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Graduate Student Graduate Student ⬅️ All Members Zhuohong Wu Graduate Student Publications Impacts I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title Previous Next University of California San Diego

Five multi-institution patent filings, a data platform now operating as an independent company, and a commercialization bootcamp that moved nine trainees from near-zero baseline to working fluency with industry frameworks. Broader Impacts Innovation & Industry Research Translations Research Translations covers how discoveries made inside the U.S. National Science Foundation Center for Molecularly Optimized Networks (NSF MONET) leave the Center: as intellectual property, as commercial infrastructure, and as trainees who know how to carry a technology toward a market. REMAT DMR 2323315/6 Why this matters A center's translation record is usually reported as a patent count. The more informative question is whether the center structure produced results that individual laboratories could not have produced alone — and whether the people trained inside it can continue translating after the award ends. On both tests the record is concrete. Every patent filing listed below names inventors at multiple institutions. The Center's data platform is now an independent company with paying customers. And the commercialization training was built around the Center's own unlicensed technologies, so trainees practiced on real intellectual property rather than case studies. Intellectual property from cross-institution teams Filing Institutions Date What it discloses Crosslinking compounds Duke, MIT June 2023 Cyclobutane mechanophore crosslinkers that break by force-triggered cycloreversion, producing acrylate networks up to 9 times tougher than conventional analogs Virus-like particles with an endoskeleton UCSD July 2023 Engineered virus-like particles internally cross-linked through surface-exposed cysteines, addressing stability in vaccine platforms Virus-like particle functionalized hydrogel UCSD August 2023 A long-term delivery system covalently bonding a hydrogel to Physalis Mottle Virus via a swell-"click" method, aimed at vaccines and immunotherapies for chronic disease Provisional patent 63/571,231 — synthesis and ROMP Johns Hopkins, MIT, Duke March 2024 Geometrically selective synthesis of trans • and cis -silacycloheptenes to probe silicon-for-carbon substitution in ring-opening metathesis polymerization and single-chain elasticity Carbosilane crosslinkers Duke, Johns Hopkins, MIT, Washington January 2025 Carbosilane mechanophores reactive enough to improve the tear resistance of poly(methoxyethylacrylate) elastomers when used as crosslinkers Four of the five filings span two to four institutions, and each names graduate trainees among the contributors. Distributed inventorship of this kind is the direct output of a center-scale collaboration structure: the mechanophore chemistry, the network synthesis, and the mechanical characterization needed for these disclosures sit in different laboratories. Training people to translate, not just filing patents The Technology Commercialization Bootcamp: measured, not asserted In partnership with Duke's Innovation & Entrepreneurship office, the Center ran a four-session bootcamp from August 11 to September 8, 2025, led by Duke I&E Director Jamie Jones with Duke Fuqua faculty participation. Nine trainees completed it. The program was assessed before and after. The baseline was unusually low and documented honestly: mean confidence of 2.7 out of 10 across commercialization tasks and mean tool familiarity of 1.5 out of 5 , with market sizing at 1.0 — effectively no prior exposure. Post-program, confidence rose an average of +4.1 points , with the largest gains in customer discovery (+5.3), market segmentation (+4.4), and market sizing (+4.3); intellectual property landscape analysis rose +2.0. The pre/post design is what makes this reportable. The Center measured a deficit in its own trainees, targeted it, and measured the change. Trainees worked on real Center technologies The four teams were assigned actual Center-derived technologies rather than teaching cases: a 3D-printable material with a new crosslinker resin that enhances network toughness, led by a University of Washington trainee and published in JACS ; virus-like particle delivery of pesticides to deep-soil targets, led by a UCSD trainee, with a patent filed; and the CRIPT data platform. Teams used the Where to Play market-opportunity framework and conducted customer discovery interviews with potential users. The Ashby Plot project: infrastructure built by trainees Thirteen trainees from ten research groups, working with the CRIPT engineering team, assembled a database of more than 1,000 polymer materials and built an online dynamic Ashby Plot viewer. The project was led by a graduate trainee, who gained team-management and software-collaboration experience alongside the technical result. The output is reusable community infrastructure for comparing polymer network properties, not a single-use analysis. Translation that has already left the Center The Community Resource for Innovation in Polymer Technology (CRIPT) transitioned to a B-corporation in April 2025 and began generating revenue from subscriptions and data entry services after a June 2025 soft launch — the Center's data standards now operating as a going concern rather than a grant deliverable. The BigSMILES notation developed for polymer structure encoding has been picked up by groups with no Center affiliation: a team at Korea University built and validated an automated SMILES-to-BigSMILES conversion workflow for homopolymers, publishing it in Scientific Data in 2024. Industry engagement includes an intellectual property discussion with Synthomer regarding sustainable materials technology. What comes next The filings above are applications and provisionals; prosecution outcomes and any licensing are the next reportable milestones. The bootcamp is documented as the Center's first, making a second cohort the test of whether it becomes a standing capability. Investigators are also carrying translation-oriented work into new programs, including a Center for Regenerative Energy-Efficient Manufacturing of Thermoset Polymeric Materials (REMAT) directed by a Center investigator, and a DMREF project on de novo proteins as polymer network junctions aimed at lower-carbon manufacturing. Previous Next

Postdoctoral Researcher Postdoctoral Researcher ⬅️ All Members Ilia Kevlishvili Postdoctoral Researcher Publications Isomer-driven Polymerization, Depolymerization, and Reconstruction The Tension-Activated Carbon–Carbon Bond Nested Non-Covalent Interactions Expand the Functions of Supramolecular Polymer Networks Internal Catalysis in Dynamic Hydrogels with Associative Thioester Cross-Links Angle-Strained Sila-Cycloalkynes A Thermally Stable SO2 Releasing Mechanophore: Facile Activation, Single-Event Spectroscopy, and Molecular Dynamic Simulations Highly Efficient Bromine Capture and Storage Using N-Containing Porous Organic Cages Self-Amplified HF Release and Polymer Deconstruction Cascades Triggered by Mechanical Force Visible Light-Mediated (2+2)-Cycloadditions for the Formation of Macrocyclic Dimers Metal Identity Effects in the Fracture Behavior of Coordinatively Crosslinked Elastomers Polymer Networks with Cubic, Mixed Pd(II) and Pt(II) M6L12 Metal–Organic Cage Junctions: Synthesis and Stress Relaxation Behavior Systematic Investigation of Silicon Substitution on Single Macromolecule Mechanics Tailoring Dynamic Hydrogels by Controlling Associative Exchange Rates Synthesis and Ring-Opening Metathesis Polymerization of a Strained trans-Silacycloheptene and Single-Molecule Mechanics of Its Polymer Remolding and Deconstruction of Industrial Thermosets via Carboxylic Acid-Catalyzed Bifunctional Silyl Ether Exchange Endohedrally Functionalized Metal–Organic Cage-Cross-Linked Polymer Gels as Modular Heterogeneous Catalysts Impacts I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title Previous Next Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

Alumni Alumni ⬅️ All Members Annika (Alex) Foret Alumni Publications Impacts I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title Previous Next Corning Incorporated

Alumni Alumni ⬅️ All Members Jianshe Xia Alumni Publications Impacts I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title Previous Next Southwest Jiaotong University

Graduate Student Graduate Student ⬅️ All Members Rowina Bell Graduate Student Publications Impacts I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title Previous Next University of Washington

Postdoctoral Researcher Postdoctoral Researcher ⬅️ All Members Jorge Leganés Bayón Postdoctoral Researcher Publications Impacts I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title Previous Next University of California San Diego

Undergraduate Researcher Undergraduate Researcher ⬅️ All Members Dylan Gregson Undergraduate Researcher Publications Impacts I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title Previous Next The College of New Jersey

Alumni Alumni ⬅️ All Members Scott Danielsen Alumni Publications Impacts I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title Previous Next Georgia Institute of Technology

Graduate Student Graduate Student ⬅️ All Members Anna Gray Davis Graduate Student Publications Impacts I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title I'm an image title Previous Next Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)

Collaborating with the American Chemical Society, Science Olympiad, Science with Impact and others to bring our messages to the broadest audience possible. Broader Impacts Informal Science Communication Outreach Partners Outreach Partners are the venues and organizations that make outreach repeatable for the U.S. National Science Foundation Center for Molecularly Optimized Networks (NSF MONET). The Center does not build its own audiences: it brings research-based activities to institutions that already have them, and returns to the same partners year after year. Why this matters A center-scale outreach commitment — two informal science communication events per participating institution per year — only works if trainees have somewhere to go. Standing partnerships remove the hardest part of outreach from the trainee's plate: finding an audience, securing a venue, and recruiting participants. The exchange runs both directions. Partners receive tested, research-based activities with facilitator guidance and assessment tools that a library branch or elementary school cannot develop on its own. NSF MONET receives recurring access to audiences of a known size and age range, which is what makes measurement across events possible at all. Documented reach Measure Documented value Outreach events on record 60 tracked events, of which 42 have been held Distinct partner venues 49 States represented 11, plus virtual delivery NSF MONET institutions contributing trainees 10 universities, including Columbia, Duke, MIT, Northwestern, Johns Hopkins, UIUC, Washington, UCSD, and Morehouse International and external kit recipients 13 institutions across three continents The partner network Professional societies and national programs The multi-year relationship with the American Chemical Society Kids Zone is the Center's deepest partnership: NSF MONET has staffed Kids Zone installations at national meetings in New Orleans (2024), San Diego (2025), Atlanta (spring 2026), and Chicago (fall 2026), with activities changing each year while the partnership persists. The American Physical Society soft matter division brought the Materials Science of Soccer kit to Squishy Science Sunday at the Minneapolis Convention Center (2024) and the Denver Museum of Nature & Science (2026), where the event was paired with an APS teachers' day so lesson plans could reach local classrooms. The MIT Museum's Cambridge Science Festival has hosted NSF MONET twice, including the debut of both revised 2.0 kits. Additional society and program partners include Science Olympiad and the Multiverse Concert Series , the collaborator behind the Musical Mechanophores activity. Museums and science centers Recorded partnerships include the Fleet Science Center in San Diego (2024, and again in 2026 with BeWise), the Maryland Science Center , the Denver Museum of Nature & Science , the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago for Junior Science Cafés, and Morehead Planetarium in North Carolina. Schools, districts, and libraries School partners span elementary through high school and several states: Stephen K. Hayt Elementary in Chicago, which has hosted three separate visits; Olive Chapel Elementary, Seawell Elementary, Section Elementary, and Rogers Herr Middle School in North Carolina; Bird Rock Elementary in La Jolla; Seattle Hebrew Academy; Kingsley Montessori School and the Sarah Greenwood Dual Language School in Boston; Eliot-Hine Middle School in Washington, DC; and the Barack and Michelle Obama Academy in Atlanta. The White Marsh branch of the Baltimore County Public Library hosted two kit sessions within two weeks in spring 2026. Community organizations Community partners reach audiences that campus events do not: the Carole Robertson Center for Learning and the Pedersen-McCormick Boys and Girls Club in Chicago, the soccer program DC Way , and the United Moroccan American Association of Cleveland , where a NASA engineer ran the soccer kit with local youth. These events are smaller by design — 6 to 21 participants — and are where facilitation quality matters most. Institutions that requested kits on their own An open kit request form turns interest into a shipment without Center staffing. Recipients include Louisiana State University, the Georgia Institute of Technology, Boston Scientific, Seattle Pacific University, Université Catholique de Louvain in Belgium, Williams College, Monmouth College, Trinity Washington University, Marshall University, the California State University Chancellor's Office, the United Moroccan American Association of Cleveland, and an independent homeschool educator. Research universities, undergraduate-focused colleges, industry, and community groups all appear on the same list. What the pattern shows The strongest evidence of partnership health is repetition. MIT appears four times in the event record, the Beckman Institute at UIUC three times, Hayt Elementary three times, and the University of Chicago, Northwestern, Duke, and the Baltimore County Public Library twice each. Partners that host once are testing the Center; partners that host repeatedly have integrated NSF MONET into their own programming. Geographic and institutional spread follows the labs. Illinois, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Washington, California, and Maryland dominate the record because that is where NSF MONET trainees are — which means partnership growth and lab participation are the same problem. What comes next Documented next steps are the distribution of revised 2.0 kits to partner venues following the Cambridge pilot, and expansion of digital delivery: the Chemistry of Slime video game's first field test at an ACS Kids Zone event activated 71 digital participants, 33 of whom reached the tracked in-game achievement, giving partners a way to extend an activity past the length of a visit. Partnership Development Process How Organizations Can Partner with NSF MONET For Festival Organizers: Contact the NSF MONET outreach coordination team Discuss event format, audience, and space requirements Select appropriate outreach kit(s) for the target audience Coordinate trainee volunteer availability Arrange booth space and materials logistics Plan pre-event training for volunteers Implement evaluation and feedback collection Contact Us For Institutions Requesting Kits: Complete the outreach kit request form Demonstrate alignment with NSF MONET's broader impacts mission Commit to implementing activities and collecting feedback Receive a complete kit with facilitator guides Submit post-implementation evaluation data Request a Kit Previous Next

Signature Professional Development Experiences (or SPDEs, pronounced "speedies") are student-driven, center-supported deep-dives aligned with one of the four broader impacts areas. Broader Impacts Higher Education & Professional Development Signature Professional Development Experiences 🎓 Empowered Trainees. Tangible Outputs. Lasting Impact. The U.S. National Science Foundation Center for Molecularly Optimized Networks (NSF MONET) Signature Professional Development Experiences (SPDEs, pronounced "speedies") are the center's primary mechanism for achieving depth in trainee professional formation. Unlike traditional graduate training, SPDEs are student-driven and center-supported — each one a personalized, mentored deep-dive aligned with one of four broader impacts areas: research translation, entrepreneurial innovation, equity leadership, or interdisciplinary collaboration. Every NSF MONET trainee is exposed to all four professional development tracks, ensuring both breadth and depth of formation beyond the bench. SPDEs are where depth is realized — producing tangible, reviewable outputs: new research capabilities, outreach products, and demonstrated leadership roles. The results are measurable and significant. NSF MONET has completed nearly twice the targeted number of SPDEs , with 100% of trainees reporting improved career readiness . The Year 5 Career Panel alone — assessed using pre- and post-measures — produced a +1.60-point gain in career-path confidence (out of 10), with 25 of 30 trainees reporting improvement, alongside a +1.03-point gain in commercial translation awareness . Structured across four transformative domains — scientific breadth, innovation and entrepreneurship, outreach and communication, and scientific leadership — NSF MONET's Higher Education and Professional Development (HEPD) strategy cultivates adaptive leaders who advance both molecular innovation and STEM ecosystem transformation. The SPDE model produces outputs that are not merely experiential but reviewable: new research capabilities, outreach products, and leadership roles that extend beyond the funding period. This model directly operationalizes NSF's post-2025 broader impacts priorities by treating professional development not as supplemental programming, but as a core, measurable center output — with a clear, auditable chain from trainee investment to societal return. Previous Next