Collaboration among Chemical Educators
The February 2019 issue of the Journal of Chemical Education is now available online to subscribers. Topics featured in this issue include: microplastics and environmental chemistry; examining outreach practices; investigating acid–base chemistry; using Arduino to experiment with carbon dioxide; innovative approaches to analytical chemistry; three-dimensional visualization and tactile learning; understanding Lewis structures; synthesis laboratories; exploring physical chemistry; from the archives: celebrating the International Year of the Periodic Table.
Cover: Microplastics and Environmental Chemistry
Microplastics and microfibers are small particles of plastic that have either degraded from larger plastic items or originated from primary microplastic pollution sources (such as microbeads in cosmetics). Microplastic pollution is an area of emerging concern because of the ubiquity of particles in multiple environments and their persistence in the food chain. In the laboratory experiment Detecting Microplastics in Soil and Sediment in an Undergraduate Environmental Chemistry Laboratory Experiment That Promotes Skill Building and Encourages Environmental Awareness, Laura Rowe, Maria Kubalewski, Robert Clark, Emily Statza, Thomas Goyne, Katie Leach, and Julie Peller discuss how first-year undergraduate chemistry students quantified the amount of microplastics and microfibers in their local soil during a 2- or 3-week mini-research project. As shown on the cover, the students combined density gradient separation and the Fenton reagent with filtration and microscopic identification to visualize the microplastic pollution they unearthed.
Other environmental articles in the issue include:
Educational Modules on the Power-to-Gas Concept Demonstrate a Path to Renewable Energy Futures ~ Isabel Rubner, Ashton J. Berry, Theodor Grofe, and Marco Oetken
Exploring the Phases of Carbon Dioxide and the Greenhouse Effect in an Introductory Chemistry Laboratory ~ Jessica C. D’eon, Jennifer A. Faust, C. Scott Browning, and Kristine B. Quinlan
Applying a Virtual Reality Platform in Environmental Chemistry Education To Conduct a Field Trip to an Overseas Site ~ Fun Man Fung, Wen Yi Choo, Alvita Ardisara, Christoph Dominik Zimmermann, Simon Watts, Thierry Koscielniak, Etienne Blanc, Xavier Coumoul, and Rainer Dumke
Commentaries
Stacey Lowery Bretz (Miami University and member of the JCE Editorial Advisory Board) discusses in her editorial whether there is Evidence for the Importance of Laboratory Courses.
Michael T. Ashby and Michelle A. Maher examine Consensus, Division, and the Future of Graduate Education in the Chemical Sciences.
Examining Outreach Practices: Student Beliefs about Teaching and Learning
“You Lose Some Accuracy When You’re Dumbing it Down”: Teaching and Learning Ideas of College Students Teaching Chemistry through Outreach ~ Justin M. Pratt and Ellen J. Yezierski
Investigating Acid–Base Chemistry
Reasoning about Reactions in Organic Chemistry: Starting It in General Chemistry ~ Olivia M. Crandell, Hovig Kouyoumdjian, Sonia M. Underwood, and Melanie M. Cooper
Demonstration Extensions Based on Color-Changing Goldenrod Paper ~ Donald K. Schorr and Dean J. Campbell
Exploring Acid–Base Chemistry by Making and Monitoring Red-Cabbage Sauerkraut: A Fresh Twist on the Classic Cabbage-Indicator Experiment ~ Jacqueline L. Linder, Sumeja Aljic, Hamzah M. Shroof, Zachary B. Di Giusto, James M. Franklin, Shane Keaney, Christopher P. Le, Olivia K. George, Andrew M. Castaneda, Lloyd S. Fisher, Virginia A. Young, and Adam M. Kiefer
Multidisciplinary Learning: Redox Chemistry and Pigment History ~ Marcie B. Wiggins, Emma Heath, and Jocelyn Alcántara-García
Listening to pH ~ Samuel C. Costa and Julio C. B. Fernandes
Using Arduino to Experiment with Carbon Dioxide
Applying Chemistry Knowledge to Code, Construct, and Demonstrate an Arduino–Carbon Dioxide Fountain ~ Seong-Joo Kang, Hye-Won Yeo, and Jihyun Yoon
Measuring CO2 with an Arduino: Creating a Low-Cost, Pocket-Sized Device with Flexible Applications That Yields Benefits for Students and Schools ~ Hernan Pino, Vanesa Pastor, Carme Grimalt-Álvaro, and Víctor López
Innovative Approaches to Analytical Chemistry
