Chemists Celebrate Earth Day
The April 2016 issue of the Journal of Chemical Education is now available online to subscribers. In honor of Earth Day 2016, the April issue includes a variety of content that provides ideas and suggestions for bringing environmental chemistry to students on the topics of: water quality; climate science and greenhouse gases; atmospheric chemistry; sustainability, green chemistry, and environmental awareness; and energy storage technology. Also in the issue are articles on: outreach and public understanding; teaching organic chemistry; physical chemistry; exploring biochemistry with proteins; research experiences in the laboratory; educational resources.
Environmental Chemistry
Cover: Earth Day
Chemists Celebrate Earth Day is an ACS annual event that seeks to bring international focus to environmental topics, such as clean air, water, and energy, to illustrate the positive role chemistry plays in understanding and preserving the Earth. Environmental chemistry engages students of all levels in learning new chemistry concepts by relating chemistry to their daily lives as well as heightening awareness of environmental issues. (Image of the Earth straddling the limb of the Moon taken by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera is used with permission: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center/Arizona State University.)
Water Quality
Editorial ~ Jerald L. Schnoor, professor of engineering at The University of Iowa and former Editor-in-Chief of Environmental Science & Technology, strongly encourages the recognition that aging water infrastructure, particularly lead pipes, solder, and faucets, represents a community health hazard of enduring significance.
A Multidisciplinary Science Summer Camp for Students with Emphasis on Environmental and Analytical Chemistry ~ Gunnar Schwarz, Wolfgang Frenzel, Wolfgang M. Richter, Lothar Täuscher, and Georg Kubsch
Development and Implementation of a Simple, Engaging Acid Rain Neutralization Experiment and Corresponding Animated Instructional Video for Introductory Chemistry Students ~Danielle Rand, Craig J. Yennie, Patrick Lynch, Gregory Lowry, James Budarz, Wenlei Zhu, and Li-Qiong Wang
Introducing Students to Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry Analysis and Determination of Kerosene Components in a Complex Mixture ~ Giselle Mae M. Pacot, Lyn May Lee, Sung-Tong Chin, and Philip J. Marriott
Determination of Arsenic in Sinus Wash and Tap Water by Inductively Coupled Plasma–Mass Spectrometry ~ Anna M. Donnell, Keaton Nahan, Dawone Holloway, and Anne P. Vonderheide
Climate Science & Greenhouse Gases
Designing and Demonstrating a Master Student Project To Explore Carbon Dioxide Capture Technology ~ Florine Asherman, Gilles Cabot, Cyril Crua, Lionel Estel, Charlotte Gagnepain, Thibault Lecerf, Alain Ledoux, Sébastien Leveneur, Marie Lucereau, Sarah Maucorps, Mélanie Ragot, Julie Syrykh, and Manon Vige
CO2 Investigations: An Open Inquiry Experiment for General Chemistry ~ Roland P. Stout
Ocean Acidification: Investigation and Presentation of the Effects of Elevated Carbon Dioxide Levels on Seawater Chemistry and Calcareous Organisms ~ Jeffrey M. Buth
Updating a Student-Generated Ice-Core Data Plot Exercise for Courses Investigating Climate Change Topics ~ Edward Maslowsky Jr.
