Date: 01 Feb 2017
     Speaker: Dr. Dana Boyd Barr
     Professor of Exposure Science and Environmental Health Department of Environmental Health Rollins School of Public Health,. Emory University, Atlanta, USA

About the Speaker:

Dr Barr has worked to establish a state-of-the-art laboratory at Emory's Rollins School of Public Health for assessing human exposure to a wide range of chemicals. Prior to joining Emory seven years ago, Dr. Barr was employed at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for 23 years. During her tenure at CDC, she devoted much of her time to the development of methods for assessing human exposure to a variety of environmental toxicants including current-use pesticides, phthalates, organochlorine chemicals (pesticides and PCBs), phytoestrogens, diethylene glycol, methyl eugenol, vinyl chloride and others. Dr. Barr has authored or coauthored over 300 peer-reviewed publications. Some of these papers have been landmark papers showing human exposure to pesticides in the general population and determining appropriate matrices for biomonitoring at each life stage. She is the past President and treasurer of the International Society of Exposure Science (ISES; formerly ISEA); she is past Editor-in-Chief and current Editor Emeritus of ISES's official journal, Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology. She is also an associate editor of Environmental Health Perspectives and serves on the editorial board of the J.of Chromatography & Separation Techniques, J.of Health Research, and Advances in Medicine. She is also an active member of the International Society of Environmental Epidemiology, Society of Toxicology, ACS, American Society for Mass Spectrometry, and the Association of Official Analytical Chemists. She has served many important roles in the field of exposure assessment including serving on EPA review boards such as the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act Scientific Advisory Panel. As a result of her efforts, Dr. Barr has received many awards including ISES's Daisey Award for Outstanding Investigator, two HHS Secretary's awards for exposure-health investigations involving diethylene glycol and methyl parathion poisoning, 2004 Federal Scientific Employee of the Year, CDC's Mackel Award for outstanding collaboration among epidemiology and laboratory, and EPA's Silver Medal for outstanding contributions to the development of protocols for the National Children's Study. She is a 2014, 2015 and 2016 recipient of Thomson Reuters "Most Highly Cited Researcher" award in ecology and the environment over the previous 10 years.

     Date: 23 Nov 2016
     Speaker: Norman Sacuta High Commission, Canada

3. Biogeochemistry of Organic Pollutants in Technogenic Landscapes, Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Soil-Plant System, Sub- and      Supercritical Technologies in Environmental Analysis

     Date: 30 Nov 2016
     Speaker: Dr. Svetlana Sushkova, Department of Soil Science and Land Resources Estimation, Academy of Biology and Biotechnology,
     Southern Federal University 344090 Rostov-on-Don, Russia

Abstract:

Organic pollution of soils: different kinds of pollution from various sources. Biogeochemistry of organic pollutants in technogenic landscapes. Pollution of soils by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Analysis of data on the accumulation and transformation of PAHs in the soil-plant system, as the most informative indicator of the state of natural and technogenic landscapes. Information about the main mechanisms of accumulation, transformation and migration of PAHs, carcinogenic and mutagenic to living organisms, in the soil-plant system on an example on the territory of Novocherkassk Power Station zone according to long-term monitoring. The digital soil mapping in the polluted areas. Development of pollution forecast model in the case of PAHs pollution. Scientific approach for selection of the actual methods of contaminated areas remediation. Selection of sorbents for the bioremediation of soils contaminated by PAHs. The approaches to effective methods of analysis for the extraction of PAHs from soils and plants. Traditional methods of organic pollutants analysis in environmental objects. Elaboration and approbation of new ecologically clean and effective methods of PAHs extraction from environmental objects: the history of the question, recent application of technology, advantages of the approach.

     Date: 30 Nov 2016
     Speaker: Prof. Tatiana Minkina,
     Department of Soil Science and Land Resources Estimation, Academy of Biology and Biotechnology Southern Federal University 344090 Rostov-on-Don, Russia

Abstract:

Ecological function of soil. Problem of chemical pollution in the current ecology. Pollution of soils with heavy metals. Heavy metals as a priority environmental pollutants. Sources of heavy metals in the soil. Heavy metals distribution in soil. Reactions of heavy metals with soil components. Adsorption and transformation of metal compounds in soil. Heavy metal in soils: atomic absorption spectrophotometry, spectroscopy methods of analysis, physical modeling, X-ray spectrometry involving infrastructure of translocation in soil-plant system. Determination of heavy metals compounds in soil using chemical extracts. Modern instrumental methods of heavy metals determination unique specialized installations Mega-class ("Mega-Science"). The problem of soil ecological monitoring. Critical levels of heavy metals content in soil. System of soil parameters for monitoring chemical pollution. Remediation of soil polluted by heavy metals.

     Date: 15 Sept. 2016
     Speaker: Nancy Long Sieber, PhD Adjunct Lecturer, Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Boston, MA

Abstract:

In India, as in many other developing countries, metal mining and recycling often occurs in the unregulated informal sector. This work is often done near or inside homes, and puts family members at risk. Lead and mercury, which are highly toxic to the developing brains of children, are a particular concern.

     Date: 15 Sept. 2016
     Speaker: Douglas W. Dockery,
     PSc.D. Loeb Professor of Environmental Epidemiology, Department of Environmental Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA

Abstract: Decades of research have shown that exposure to air pollution, particularly particles in the PM 2.5 range, contributes to an increased rate of mortality. Regulation of air pollution emissions have paid off in improved health and reduced mortality.

     Date: 18 Aug. 2016
     Speaker: Dr. Karan Pankaj Jani,
     Georgia Institute of Technology, LIGO Scientific Collaboration

Abstract:

The historic detections of collision of black holes in the first science run of Advanced LIGO has inaugurated the era of Gravitational Wave Astronomy. In this talk, I will:
• Review what we have learned about universe from the gravitational waves seen so far in LIGO,
• Narrate the basic workings of LIGO detectors,
• Emphasize the role supercomputer simulations plays in these discoveries,
• Present a roadmap of gravitational wave astronomy goals for LIGO-India.

     Date: 05 April 2016
     Speaker: Dr. Hadas Mamane,
     Faculty of Engineering and Water Research Center (TAU-WRC), Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel

Abstract:

Wastewater reuse is one of the promising and most sustainable solutions to address global water scarcity. As such, wastewater reuse provides a major alternative to fresh water for the growing needs of water for food production. Soil-Aquifer Treatment (SAT) improves water quality during the percolation of treated wastewater through unsaturated soil. However, the use of reclaimed wastewater for irrigation is an important route for the introduction of organic compounds into the environment. Depletion of oxygen has been observed in the aquifer. Infiltrating more oxygenated water (via ozonation) has been suggested to enable using artificial recharge system in a more efficient way and provide high quality water from wastewater origin for reuse.
Another case study is aimed at source treatment of hospital wastewater from the oncologic ward via a hybrid process of membrane bio reactor (MBR) and ozonation process, for organic micropollutant (OMPs) removal. OMPs in hospital wastewater are toxic, mutagenic, concentrated up to several µg/L and may provide a significant source of specific hospital originating compounds in domestic wastewater.
These studies are in collaboration with Prof. Avisar, TAU