Furman professor wins research award

By Mike Switzer

Published July 18, 2024 at 6:30 AM EDT

Greg Springsteen, professor of chemistry at Furman University in Greenville, S.C.

Over the past 18 years, our next guest worked with about 50 undergraduates to explore what he describes as one of the most fundamental chemical conundrums: how life emerged from a mixture of organic molecules in a lifeless environment. That research resulted in a patent being awarded, a company being formed, and recently, a 2024 South Carolina Governor’s Award for Excellence in Scientific Research. Mike Switzer interviews Greg Springsteen, a professor of chemistry at Furman University in Greenville, S.C.

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Mike Switzer

After almost 20 years, Mike Switzer retired from Wells Fargo Securities in 2001 as Senior Vice President/Investment Officer and Certified Portfolio Manager. In 1999, he and his wife, Maggie, purchased and operated for eight years the Baskin Robbins ice cream store on Forest Drive in Columbia. They grew the store from a bottom-tier operation in the Baskin Robbins franchise system to one in the top 5% nationwide within three years, tripling sales along the way. While operating the ice cream store, Mike and Maggie received patents for a portable ice cream sink and fold-down sneezeguard they invented and in 2002 started Magnolia Carts, an ice cream cart manufacturing company, which they sold in 2013.

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