With the enormous reliance on plastics in the world today, bisphenol A, an additive used in the synthesis of many plastics, such as polycarbonate, has been found almost everywhere in our environment including in soil, in natural waters, and inside organisms including humans. A multidisciplinary experiment is presented that involves using flatworms…

Chemists have always designed and deployed cross-disciplinary approaches that interface chemistry with other disciplines to proffer solutions to many human problems. We designed a laboratory experiment that implements chemistry concepts in a biological model to prime undergraduate students to appreciate interdisciplinarity as an approach to…

Approximately 1 billion metric tons of food are lost each year due to mycotoxins (FAO 2013), secondary metabolites produced by fungi (Marin et al. 2013) that contaminate crops (Placinta, D'Mello, and MacDonald 1999) and threaten the health of domestic animals and humans (Sobrova et al. 2010). The fungus "Fusarium graminearum" produces…

The MicRoboCop project introduces chemistry students to the concepts and protocols of synthetic biology. MicRoboCop is a biosensor that has been designed for unique applications in forensic chemistry. The lab is carried out in collaboration with an instructor teaching a genetics course. Students in the biology course synthesize biosensors using…

This paper presents exemplification of the ways in which teachers can incorporate the ideology of maker education into STEAM club activities. The intention is to showcase how science teachers can infuse making into their pedagogy and inject more creativity into the learning process, yet still link it to existing science curricula, more…

Undergraduate-level laboratory experiments that involve the synthesis of nanomaterials with well-defined/controlled shapes are very attractive under the umbrella of nanotechnology education. Herein we describe a low-cost and facile experiment for the synthesis of Cu(OH)[subscript 2] and CuO nanowires comprising three main parts: (i) synthesis of…

This math activity focuses on experimental design while connecting math with life science. It is important that the science and engineering practices (SEPs) are not taught as a separate "unit" but integrated within the curriculum wherever possible. The focus is on experimental design to teach animal behavior. Students predict and test…

Novel carbon nanomaterials such as reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and graphene oxide (GO) can be easily incorporated into the undergraduate curriculum to discuss basic chemistry and nanotechnology concepts. This paper describes a laboratory experiment designed to study the differences between GO and rGO regarding their physicochemical properties…

Surface structures on the nanometer size scale can impart new and exciting properties to bulk materials. Nanoscopic structures on hydrophobic materials can result in superhydrophobicity and structural coloration. We present an interdisciplinary experiment that introduces undergraduate students to nanotechnology by manipulating the…

Over the past decade, mechanistic cross-linking probes have been used to study protein-protein interactions in natural product biosynthetic pathways. This approach is highly interdisciplinary, combining elements of protein biochemistry, organic chemistry, and computational docking. Herein, we described the development of an experiment to engage…

This interdisciplinary scientific inquiry lesson specifically utilizes the 5E learning cycle to engage high school students in an investigation on size-dependent properties of matter. In particular, this inquiry lesson focuses on a biologically relevant phenomenon, namely accessibility to a pharmaceutical drug with respect to the size of the pill.…

This article describes an interdisciplinary unit in which students explore biological "ice nucleation"--by particles that cause water to freeze at temperatures above -38°C--through the lens of the microbial ice nucleator "Pseudomonas syringae." Such This activity, which aligns with the "Next Generation Science…

In recent years, the integration of science and mathematics has become popular among educators because of its potential benefits for student learning. The purpose of this study is to introduce a two-day interdisciplinary lesson that brings science and mathematics concepts together, actively engaging students in working with percentages of the…

This experiment combines analytical techniques of solid phase microextraction and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry with easily relatable and accessible plant volatile chemistry (floral and vegetative scents of local/available plants). The biosynthesis and structure of these chemicals are of interest in the areas of organic chemistry,…

The rapid academic and industrial development of nanotechnology has led to its implementation in laboratory teaching for undergraduate-level chemistry and engineering students. This laboratory experiment introduces the galvanic replacement reaction for synthesis of hollow metal nanoparticles and investigates the optical properties of these…