Dynamic NMR makes use of the effect of chemical exchanges on NMR spectra to study kinetics and thermodynamics. An advanced physical chemistry lab experiment was developed to study the intramolecular exchange processes of EDTA (the disodium salt of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid) metal complexes. EDTA is an important chelating agent, used in…

Evaluation, based on a post-workshop survey, of the effectiveness of a set of workshops to promote curriculum reform is described. Workshops brought benefits beyond simple uptake of modules, with 57% of respondents reporting some change in teaching practice and 72% expressing positive outcomes as a result of workshop attendance. Workshops lasting…

Teaching involves strategic interactions and problem solving based on understanding of the situation, the discipline, and the population of students that one is teaching. The feedback from undergraduate students (UGs) and from faculty and other instructors coaching graduate teaching assistants (GTAs) in teaching provides outside perspectives, and…

We report on a study of a laboratory teaching apprenticeship program designed to improve graduate teaching assistant (GTA) performance. To catalyze GTAs as laboratory teachers we constructed learning goals, synthesized previous literature into a design model and a developmental path, and built two instruments to measure 12 strategic pedagogical…

In the Chemical Education Today section of the May 2003 issue of the "Journal of Chemical Education," Eric Scerri wrote about the consequences of what he regards as a philosophical confusion in the work of constructivist chemical education researchers. This issue has important implications for both the teaching and practice of science. I offer a…

A series of spreadsheet modeling exercises constructed as part of a new upper-level elective course on solid state materials and surface chemistry is described. The spreadsheet exercises are developed to provide students with the opportunity to interact with the conceptual framework where the role of the density of states and the Fermi-Dirac…

The chemical information instruction and environmental science which is incorporated into a first-year organic chemistry laboratory is presented. The students are charged with devised search strategies, conducting online searches and limiting the project scope to ocean systems. The laboratory serves to provide for search strategy development…

This new WebWare combines instructional text and Jmol interactive, animated illustrations that help students visualize the mechanism. It is concluded that by animating the fluxional behavior of a simple model for chiral metal catalyst Sn(amidinate)[subscript 2], in which axial/equatorial exchange within the amidinate rings occurs through a Berry…

A new research finding related to a less costly and more convenient treatment for Gaucher's disease, the most common lysosomal storage disorder and genetic disorder affecting Jewish people of Eastern European ancestry is reported. The reports suggest that chemical chaperons could partially correct the genetic defect responsible for most cases of…

The X-ray structure of EmrD, a multidrug transporter protein from Escherichia coli, common bacteria known to cause several food-borne illnesses was determined by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute. The hydrophobic residues in the EmrD internal cavity are likely to contribute to the general mechanism transporting various compounds through…

The value of undergraduate research workshop to significantly enhance the quality of undergraduate science education was cited as one of the goals by the National Science Foundations (NSF) Strategic Plan. To address this strategic national need, the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) has granted an NSF course, curriculum, and laboratory…

The application of Lewis concept that provides students opportunity to predict and understand reaction behavior and themes in introductory chemistry of structure-property relationships of atoms, ions, and molecules is narrated. The general sequence takes the student through atomic structural theory, electronic configuration, periodicity, chemical…

The debate related to origin of the term "hypervalent" that was first introduced by Jeremy Musher in 1969 to describe compounds and complex ions of the heavier main-block elements in which the use of traditional Lewis 2c-2e covalent bonds requires the additional assumption of "octer expansion" for the central atom is presented. The traditional…

The biosynthesis and mode of action of a class of compounds called lantibiotics, a peptide with antibacterial activity against multi-drug resistant bacteria as well as food-borne pathogens like Listeria monocytogenes and Clostridium botulinum is described. These peptide-derived compounds are especially interesting because they could be used as…

An undergraduate research student was given the opportunity to take of ownership of her scientific knowledge by helping her to conduct research in the structural and nonstructural properties of drugs. The research highlighted that ketoprofen can be used to illustrate the structural and nonstructural properties of the research, helping the student…