What if chemists were able to speed up the creation of new medications using computer-simulated experiments? Or foster lab processes with fewer environmental impacts? Those goals may be within reach for Assistant Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry Shuming Chen. In her lab, Chen uses computational chemistry to simulate chemical reactions without even picking up a test tube. Harnessing the computing power available through Oberlin’s supercomputing cluster, she creates virtual experiments that in the past required extensive laboratory testing. Using a variety of quantum chemistry software, Chen programs computational models to simulate chemical reactions. She and her students build up complex molecules on a screen like virtual Legos and manipulate them in different ways to test out hypotheses just like experimentalists do on a lab bench. “It’s still a challenge to predict the outcomes of chemical reactions,” Chen said. “It’s something we increasingly want to phase out because ex...