Atmospheric Chemistry
Investigating Freezing Point Depression and Cirrus Cloud Nucleation Mechanisms Using a Differential Scanning Calorimeter ~ Kentaro Y. Bodzewski, Ryan L. Caylor, Ashley M. Comstock, Austin T. Hadley, Felisha M. Imholt, Kory D. Kirwan, Kira S. Oyama, and Matthew E. Wise
Measuring Heterogeneous Reaction Rates with ATR-FTIR Spectroscopy To Evaluate Chemical Fates in an Atmospheric Environment: A Physical Chemistry and Environmental Chemistry Laboratory Experiment ~ Jason E. Roberts, Guang Zeng, Marta K Maron, Mindy Mach, Iman Dwebi, and Yong Liu
Sustainability, Green Chemistry, & Environmental Awareness
Incorporating Sustainability and Life Cycle Assessment into First-Year Inorganic Chemistry Major Laboratories ~ Marta Guron, Jared J. Paul, and Margaret H. Roeder
Design of a Dynamic Undergraduate Green Chemistry Course ~ Sarah A. Kennedy
Exploring Green Chemistry Metrics with Interlocking Building Block Molecular Models ~ Reuben Hudson, Daniel Leaman, Kiana E. Kawamura, Kristin N. Esdale, Samuel Glaisher, Alexandra Bishop, and Jeffrey L. Katz
Using a Carbide Lantern To Illustrate General Chemistry Concepts and Introduce Students to Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining ~ Garland L. Crawford and Adam M. Kiefer
Flotation of Mineral and Dyes: A Laboratory Experiment for Separation Method Molecular Hitchhikers ~ Tim Rappon, Jarrett A. Sylvestre, and Manit Rappon
Energy Storage Technology
Experiments To Illustrate the Chemistry and Bouncing Ability of Fresh and Spent Zinc–Manganese Oxide Alkaline Batteries ~ Johnathon M. Hall, John R. Amend, and Thomas S. Kuntzleman
“Can” You Really Make a Battery Out of That? ~ Michael A. Parkes, Thomas Chen, Billy Wu, Vladimir Yufit, and Gregory J. Offer
Discovering Inexpensive, Effective Catalysts for Solar Energy Conversion: An Authentic Research Laboratory Experience ~ Sarah E. Shaner, Paul D. Hooker, Anne-Marie Nickel, Amanda R. Leichtfuss, Carissa S. Adams, Dionisia de la Cerda, Yuqi She, James B. Gerken, Ravi Pokhrel, Nicholas J. Ambrose, David Khaliqi, Shannon S. Stahl, and Jennifer D. Schuttlefield Christus
A Biphasic Ligand Exchange Reaction on CdSe Nanoparticles: Introducing Undergraduates to Functionalizing Nanoparticles for Solar Cells ~ Jennifer M. Zemke and Justin Franz
Outreach and Public Understanding
Demonstration Show That Promotes and Assesses Conceptual Understanding Using the Structure of Drama ~ Holly Walter Kerby, Brittland K. DeKorver, Joanne Cantor, Marcia J. Weiland, and Christopher L. Babiarz
OCTET and BIOTEC: A Model of a Summer Intensive Camp Designed To Cultivate the Future Generation of Young Leaders in STEM ~ Julie Donnelly, Carlos Diaz, and Florencio E. Hernandez
Teaching Organic Chemistry
Chemical Education Research Strategies of Successful Synthesis Solutions: Mapping, Mechanisms, and More ~ Nicholas E. Bodé and Alison B. Flynn (This article is available for free through the ACS Editors’ Choice program.)
