“Naturally Obsessed” Documentary Highlighting Brookhaven Lab to be Shown Dec. 10

November 19, 2008

A scene from the documentary "Naturally Obsessed."

UPTON, NY – A one-hour documentary on the trials and tribulations faced by aspiring scientists, filmed in part at the National Synchrotron Light Source (NSLS) at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory, will be shown at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, December 10, in the Lab’s Berkner Hall Auditorium. Recorded during a three-year span, “Naturally Obsessed: The Making of a Scientist” follows a group of Columbia University student researchers as they study a protein that could reveal a new path toward the treatment of diabetes and obesity. The screening is free and open to the public. Visitors to the Laboratory age 16 and older must bring a photo ID.

After months, and even years, of preparation in the lab of Columbia University professor Larry Shapiro, the student researchers featured in the film make numerous trips to the NSLS to use x-ray crystallography, a powerful technique that can identify the positions of atoms within a protein, revealing the details of its structure. Mixing humor and heartbreak, the documentary brings to light the challenging and uncertain path these eager students take.

The film was produced and directed by Carole Rifkind, an author and educator, and her husband Richard Rifkind, former head of the Columbia University Cancer Center and Chairman Emeritus of the Sloan-Kettering Institute for Cancer Research. The two will lead a question-and-answer session after the screening. “Naturally Obsessed” is the directors’ second documentary film and attracted more than 600 Columbia University students, faculty, and staff to its premiere in early October.

“We made this film with the intention of making the world of science a more vivid and accessible aspect of contemporary culture,” said Richard Rifkind. “I hope that this film will help open the way for more films that stimulate and awaken interest in science among students, their parents and teachers, and the general public.”

Said Brookhaven Lab biochemist, John Shanklin: “The feelings captured in ‘Naturally Obsessed’ mirrored many of the emotions I have felt and seen in others who share this journey we call science. This film should be required viewing for those striving for a career in science from high school to grad school. It accurately portrays the process of science with all the highs, lows, intensity, and humor that come with the experience.”

For more information, call 631-344-2345. The Laboratory is located on William Floyd Parkway, one-and-a-half miles north of Exit 68 of the Long Island Expressway.

2008-10869  |  INT/EXT  |  Newsroom