In this episode, we interview Dr. Mark Stradiotto. He’s a chemist and professor with Dalhousie’s
Department of Chemistry. He has also won teaching awards and is the most recent recipient of
Dal’s Arthur B. McDonald Chair of research Excellence.

Dr. Stradiotto wasn’t planning on becoming a chemist until his third year of university, when a
course in inorganic chemistry (and its professor) sparked his interest in the field. From that
point on, he pursued chemistry as a career path and has become a leader in his field.

Today the Stradiotto Research Group at Dalhousie specializes in the study and design of ligands
— these are ions or molecules that bind to metals, and through that action allow the metals to
react in ways that otherwise wouldn’t be possible. Ligands are incredibly useful in
pharmaceutical chemistry, so some of Dr. Stradiotto’s innovations have even been patented
and commercialized for industry use.

Dr. Stradiotto tells us about his high-school years as a drummer in southern Ontario, his
participation in commercializing research, and his approach to teaching chemistry to
undergrads.

Sciographies is brought to you by Dalhousie University’s Faculty of Science and campus-
community radio station CKDU 88.1 FM in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

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