Biography
James Ricky Cox is an Associate Professor of Chemistry and Director of the Molecular Modeling and Bioinformatics Laboratory at Murray State University. He received a B.S. degree in Chemistry (ACS-certified) from the University of Tennessee at Martin and a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. After a year at Georgia Southern University, he joined the Chemistry Department at Murray State University in 1999. He teaches introductory chemistry courses and advanced courses in biochemistry and molecular visualization. He has published several papers on the integration of computer-based molecular visualization into the biochemistry curriculum and has presented this work at regional meetings of the American Chemical Society (ACS) and the Biennial Conference on Chemical Education. His research interests include the energetics of pi-pi interactions in protein systems and the biochemistry of enzymes involved in the bacterial resistance to aminoglycoside antibiotics. He has directed the research of numerous undergraduate students who have presented their research at regional and national meetings of the ACS, National Conference on Undergraduate Research and CUR Posters on the Hill. His research is currently funded through the ACS-Petroleum Research Fund and has been published in Chemistry and Biology, Journal of Organic Chemistry and the European Journal of Physiology. He is also interested in the integration of technology into the college classroom and supporting the lecture format through teaching tools such as the tablet PC.