Activities
A Simple Card Game To Teach Synthesis in Organic Chemistry Courses ~ Steven C. Farmer and Molly K. Schuman
Introducing 2D NMR Spectroscopy to Second-Year Undergraduate Chemistry Majors Using a Building-Up Approach ~ Amelia M. Anderson-Wile
Laboratories
Aza-Michael Reaction for an Undergraduate Organic Chemistry Laboratory ~ Manisha Nigam, Brittney Rush, Jay Patel, Raul Castillo, and Preeti Dhar
Introducing Aliphatic Substitution with a Discovery Experiment Using Competing Electrophiles ~ Timothy P. Curran, Amelia J. Mostovoy, Margaret E. Curran, and Clara Berger
Measuring Structural and Electronic Effects on Keto–Enol Equilibrium in 1,3-Dicarbonyl Compounds ~ Kyle T. Smith, Sherri C. Young, James W. DeBlasio, and Christian S. Hamann
Physical Chemistry
A Quantum Chemistry Concept Inventory for Physical Chemistry Classes ~ Marilu Dick-Perez, Cynthia J. Luxford, Theresa L. Windus, and Thomas Holme
Solving Simple Kinetics without Integrals ~ Lisandro Hernández de la Peña
Working toward a Paperless Undergraduate Physical Chemistry Teaching Laboratory ~ Jason D. Weibel
Exploring Biochemistry with Proteins
A Two-Week Guided Inquiry Protein Separation and Detection Experiment for Undergraduate Biochemistry ~ James P. Carolan and Kathleen V. Nolta
Utilizing Unnatural Amino Acids To Illustrate Protein Structure–Function Relationships: An Experiment Designed for an Undergraduate Biochemistry Laboratory ~ Johnathan C. Maza, Jordan K. Villa, Lisa M. Landino, and Douglas D. Young
Peptide Mass Fingerprinting of Egg White Proteins ~ Lisa T. Alty and Frederick J. LaRiviere
A Biochemistry Question-Guided Derivation of a Potential Mechanism for HbA1c Formation in Diabetes Mellitus Leading to a Data-Driven Clinical Diagnosis ~ Bomina Park, Robert W. Holman, Tyler Slade, Margaret Murdock, Kenneth J. Rodnick, and Arthur L. M. Swislocki
Research Experiences in the Laboratory
Synthesis of Copper(I) Oxide Particles with Variable Color: Demonstrating Size-Dependent Optical Properties for High School Students ~ Natalia E. Markina, Mikhail V. Pozharov, and Alexey V. Markin
An Exploration of the “Sweet Nanochemistry” Synthesis for Silver and Gold Colloids ~ Paulien Van fraeyenhoven, Natasja Glorie, Natalie Chiaverini, and Tom Mortier
Incorporating Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experiences into Analytical Chemistry Laboratory Curricula ~ Melissa A. Kerr and Fei Yan
Bridging the Gap between Instructional and Research Laboratories: Teaching Data Analysis Software Skills through the Manipulation of Original Research Data ~ Sarah J.R. Hansen, Jieling Zhu, Jessica M. Karch, Cristina M. Sorrento, Joseph C. Ulichny, and Laura J. Kaufman
Educational Resources
Commentary What’s in a Name? Amount of Substance, Chemical Amount, and Stoichiometric Amount ~ Carmen J. Giunta
Using ChemDuino, Excel, and PowerPoint as Tools for Real-Time Measurement Representation in Class ~ Malte Walkowiak and Andreas Nehring
Mining the Archives: Chemistry and Camp
Several articles in this issue discuss the appeal of teaching chemistry in a camp setting and there have been a number of posts on ChemEdX about camps, including Chemistry Summer Camp by Dan Myers. Here are some more “camp” articles from past JCE issues:
Addressing the STEM Gender Gap by Designing and Implementing an Educational Outreach Chemistry Camp for Middle School Girls~ Mindy Levine, Nicole Serio, Bhasker Radaram, Sauradip Chaudhuri, and William Talbert
Graduate Student Outreach: Model of a One-Day “Chemistry Camp” for Elementary School Students~Joseph D. Houck, Natalie K. Machamer, and Karla A. Erickson
Offering a Forensic Science Camp To Introduce and Engage High School Students in Interdisciplinary Science Topics ~ Linda Ahrenkiel and Martin Worm-Leonhard
Canisius College Summer Science Camp: Combining Science and Education Experts To Increase Middle School Students’ Interest in Science ~ Phillip M. Sheridan, Steven H. Szczepankiewicz, Christopher R. Mekelburg, and Kara M. Schwabel
Adventures in Coaching Young Chemists ~ Thomas S. Kuntzleman and Bruce W. Baldwin
JCE Contains Down-to-Earth Content
With 93 volumes of the Journal of Chemical Education to explore, you will always find something informative—including the articles mentioned above, and many more, in the Journal of Chemical Education. Articles that are edited and published online ahead of print (ASAP—As Soon As Publishable) are also available.
If you are considering writing an article for JCE, there are numerous author resources available on JCE’s ACS Web site, including recently updated Author Guidelines, Document Templates, and Reference Guidelines.