Conner Wilson Email and Phone Number

Conner Wilson is a Postdoctoral Fellow at Amgen. Colleagues describe him as "Conner has been a central researcher and leader on our subgroup that examines the mechanisms of MHAT reactions (alkene functionalizations that use a transient metal hydride for H atom transfer). These reactions are difficult to study, as they involve short-lived metal intermediates and organic radicals. Conner became an expert on this area, including writing a collaborative review (together with Ryan Shenvi and two of his grad students) that discussed future prospects in this field, which appeared in Chem. Sci. Conner wrote about 1/3 of the review himself, and had probing questions and revisions on other sections. The review developed Conner's deep thinking about MHAT reactions, which was crucial in his continuing Ph.D. work using Co-salen complexes and MHAT conditions that include an oxidant (collidinium fluoride). With this system, Conner gathered reliable mechanistic information. He isolated intermediates, including a cobalt(IV) isopropyl complex that was the subject of a JACS communication. As one part of this work, Conner isolated a number of catalytically relevant cobalt species, and studied their stoichiometric reactions with substrates to test the mechanism. Conner's mechanistic insights not only teach fundamentals, they helped us learn that catalytic reactions should be performed at low catalyst concentration, which is counterintuitive but practically useful. Another example is that Conner found that adding water to the catalytic reaction is crucial for reproducibility and fast rates. Conner's choices of experiments were ones he made quite independently, as he has outstanding expertise over the literature in this area, and thinks deeply about mechanism. His paper on the overall mechanism is a tour de force, and is now submitted for publication. Conner is intellectually agile, and he was a frequent contributor of questions on various project during group meetings. Further, he works hard and with perseverance. For example, many of his kinetic studies required monitoring reactions at -40 °C, which he figured out how to do in a very reproducible manner. In my opinion, the rigor that makes a chemist successful in kinetics, mechanism, and analytical methods are a harbinger of success in any area. Conner is also a great collaborator. He worked with a close-knit team through graduate school, and became an intellectual leader within this group. In lab, Conner has a strong dedication to safety. He treats everyone with respect, including his peers and subordinates. Conner has an inclusive style and a growth mentality rather than a competitive one. He has a strong moral compass, but is not pushy and is willing to change his mind when presented with compelling reasons. I have developed great respect for Conner's opinions (not just on chemistry), because of his thoughtful attitude."