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Lavelle

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Short Biography

Laurence Lavelle completed his B.Sc. (Class Medal Physical Chemistry) at the University of Cape Town with a Chemistry major, and minors in Microbiology and Physical Oceanography. Also at the University of Cape Town he obtained his B.Sc. (Honors) and M.Sc. (Distinction) in Chemistry. While at Princeton University he completed his M.A. and Ph.D. in Molecular Biophysics, and is currently a University Distinguished Lecturer at UCLA.

Degrees

  • Ph.D. Molecular Biophysics, awarded by the Dept. of Chemistry
    Depts. of Chemistry, Molecular Biology, and Physics, Princeton University
  • M.A. Molecular Biophysics, awarded by the Dept. of Chemistry
    Depts. of Chemistry, Molecular Biology, and Physics, Princeton University
  • M.Sc. (Distinction) Chemistry
    Dept. of Physical Chemistry, University of Cape Town
  • B.Sc. (Honors) Chemistry
    Dept. of Chemistry, University of Cape Town
  • B.Sc. Major: Chemistry   Minors: Microbiology and Physical Oceanography
    University of Cape Town

Interviews

Specialties

Biophysics, Biophysical Chemistry, Education, Educational Materials, Structural Biology

Member

American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Chemical Society, American Physical Society, Sigma Xi, The Royal Society of Chemistry, Biophysical Society, American Federation of Teachers

Biography

Laurence Lavelle was born in Dublin, Ireland and went to St.David's in Johannesburg and Bishops in Cape Town, South Africa. At the University of Cape Town (UCT) he completed his B.Sc. (Chemistry major, and Microbiology and Physical Oceanography minors), B.Sc. (Honors, Chemistry), and M.Sc. (Distinction, Physical Chemistry). While putting himself through university he was also employed at UCT as a research assistant, teaching assistant, and a tutor. After graduating from UCT he accepted a faculty position in the Chemistry Dept. at the University of The Witwatersrand (WITS), South Africa. He then moved to the United States and his M.A. and Ph.D. are both in Molecular Biophysics from Princeton University. After one year as a post-doctorate at UCLA's Molecular Biology Institute he joined the faculty in the department of Chemistry and Biochemistry where he currently teaches over two thousand enrolled students per year and supervises over thirty teaching assistants and tutors per year. Students consider his lectures outstanding with class average evaluations above 8 on a 1-9 scale. He has also taught at the University of Cape Town, the State University of New York at Stony Brook, the University of the Witwatersrand, and Princeton University.

Dr. Lavelle is active in research and has published in the areas of host-guest chemistry, the periodic table, DNA and RNA stability and structure, and virus stability and self-assembly. He is a member of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Chemical Society, the American Physical Society, the Biophysical Society, Sigma Xi, The Royal Society of Chemistry, and the American Federation of Teachers.

He is the recipient of many research and teaching awards including the Sir Robert Kotze Award, the Harry Crossley Award, a CSIR Fellowship, Berlex Fellowship, Molecular Biophysics NIH Fellowship, the Herbert Newby McCoy Award for Innovative Research at UCLA, the Hanson-Dow Award for Teaching Excellence at UCLA, the UCLA AAP Faculty Recognition Award, and UCLA's highest teaching award the University Distinguished Teaching Award. He has one patent and is the coauthor of nine books, some of which can be see on his Author Page.

At one time or another his interests and hobbies have included cross-country and middle-distance running, cross-country skiing, motorcycle riding, hiking, dog training, horse riding and jumping, sky and scuba diving, waterpolo, rugby, performance driving, sailing, travel, cooking, meditation, yoga, chess, analysis of financial markets, frontier markets and trading, and collecting stamps, early coinage (600-100 BC, mainly Greek), precious stones and metals, art, and wine. He lives with his wife (faculty and director of the UCLA Early Childhood Autism Clinic) and has family in England, Ireland, Italy, Germany and South Africa.

Honors & Awards

  • Online Teaching & Learning Workshop Award
  • Mortar Board Honorary Member (student elected)
  • Sigma Pi's Professor of Empowerment Award
  • University Distinguished Teaching Award, UCLA's highest teaching award
  • Faculty Development Award (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022)
  • Office of Instructional Development Mini-Grant Award (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023)
  • Academic Advancement Program Faculty Recognition Award, UCLA
  • Office of Instructional Development Award (2009, 2011)
  • Hanson-Dow Award for Excellence in Teaching, Dept. of Chemistry & Biochemistry, UCLA
  • Herbert Newby McCoy Award for Innovative Research, Dept. of Chemistry & Biochemistry, UCLA
  • Student Travel Award, Biophysical Society
  • Molecular Biophysics NIH PreDoctoral Fellowship, Princeton University
  • Autodesk Educational Software Award
  • Student Travel Award, Program in Mathematics and Molecular Biology, Burroughs Wellcome Fund
  • Berlex Fellowship, Berlex Pharmaceutical Company
  • Harry Crossley Award, Masters Thesis, University of Cape Town
  • Sir Robert Kotze Award, Masters Thesis, University of Cape Town
  • CSIR Fellowship, University of Cape Town
  • Graduate Fellowship, University of Cape Town
  • CSIR Fellowship, University of Cape Town
  • Class Medal, Physical Chemistry, University of Cape Town

Patents

US Patent 6,783,932, Issued 8-31-2004, Fresco, J.R., Lavelle, L., Stabilization of Triplexes by Water Structure-Making Substances.

Books

Laurence Lavelle's Books can be found here, and his Author Pages can be found here and here.