Changes in environmental conditions can have a profound impact on organismal processes. For aquatic organisms, changes in dissolved oxygen concentration can have major repercussions, notably for physiological processes that have high long-term energetic costs and are more likely to rely on aerobic metabolic pathways. Here we propose a simple…

Fragment-based drug design (FBDD) is a promising methodology to find quality drug leads. It is important in the curriculum of a drug design course due to its impact on drug discovery. However, teaching FBDD and its use by students remain challenging in most cases. A web-based laboratory class to teach FBDD in the form of our copyrighted workshops…

Zinc oxide is a common additive in food, cosmetics, and medicines. Here, we describe the validation of methods to analyze two pharmaceutical samples containing ZnO--talc powder and dermal ointment--by ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) titration. The methods developed were implemented as a practical class to students of a Quantitative Analysis…

This paper presents an experimental lab designed for undergraduate students which focuses on soil science and chemistry. Students perform a series of tests to classify soil's phosphate retaining characteristics, texture, pH, organic matter content, and permeability with the addition of a novel soil amendment, Al Mg biochar. This lab has minimal…

Preparatory or bridging courses are widespread and have a long tradition at universities. They are designed to increase students' academic success -- in particular of students with low prior knowledge -- and to reduce dropout rates. However, critics of these short and compact bridging courses complain that preparatory courses are not able to fill…

Lack of acceptance of biological evolution, despite the overwhelming evidence that supports it, can be very problematic in higher education courses that have a strong biological basis. We investigated acceptance of biological evolution in 344 first-year Life Sciences undergraduate students across five programmes at the University of Roehampton,…

Multi-institutional STEM reform networks have become a popular way to address the challenges facing undergraduate STEM education. Despite an intuitive sense that networks are effective reform mechanisms, few empirical research studies have investigated their impact. This qualitative case study examined the Center for the Integration of Research,…

Organic Chemistry, Life, the Universe and Everything (OCLUE) is an undergraduate lecture-based organic chemistry course that has been transformed in line with the vision for science education set out by the 'Framework for K-12 Science Education: Practices, Crosscutting Concepts and Core Ideas' (National Research Council, 2012). OCLUE is designed…

Practical skills in chemistry are considered an essential outcome of an undergraduate chemistry degree. To achieve this, chemistry curricula are designated a substantial number of hours in teaching laboratories. However, the general method of a summative assessment of these sessions is through a written laboratory report and not through the actual…

Computational thinking" (CT) is still a relatively new term in the lexicon of learning objectives and science standards. The term was popularized in an essay by Wing, who said, "To reading, writing and arithmetic, we should add computational thinking to every child's analytical ability." Agreeing with this premise, in 2013 the…

Each fall the Statistical Research Center (SRC) conducts its Survey of Enrollments and Degrees. The survey is sent to all degree-granting physics and astronomy departments in the United States and Puerto Rico. Departments are asked to provide information concerning the number of students they currently have enrolled and the number of degrees they…

Freshmen and sophomores in college are historically at risk of disengaging with general and organic chemistry courses, performing poorly and not continuing in STEM. Utility value (UV) interventions, though, have increased the achievement and retention of low-performing students in psychology and introductory biology courses. In this study, a…

Though extensively documented, the exact mechanism responsible for pattern formation on insect bristles and scales is not completely understood. Using both scanning and transmission electron microscopy, we assemble a rough time series of pattern formation on butterfly wing scales. We also perform a numerical simulation of the Swift-Hohenberg…

The methodology and mathematical treatment of several classic multivariate methods for the analysis of spectroscopic data is demonstrated in a straightforward way that can be used as a basis for teaching an undergraduate introductory course on chemometric analysis. The multivariate techniques of classical least-squares (CLS), principal component…

Embracing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) in the chemistry classroom is crucial for creating an inclusive learning environment that will have a positive effect on student's learning, success, and hence, retention in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). As such, a number of DEI approaches have recently been identified to…