic compounds was intriguing, he told me, although he admitted there wasn’t much demand for those shades of LEDs in consumer electronics.

 

Fast forward to today, that undergrad—Susan Odom—is now an assistant professor of chemistry with her own lab. Odom tells me the exact same story—as she points out the pink hair photo that used to hang in Anthony’s lab. Odom credits that LED project as the experience that convinced her to pursue a research career.

 

In the Qualitative Organic Analysis Laboratory course she teaches, the undergrads make the same compounds “to match their shirts, not their hair,” Odom says with a laugh. She hopes to inspire future researchers with fun projects, but also challenge them by developing curriculum that has them do unique experiments.

 

“You can’t look at your neighbor to feel reassured that your outcome looks like theirs,” Odom explains. “I think it’s important for students to not have that reassurance and to feel comfortable experiencing discomfort. Being uncomfortable allows us to make changes. Being uncomfortable allows us to make significant progress and advance research.”

 

Listen to Odom’s podcast for more on training students, next-generation battery research, and the connection between chemistry and cooking.

 

Alicia Gregory, Director of Research Communications