Professor Winter and her quantum dots go to Washington

Jessica Winter, professor in the departments of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and Biomedical Engineering, will be in Washington D.C. this evening to share her quantum dots imaging innovation during a welcome event for new members of Congress.

Prof. Winter and colleagues from the University of Georgia and the Boston Museum of Science were invited by the National Science Foundation’s Office of Legislative and Public Affairs to participate in “The Arc of Science: Research to Results” event. Up to 200 Congressional Members and staff are expected to attend.

Their exhibit will focus on QSTORM, a multi-university, multi-disciplinary research venture funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to take a high-risk, high-reward approach to improving super-resolution biological imaging. The QSTORM team is developing a new microscope capable of peering through layers of tissue to witness fundamental activities of life occurring at the molecular scale. This new imaging tool may help lead the way to significant breakthroughs in medicine, agriculture and bioengineering. 

According to a recent post on QSTORM’s web site, the team is “bringing our new quantum dot display kit and our gold-nanoshell DNA-linker model, plus lots of super-res cell images, and even 6-foot cutouts of the whole PI team,” and they "look forward to sharing with lawmakers our quest to achieve pinpoint surveillance capability inside living cells.”

The NSF showcase will be held from 4:00-7:00pm in the Rayburn House rooms 2043-2044. Distinguished speakers include NSF Director France A. Córdova, Congressman Lamar Smith (R-TX) and Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX).