In this episode, podcast co-hosts Dr. Dwight Stoll and Dr. James Grinias talk with Professor Luis Colon. Dr. Colon is is the SUNY Distinguished Professor, A. Conger Goodyear Professor, and Associate Dean for Inclusive Excellence in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University at Buffalo. He received his bachelors degree from University of Puerto Rico at Cayey, and then received the Ph.D. from UMass Lowell. He also was a postdoctoral fellow in the Zare Group at Stanford where did groundbreaking work in detection for capillary electrophoresis. Colon has won numerous awards, including most recently the Kirkland Award in Chromatography (formerly known as the ACS Award in Chromatography), which we celebrated at the ACS Fall 2025 National Meeting.
In a fascinating conversation, we discuss the influence of Luis’ father on his scientific career, by demonstrating to Luis (whether he realized it at the time or not) a physical separation of coffee shells and beans in the wind. Dr. Colon explains the origins of his interest in materials development for chromatography, which included observations he made on the relatively short lifetimes and fragility of silica-based materials while working in industry early in his career. We also spend a good bit of time discussing Prof. Colon’s motivations for an approach to mentoring younger scientists, as well as some of his thoughts about the future of the separation science field. Finally, Luis shares some of his wisdom gained over several decades as a successful and well recognized analytical scientist, emphasizing the importance of curiosity, collaboration, and open-mindedness.
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In this episode, podcast co-hosts Dr. Dwight Stoll and Dr. James Grinias talk with Professor Luis Colon. Dr. Colon is is the SUNY Distinguished Professor, A. Conger Goodyear Professor, and Associate Dean for Inclusive Excellence in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University at Buffalo. He received his bachelors degree from University of Puerto Rico at Cayey, and then received the Ph.D. from UMass Lowell. He also was a postdoctoral fellow in the Zare Group at Stanford where did groundbreaking work in detection for capillary electrophoresis. Colon has won numerous awards, including most recently the Kirkland Award in Chromatography (formerly known as the ACS Award in Chromatography), which we celebrated at the ACS Fall 2025 National Meeting.
In a fascinating conversation, we discuss the influence of Luis’ father on his scientific career, by demonstrating to Luis (whether he realized it at the time or not) a physical separation of coffee shells and beans in the wind. Dr. Colon explains the origins of his interest in materials development for chromatography, which included observations he made on the relatively short lifetimes and fragility of silica-based materials while working in industry early in his career. We also spend a good bit of time discussing Prof. Colon’s motivations for an approach to mentoring younger scientists, as well as some of his thoughts about the future of the separation science field. Finally, Luis shares some of his wisdom gained over several decades as a successful and well recognized analytical scientist, emphasizing the importance of curiosity, collaboration, and open-mindedness.
Dr. Wilson is a research chemist and coordinator of the Cannabis Research Program in the Chemical Sciences Division at the National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST) in Gaithersburg, Maryland. He received his B.S. degree in Chemistry from Greensboro College followed by a M.S. degree in Chemistry from the same institution. He then moved south to pursue a Ph.D. in Chemistry at the University of Central Florida, training in the lab of Prof. Andres D. Campiglia.
In a wide-ranging conversation, we discuss the influence of 2000’s television shows such as CSI on Brent’s interest in forensic science and analytical chemistry, and how an informal interview at a poster session ultimately led to the position he now holds at NIST. Dr. Wilson shares how he navigated the educational landscapes in forensic science and chemistry, both at the undergraduate and graduate levels. We discuss the evolution of cannabis standards and analytical characterization in recent years, and Brent shares his perspective on the importance of standards in general, the birth of a reference material, and the significant effort it takes to bring these materials to the point where analytical scientists like us can purchase them. Dr. Wilson also describes some of his work on low-temperature emission spectroscopy techniques, where molecule exhibit much narrower and specific emission bands compared to room temperature detection. Brent also shares more about the life of a scientist within NIST, from day-to-day activities, competing for federal funding, and more. Finally, Dr. Wilson shares some professional advice, including the importance of being prepared and adaptable, the value of talking with people at conferences, and the importance of establishing and maintaining relationships over the course of one's career.
Analytically Speaking
In this episode, podcast co-hosts Dr. Dwight Stoll and Dr. James Grinias talk with Professor Luis Colon. Dr. Colon is is the SUNY Distinguished Professor, A. Conger Goodyear Professor, and Associate Dean for Inclusive Excellence in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University at Buffalo. He received his bachelors degree from University of Puerto Rico at Cayey, and then received the Ph.D. from UMass Lowell. He also was a postdoctoral fellow in the Zare Group at Stanford where did groundbreaking work in detection for capillary electrophoresis. Colon has won numerous awards, including most recently the Kirkland Award in Chromatography (formerly known as the ACS Award in Chromatography), which we celebrated at the ACS Fall 2025 National Meeting.
In a fascinating conversation, we discuss the influence of Luis’ father on his scientific career, by demonstrating to Luis (whether he realized it at the time or not) a physical separation of coffee shells and beans in the wind. Dr. Colon explains the origins of his interest in materials development for chromatography, which included observations he made on the relatively short lifetimes and fragility of silica-based materials while working in industry early in his career. We also spend a good bit of time discussing Prof. Colon’s motivations for an approach to mentoring younger scientists, as well as some of his thoughts about the future of the separation science field. Finally, Luis shares some of his wisdom gained over several decades as a successful and well recognized analytical scientist, emphasizing the importance of curiosity, collaboration, and open-mindedness.
