Describes a study designed to explore systematically the practical advantages and problems of using videotapes in the undergraduate chemistry laboratory. (MLH)

Describes the methods that have been developed to blend descriptive chemistry and principles in a first-year chemistry course. The key is active teaching of the subject using the periodic table as a template. Inorganic chemistry is taught using a group approach: developing trends that help teaching and learning become obvious if all elements of…

Reviews research related to laboratory work and makes recommendations for the classroom on how to make labs more meaningful. Argues that pre- and post-laboratory discussions containing theory behind the lab and purposes of the lab are essential for new understanding. (DDR)

Provides a description of an experiment in which students use a standard ultraviolet and intense blue (UV/VIS) spectrophotometer to measure the amount and energy of light. Explains how a simple measurement of the transmission spectrum of sunglasses can reveal differences between brands and can illustrate the destruction of the earth's ozone layer.…

Examines how professional chemists and undergraduate chemistry students respond to chemistry-related video segments, graphs, animations, and equations. Discusses the role that surface features of representations play in the understanding of chemistry. Contains 36 references. (DDR)

Gives a step-by-step description of a problem-solving microscale chemistry laboratory to show how this implementation of problem-solving teaching can be put into practice. Pedagogical and practical issues are discussed. (DKM)

Describes activities that use Froot Loops breakfast cereal to help students master the concepts of valence electrons and chemical bonding and the implications of the duet and octet rules. Involves students working in groups to create electron dot structures for various compounds. (JRH)

Examines a sample of 19th-century introductory chemistry textbooks used in the United States and evaluates how the intellectual ferment important to the chemistry of this period is represented in them. Discusses the change in the textbooks as the discipline became professionalized. Concludes that some textbooks shared the personal dimension of…

Describes a project that uses a multidisciplinary approach to problem solving in analyzing a crime scene and suspect evidence. Requires each student to work effectively in a team, communicate in both written and oral forms, perform hands-on laboratory manipulations, and realize that the entire class was depending on their individual contributions…

Describes the main features of this database of visual information about the applications, properties, and the chemical reactivity of the elements. The benefits of using this multimedia program include increased safety, decreased material costs, reduced volume of disposal products, and decreased preparation and cleanup time. (DDR)

Argues against a rule-based, algorithmic approach to measurement in introductory chemistry courses. Describes a learning activity that leads students to understand the need for rules and the application of those rules in measurement. (DDR)

Describes a demonstration which creates the illusion of violating Archimedes Principle. The procedure involves two liquids with identical densities and produces drops of one liquid suspended in the middle of a column of the second liquid. (DDR)

Examines the history of alchemical attempts at transmutation and classifies them by differing approaches and techniques. Traces the development of alchemy in Asia, Europe, and the Middle East, and compares alchemy with craftsmanship. (18 references) (DDR)

Describes the characteristics of the digitized version of The Periodic Table Videodisc. Provides details about the organization of information and access to the data via Macintosh and Windows computers. (DDR)

Describes an experiment designed to determine ascorbic acid concentrations in natural orange juice. The experiment is used with undergraduate pharmacy students to allow understanding of the principles of operation of the coulometer and polarograph. (DDR)