James K. Kearns Ph.D.
Professor of Chemistry
Email: jameskalmankearns@gmail.com
Education:
RISE Research Fellowship; Indo-US Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF); Kolkata, India Fall 2009
Ph.D. University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Analytical Chemistry, December 2010
Thesis: Field Portable Methods for the Determination of Arsenic in Environmental Samples. Advisor: Julian F. Tyson
MS in Analytical Chemistry from University of Massachusetts at Amherst December 2004
BSc in Biochemistry from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst 1997
Courses (2010-2013)
General Chemistry I & II
Instrumental Analysis
Quantitative Chemical Analysis
Biochemistry
Mission Statement and Research Interests
I am an analytical chemist and a professor of chemistry. Analytical chemistry is the area of science that focuses on the measurement and determination of atoms and molecules in mixtures of chemicals. I use instrumentation that measures how atoms and molecules ionize and interact with light and electric fields in order to count them. These methods are called atomic and molecular spectroscopy, which I use to investigate compounds, which affect human health. I am particularly interested in research at the biology and environmental chemistry interface. The goal of one research project is to further improve on the measurement of arsenic in environmental samples (water and soil) using commercial field kit technology and using digital image analysis to improve the accuracy of these devices. The second research project is to measure endocrine disrupting molecules using mass spec methods in fish tissue to further explore the connection between environmental contaminants, which are released from plastic, and their impact on biological systems. These projects are intended to engage undergraduate students in the areas of fundamental research, critical thinking, writing skills, speaking and future job training.
Publications
Kearns, J.; Tyson, J. Improving the accuracy and precision of an arsenic field test kit: increased reaction time and digital image analysis, Anal. Methods, 2012, DOI: 10.1039/c2ay05655k
Banerjee N, Nandy S, Kearns JK, Bandyopadhyay AK, Das JK, Majumder P, Basu S, Banerjee S, Sau TJ, States CJ, Giri AK Polymorphisms in the TNF-α and IL10-gene promoters and risk of arsenic-induced skin lesions and other non-dermatological health effects Toxicol. Sci. first published online February 25, 2011 doi:10.1093/toxsci/kfr046
Diamond and diamond-like carbon from a preceramic polymer J. Am. Chem. Soc. Mar 17; 126 (10) 3191-3202.
Professional Memberships
American Chemical Society
American Society for Mass Spectrometry
Professor of Chemistry
Email: jameskalmankearns@gmail.com
Education:
RISE Research Fellowship; Indo-US Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF); Kolkata, India Fall 2009
Ph.D. University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Analytical Chemistry, December 2010
Thesis: Field Portable Methods for the Determination of Arsenic in Environmental Samples. Advisor: Julian F. Tyson
MS in Analytical Chemistry from University of Massachusetts at Amherst December 2004
BSc in Biochemistry from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst 1997
Courses (2010-2013)
General Chemistry I & II
Instrumental Analysis
Quantitative Chemical Analysis
Biochemistry
Mission Statement and Research Interests
I am an analytical chemist and a professor of chemistry. Analytical chemistry is the area of science that focuses on the measurement and determination of atoms and molecules in mixtures of chemicals. I use instrumentation that measures how atoms and molecules ionize and interact with light and electric fields in order to count them. These methods are called atomic and molecular spectroscopy, which I use to investigate compounds, which affect human health. I am particularly interested in research at the biology and environmental chemistry interface. The goal of one research project is to further improve on the measurement of arsenic in environmental samples (water and soil) using commercial field kit technology and using digital image analysis to improve the accuracy of these devices. The second research project is to measure endocrine disrupting molecules using mass spec methods in fish tissue to further explore the connection between environmental contaminants, which are released from plastic, and their impact on biological systems. These projects are intended to engage undergraduate students in the areas of fundamental research, critical thinking, writing skills, speaking and future job training.
Publications
Kearns, J.; Tyson, J. Improving the accuracy and precision of an arsenic field test kit: increased reaction time and digital image analysis, Anal. Methods, 2012, DOI: 10.1039/c2ay05655k
Banerjee N, Nandy S, Kearns JK, Bandyopadhyay AK, Das JK, Majumder P, Basu S, Banerjee S, Sau TJ, States CJ, Giri AK Polymorphisms in the TNF-α and IL10-gene promoters and risk of arsenic-induced skin lesions and other non-dermatological health effects Toxicol. Sci. first published online February 25, 2011 doi:10.1093/toxsci/kfr046
Diamond and diamond-like carbon from a preceramic polymer J. Am. Chem. Soc. Mar 17; 126 (10) 3191-3202.
Professional Memberships
American Chemical Society
American Society for Mass Spectrometry
