Science on the Rocks The beginnings of something large in nano research BY EVA SYLWESTER The UO broke ground June 8 for a two-phase, $76 million construction project that will provide facilities for cutting-edge scientific development, which UO and government officials hope will benefit the state's economic development. Rich Linton The first phase of UO's Integrative Science Complex, Lorry I. Lokey Laboratories, will be one story underground and will open in fall 2007. Named after BusinessWire founder Lorry Lokey, who donated a total of $10 million to both phases of the project, the laboratories will primarily be used for the work of the Oregon Nanoscience and Microtechnologies Institute (ONAMI). Nanoscience deals with materials that are extremely tiny. A common nanoparticle compares in size to a human hair as a human hair compares to a football field. Instruments working with these materials, therefore, are very sensitive to the slightest vibrations. Years ago, the Riverfront Research Park across Franklin Boulevard was considered as a site for the ONAMI facility, but that was rejected because the rumbling trains nearby would have disrupted research. In contrast, the underground site provides a nearly vibration-free environment, which UO chemistry professor David Johnson attributed to an extraordinary vibration frequency in the campus-area bedrock. "The instrument guy thought he had broken his instrument, because it didn't read anything," Johnson said, describing an investigation of the site. David Chen, chairman of ONAMI's board and venture capitalist for OVP Venture Partners, said that when the facility is completed in 2007, it will be the largest single network of nanotechnology equipment anywhere in the world. A fiberoptic cable in the basement will connect all machines in the building to each other, as well as linking to machines at other institutions that the UO collaborates with through ONAMI, such as OSU, Portland State University, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and industry representatives including Hewlett-Packard. "You might think of this facility as a high-tech extension service," UO President Dave Frohnmayer said at the groundbreaking ceremony, adding that ONAMI partners at other universities and in industry will have 24-hour access to the more than 20 instruments inside. This access will become a revenue source for the UO, said Rich Linton, UO vice president for research and graduate studies, in a later interview. Companies using the equipment will pay fees, which the UO will use to maintain its equipment and staff the facility with doctorate-holding technicians. The second phase of the Integrative Science Complex, which is projected to be completed in 2011, will focus on providing space for interdisciplinary work between cognitive neuroscientists, physical scientists, biological scientists and computer information scientists. Linton said interdisciplinary science centers are becoming common at other major universities comparable to the UO. "It reflects the nature of how science is evolving," Linton said. "To solve a problem, you more and more need teams of researchers." Another collaboration that UO science departments will be involved with soon is a medical school, as students from Oregon Health and Science University in Portland will take classes at the UO and do clinical work at PeaceHealth sites in Eugene and Springfield. OHSU students may begin clinical assignments in Eugene as early as this fall, but the program will probably not be fully implemented until fall 2008. Linton said OHSU students could potentially use the new facilities for research, especially in the realm of neuroscience. Beyond integrating scientific disciplines at the UO, Linton said the name "Integrative Science Complex" also refers to integrating the UO with other institutions and the surrounding community. For instance, ONAMI is beginning to partner with community colleges, to provide people with two-year associate's degrees with the training to get jobs in the nanotechnology industry, and is starting to create businesses based on technology developed at member universities. Linton said the Riverfront Research Park, where many such businesses will potentially be housed, contributes to keeping businesses in the region. "They're not being created and moved to California or Seattle," he said. ONAMI has been the target of some local controversy because a portion of its funding — Linton estimated 20 percent, across all institutions involved — is obtained through the Department of Defense. "Just a DoD label is often the issue here," Linton said, adding that a number of safeguards are in place to ensure that the UO does not directly participate in weapons research. He said DoD funding would not be used for the two new buildings, which are being funded through the Oregon Legislature and private donations. UO Federal Affairs Director Betsy Boyd said that Oregon's congressional delegation could be changing federal priorities by lobbying their colleagues to fund ONAMI initiatives through the DoD, especially environmentally friendly ones such as the UO-based Inherently Safer Nanomaterials and Nanomanufacturing initiative. "It kind of shows how far you can utilize DoD funds to connect to ends that are environmentally responsible," Linton said. "Nanotechnology is about hope," Gov. Ted Kulongoski said at the groundbreaking ceremony, elaborating that the emerging science could solve the energy crisis, create new fibers that build better products and bolster the economy by creating new jobs. Kulongoski said he met with John Marburger, science adviser to President Bush and director of the national Office of Science and Technology Policy, about a year and a half ago, and Marburger told him, "What you and the universities and the private sector have done in Oregon is what we're trying to get the rest of the country to look at." Linton said ONAMI's success would eventually be measured on how well it integrates academic research with direct application in industry. Already it has helped sustain existing nano businesses as well as create new ones. At this point, the focus is on getting students to graduate from the program and start new companies. "We have to manage long-term payback against short-term expectations," Linton said. Since 2003, when research collaborations between the UO and OSU became formally established as ONAMI, the Oregon Legislature has pumped $8 million into the institute. Sen. Ryan Deckert (D-Beaverton), who has helped Kulongoski advocate for ONAMI funding in the Legislature, said investing in nanoscience is vital to maintaining America's role in the global economy. "The last century was the American century," Deckert said. "The next century is up for grabs."
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