Rob is starting his first summer of research, rising to the challenge and learning new things. So far, his work is focused on synthesizing and analyzing tiopronin gold nanoparticles, attaching different molecules to the surface to enhance their properties and changing their charge. So far he has faced the unique ... read more

The change in seasons marks the end of Lana’s sophomore school year and the start of her second summer of full-time research. Although the weather outside hasn’t fully caught up to the summer memo yet, Lana has already been diving headfirst into her research. In only the first few weeks, ... read more

Georgia is beginning her final summer of research, which feels especially bittersweet as she reflects on everything she has accomplished in the lab. The GRAB Lab’s most recent paper, featuring the work she has contributed over the past two years, is currently under review, while she has already moved on ... read more

Summer is here and research is back! It feels good to put the school year behind us and to focus firmly on the experiments ahead. We have a great group of experienced returning researchers along with some new additions to the group. Welcome to Georgia, Lana, Ann-Lee, Rob, and Moji! ... read more

Who needs a beaker mug with the GRAB Lab logo? The seniors do! We want to send a huge thank you to Gwyn, Ellie, Noah, and Donald for their leadership, contributions, and guidance in research, chemistry, and life this semester. You have been awesome and you're now off to exciting ... read more

Congrats to all members of the GRAB Lab - experienced professionals and new members of the group - on awesome success this academic year. You've all worked hard to move research projects forward, learned some great chemistry, and had fun along the way. A special congrats to Gwyn Gagnon who ... read more

As Gwyn returns from ACS Spring 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia, she is reminiscing on the great talks she went to, the connections she made, the communicating science she did, and the places she visited. Her favorite destination in Atlanta, besides the conference center, of course, was the Georgia Aquarium, where ... read more

The GRAB Lab had an amazing time at the National Meeting of the American Chemical Society in Atlanta this week. We had Gwyn and Georgia as seasoned veterans presenting at their second conference and Lana and Ann-Lee making it their first conference. All four did an amazing job at the ... read more

In her final semester at Emmanuel, Ellie has been analyzing carbon dots synthesized from a mixture of urea and citric acid by teammate Gwyneth Gagnon. Ellie is working to understand the method of best separation for liquid chromatography, to gain knowledge about the properties of the carbon dots, such as ... read more

As Noah begins his final semester of senior year, he continues to build on the research skills and experiences he developed last semester in the lab. Currently, he has been working on preparing tissue samples for thin sectioning using a microtome, a crucial step for examining demineralized samples under fluorescence ... read more

Ann-Lee is taking a small break from mineralization experiments for the semester in order to learn about a new project! Gwyn has been teaching her all she needs to know about carbon-nano dots. This week they've performed such an easy microwave-based synthesis! In the future, we hope that we find ... read more

After a rejuvenating winter break, Lana was eager to get back into her chemistry classes and labs this semester. The other research students seem to feel the same, as everyone has been jumping straight into new projects, whether that be an experiment or making DIY lab decor. Lana is especially ... read more

Happy New Year from the GRAB Lab! The whole group is back at it to continue working on experiments this semester, to prepare for the ACS conference in Atlanta, and for end of year celebrations. Georgia is getting back into research, even through epic Boston snow storms. After submitting our ... read more

The entire research team took a well-earned break to end the semester with the time-honored tradition of a trip to Tasty Burger! It was a working lunch - Dr. Gerdon, per usual, made sure everyone shared three successes of the semester and three goals for next semester. We also enjoyed ... read more

Micro-credentialing is a recent method for instilling skills into students and workers to ensure that they are prepared for the field they are trying to enter. It was my duty to create a protocol using micro-credentials that could test students' knowledge in gas chromatography mass spectrometry. A mixture with a ... read more