Although many chemistry demonstrations are proposed in educational literature, there are hardly any studies on how demonstrations should be set up in order to support students' perception. Against this background, the aim of the present study was to present and test setup principles for chemistry demonstrations, with regards to indicators of…

A research-based inorganic chemistry laboratory course is described. Using the defined protocol of a course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE), students undertake a self-designed research project to identify new catalysts for the dehydrogenation of ammonia borane. Students select ligands and metals, prepare and characterize catalysts…

A laboratory experiment was designed for upper-level undergraduate students in a bioanalytical course to demonstrate the concept of isoelectric point (pI) and the theoretical and practical applications of isoelectric focusing (IEF). This simple and inexpensive IEF procedure requires the same minigel SDS-PAGE equipment that is already available in…

One of us is a physicist. The other is a chemist. For the past four years, we have been teaching a large introductory environmental science course that uses our campus as a lens through which to explore issues relating to sustainability. Our students "ask questions about the energy we use to heat and cool our buildings, the food we eat, the…

In collaboration with NASA, the Space Grant Foundation, and the eXploration Habitat Academic Challenge, the University of South Alabama developed a systems engineering undergraduate elective that instructs students on the fundamentals of systems engineering and provides the students the opportunity to apply systems and chemical engineering…

A series of quantitative studies investigated undergraduate students' perceptions of their cognitive and affective learning in the undergraduate chemistry laboratory. To explore these quantitative findings, a qualitative research protocol was developed to characterize student learning in the undergraduate chemistry laboratory. Students (N = 13)…

A course is described where students are engaged in an inquiry-based quarter-long research project to synthesize a known pharmaceutical target. Students use literature search engines, such as Reaxys and SciFinder, and the primary chemical literature as resources to plan and perform the synthesis of their pharmaceutical target. Through this…

The correct tracking and monitoring of anatomical specimens is not only imperative in any modern body donation programs but also in any universities for which teaching the next generation of health care professionals is the primary mission. This has long been an arduous process for anatomy institutions across the world, and the recent focus of new…

In this study, the effects of computer-assisted laboratory applications on pre-service science teachers' attitudes towards science teaching were investigated and the opinions of the pre-service teachers about the application were also determined. The study sample consisted of 46 students studying science teaching Faculty of Education. The study…

Sunscreens have different levels of protection, measured most commonly with the sun protection factor (SPF). Students initially believed higher SPF factors mean greater sun protection and learned through this activity that higher SPF does not mean greater protection. Students analyzed the amount of ultraviolet radiation (UVR) protection and…

It is established that male students outperform female students on almost all commonly used physics concept inventories. However, there is significant variation in the factors that contribute to the gap, as well as the direction in which they influence it. It is presently unknown if such a gender gap exists on the relatively new Concise Data…

An integrated laboratory experiment applying concepts and techniques developed in organic chemistry, inorganic chemistry, and instrumental analysis is presented for use by students interested in undergraduate research. The experiment incorporates some advanced laboratory practices such as multistep organic synthesis and purification, detailed…

A laboratory experiment is described that introduces second-year undergraduate organic chemistry students to organic electronic materials. The discovery of metallic conductivity in the charge transfer salt tetrathiafulvalene tetracyanoquinodimethane (TTF-TCNQ) is a landmark result in the history of organic electronics. The charge transfer…

A variety of fruits and vegetables, including raspberries, blueberries, Concord grapes, blackberries, strawberries, peaches, eggplant, red cabbage, and red onions, contain flavonoid compounds known as anthocyanins that are responsible for the blue-red color and the astringent taste associated with such foods. In addition, anthocyanins exhibit a…

This activity allows students to visualize the electrolysis of water in a microfluidic device in under 1 min. Instructional materials are provided to demonstrate how the activity meets West Virginia content standards and objectives. Electrolysis of water is a standard chemistry experiment, but the typical laboratory apparatus (e.g., Hoffman cell)…