Enzymes are organic molecules known for their catalytic nature because they accelerate metabolic reactions in organisms. The study of enzyme functions and modes of action is essential to understand Biochemistry. This study aimed to analyse the acetylcholinesterase enzymatic activity, as well as the enzymatic inhibition mechanism in practical…

In a 1993 book review, E. Pearlstein asks, "Why don't textbook authors begin their discussion of magnetism by talking about magnets? That's what students have experience with." A similar question can be asked, "Why don't professors have students measure the force between permanent magnets in introductory physics labs?" The…

The use of clickers in the lecture classroom has increased in recent years. Clickers have been widely used to improve teaching effectiveness in various lecture classroom settings. Most introductory biology courses are taught using direct instruction. One of the ways that students may be engaged in the lecture classrooms is by using a clicker.…

To develop targeted climate change curricula, it is imperative to understand how students perceive and observe the localized effects of climate change. Our work used a quantitatively driven, parallel mixed methods research design to study potential factors that contribute to undergraduate biology students seeing the local effects of climate…

The static equilibrium properties of a spool, resting on an incline and subject to the tension exerted by a string wrapped around the core cylinder, are studied by means of Newtonian mechanics. The overall behaviour of this system is imagined to be similar to that of a doggie kept on a leash. Starting from the well-known mechanical properties of…

Science student development of creative thinking ability is not sufficiently promoted and can even be inadvertently discouraged by current methods of instruction. Aimed at addressing this issue, the present study examined an undergraduate biology course in which scientific content instruction and creative drawing were integrated through use of…

Students possess informal, intuitive ways of reasoning about the world, including biological phenomena. Although useful in some cases, intuitive reasoning can also lead to the development of scientifically inaccurate ideas that conflict with central concepts taught in formal biology education settings, including evolution. Using antibiotic…

This paper seeks to evaluate learning based on the competency approach, taking a didactic experience to evaluate a possible improvement in the ability to solve problems and for autonomous learning in general. For the didactic development, the theme "gases" was taken, which is generally enunciated: Corpuscular kinetic theory of matter;…

As an alternative to the traditional metallocene laboratory targets, students synthesize Cp[subscript 2]TiCl[subscript 2], bis([eta][superscript 5]-cyclopentadienyl)dichloridotitanium(IV), from the mildly moisture-sensitive cis-TiCl[subscript 4](thf)[subscript 2]. Air-free handling techniques are emphasized, but the (mostly) air-stable,…

Scanning probe microscopy such as atomic force microscopy has become increasingly integrated and relevant in undergraduate laboratory investigations. As the "hands and eyes of the nanoworld", atomic force microscopes (AFMs) continue to be used to innovate the nanowriting process for data storage and in the exploration of novel materials…

An integrated laboratory experience using metal--organic frameworks (MOFs), a nanoporous and crystalline extended solid material composed of metal cations and organic linkers, was developed and adopted for upper-division, major-level chemistry and biochemistry students. In this laboratory, students were guided through the facile solvothermal…

Three different experiments that allow the synthesis of the drug paracetamol are described; such experiments were designed for their implementation in undergraduate organic chemistry courses, considering the medical and economic importance of paracetamol. The experience wants to show the students some "real world" applications of organic…

An experiment for the undergraduate physical chemistry laboratory is described in which the Raman spectrum of liquid "para"-difluorobenzene is recorded and assigned. A density functional theory (DFT) calculation of the 30 normal modes of the molecule is undertaken using computational chemistry software. Students use group theory to…

A new undergraduate organic laboratory experiment has been developed and implemented for the Ugi three-component synthesis of the topical anesthetic lidocaine with excellent atom economy. Paraformaldehyde, diethylamine, and 2,6-dimethylphenyl isocyanide were combined and conveniently stirred at room temperature for a week in methanol with acetic…

Mercury beating heart (MBH) is a well-known demonstration of redox processes. However, the development and application of the MBH system are significantly restricted due to its safety issues. Here, a direct current electric field-enabled gallium-based liquid metal heartbeat in a salt solution or alkaline solution is introduced as a demonstration…