Summer 2001 -- Vol. 18, No. 2

FACES OF PENN STATE

Paul Weiss
Associate Professor of Chemistry

Chemist Paul Weiss enjoys collaborations with colleagues in other departments and disciplines at Penn State as well as with colleagues studying nanoscale-materials science all over the world.

Some scientists cannot remember the exact moment they fell in love with science. Others, such as Paul Weiss, remember the moment vividly.

“My brother came home from his undergraduate chemistry lab and blew some things up in different colors in the driveway,” Weiss says. “That was exciting, and to some extent that’s still what I do.”

While Weiss works on a much smaller scale, his efforts in nanoscale chemistry and materials science boast a potential impact bigger than any fireworks display.

“We do atomic-scale measurements to get at chemical, physical, and electronic properties and then associate those properties with structures we fill or form on a surface,” Weiss says.

Words do not easily summarize Weiss’s work. His energy and enthusiasm, and his thirst for collaboration and knowledge, have enabled him to build bridges with collaborators across campus and around the world. His contributions have been important, and the potential for more discoveries motivates him every day. Diversity motivates him as well. Members of his lab group include people trained in fields such as biology, chemistry, computer science, electrical engineering, materials science, mechanical engineering, and physics. Clearly, Weiss relishes the intellectual stimulation and research potential created by working with people trained in other fields.

“When you have different people with different perspectives working together, you have what you need for exciting science,” Weiss says. “On a broader scale, that’s what makes Penn State one of the best places in the world for nanoscience. We have quality people coming at similar problems from different directions, and it makes us all better.”

He also enjoys using a team approach for teaching. He co-teaches a class with David Allara, professor of chemistry, during which they show students the importance of different perspectives.

“We attend each other’s lectures and heckle,” Weiss says. “Once students understand what’s going on, they get a better sense of what we’re trying to convey—that science, just because it’s in a textbook, is not written in stone; our field is still developing and they can contribute to its future.”

A balance between his personal and professional life also works for Weiss. His sons, ages 15, 13, and 9, regularly visit his lab and office, and he believes his research group does its best work when he treats the members as a part of his family. In addition, Weiss does nothing in a half-hearted manner. He practices an all-out, full-speed-ahead approach for everything—be it research, teaching, coaching his sons’ soccer teams, or “relaxing” away from work.

“Even when I am backpacking, I’m up pretty early reading and ready to go,” Weiss says. “That’s just me.”

-- By Steve Sampsell

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