Ari Jacobs

Ari is a Ph.D. student working with Professor Edward Solomon in the Department of Chemistry. His field of interest is bioinorganic chemistry, in which he applies spectroscopic methods to determine how the structure of metalloenzymes correlates with their biological function. He is specifically interested in understanding the chemistry of soluble methane monooxygenase, an enzyme in methanotrophs which converts methane to methanol at ambient conditions. Results from this research could be used to sequester atmospheric methane gas in an environmentally-friendly manner.

Before Stanford, Ari was an undergraduate at Beloit College in Wisconsin where he graduated valedictorian in 2012 with a B.S. in Chemistry and Physics. His research at Beloit College focused on the diverse synthesis of nanomaterials and their applications to thin film and bioremediation technologies. This research was partially funded by an NSF-REU fellowship at the University of Oregon in which he worked with Professor Darren Johnson to synthesize novel tin oxide nanoclusters. He received an Honors Term Service Award to integrate results from his undergraduate research into new curricula for the Department of Chemistry at Beloit College and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Outside of research, Ari enjoys outreach and tutoring chemistry. As the Office of Accessible Education Chemistry Coordinator, he has developed a department-wide policy to provide course accommodations for students with physical and learning disabilities. He spends his free time running, playing ultimate Frisbee and hiking. He is an avid consumer of deep-dish pizza and firmly believes that thin-sliced New York ‘pizza’ is at best a fragile tomato crepe.