Yan Zhao, professor of chemistry, received his B.S. in chemistry from Lanzhou University in 1992, his Ph.D. from Northwestern University in 1996, was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Illinois from 1996-1998, and was a Senior Scientist at the Procter & Gamble Company until July 2002. Dr. Zhao's areas of interest include synthesis of molecules capable of controllable conformational changes, and their usage as "smart" sensors, materials, and catalysts; self-assembling in water; biomimetic chemistry in materials synthesis and catalysis; design and construction of nanoscale structures; amphiphilic molecules and polymers; multifunctional surfactants.