Escape ClassRoom: Can You Solve a Crime Using the Analytical Process? ~ Marta Ferreiro-González, Antonio Amores-Arrocha, Estrella Espada-Bellido, María José Aliaño-Gonzalez, Mercedes Vázquez-Espinosa, Ana V. González-de-Peredo, Pau Sancho-Galán, José Ángel Álvarez-Saura, Gerardo F. Barbero, and Cristina Cejudo-Bastante
Development and Implementation of Design-Based Learning Opportunities for Students To Apply Electrochemical Principles in a Designette ~ Shun Yu Tan, Katja Hölttä-Otto, and Franklin Anariba
Quantification of Catechins in Tea Using Cyclic Voltammetry ~ Alice H. Suroviec, Katarina Jones, and Grace Sarabia
Three-Dimensional Visualization and Tactile Learning
Incorporating Tactile Learning into Periodic Trend Analysis Using Three-Dimensional Printing ~ Robert J. LeSuer
Student-Guided Three-Dimensional Printing Activity in Large Lecture Courses: A Practical Guideline ~ Denis Fourches and Jeremiah Feducia
Three-Dimensional Visualization of Kinase Inhibitors as Therapeutically Relevant Examples To Reinforce Types of Enzyme Inhibitors ~ Sonali Kurup and Prashant Sakharkar
Understanding Lewis Structures
Characterizing Peer Review Comments and Revision from a Writing-to-Learn Assignment Focused on Lewis Structures ~ S. A. Finkenstaedt-Quinn, E. P. Snyder-White, M. C. Connor, A. Ruggles Gere, and G. V. Shultz
Form versus Function: A Comparison of Lewis Structure Drawing Tools and the Extraneous Cognitive Load They Induce ~ Patrick L. Duffy, Kory M. Enneking, Tyler W. Gampp, Khatijah Amir Hakim, Amelia F. Coleman, Krista V. Laforest, Dylan M. Paulson, Erik T. Paulson, Justin D. Shepard, Jessica M. Tiettmeyer, Kristina M. Mazzarone, and Nathaniel P. Grove
Synthesis Laboratories
Investigating Radical Reactivity and Structure–Property Relationships through Photopolymerization ~ Michael Croisant, Stacey Lowery Bretz, and Dominik Konkolewicz
Synthesis and NMR-Spectral Analysis of Achiral O,O- and N,N-Acetals: Anisochronous pro-R and pro-S Ligands in NMR Spectra ~ Shahrokh Saba and Ariel Corozo-Morales
Accelerated Chemical Synthesis: Three Ways of Performing the Katritzky Transamination Reaction ~ Robert L. Schrader, Patrick W. Fedick, Tsdale F. Mehari, and R. Graham Cooks
Exploring Physical Chemistry
On the Reunification of Chemical and Biochemical Thermodynamics: A Simple Example for Classroom Use ~ Lionel M. Raff and William R. Cannon
Creating and Experimenting with a Low-Cost, Rugged System to Visually Demonstrate the Vapor Pressure of Liquids as a Function of Temperature ~ Rodrigo Papai, Mayara Araujo Romano, Aline Rodrigues Arroyo, Bárbara Rodrigues da Silva, Bruno Tresoldi, Gabriela Cabo Winter, Julia Messias Costa, Maria Aparecida Freitas Santos, Matheus Damasceno Prata, and Ivanise Gaubeur
Use of Simplified Surface Tension Measurements To Determine Surface Excess: An Undergraduate Experiment ~ Katherine N. Gascon, Steven J. Weinstein, and Michael G. Antoniades
Electron Correlation in the Singlet and Triplet States of the Atomic 2px12py1 Configuration ~ M. G. Marmorino
From the Archives: Celebrating the International Year of the Periodic Table
With 2019 marking the 150th anniversary of the periodic table of chemical elements, this year has been proclaimed the "International Year of the Periodic Table of Chemical Elements (IYPT2019)" by the United Nations General Assembly and UNESCO. There are many resources in the Journal for making the most of this year’s celebration. A great place to start is Erica Jacobsen’s comprehensive listing of JCE resources from October 2009 and before in:
This issue includes two articles on teaching periodic trends through the use of technology:
Incorporating Tactile Learning into Periodic Trend Analysis Using Three-Dimensional Printing ~ Robert J. LeSuer
A Digital Periodic Table That Instructors Can Use in the Classroom To Highlight Elements and Illustrate Periodic Trends ~ Matthew E. Lopper
Additional recent resources on the periodic table include:
Diffusion Cartograms for the Display of Periodic Table Data ~ Mark J. Winter
Sustainable Mobility, Future Fuels, and the Periodic Table ~ Timothy J. Wallington, James E. Anderson, Donald J. Siegel, Michael A. Tamor, Sherry A. Mueller, Sandra L. Winkler, and Ole J. Nielsen
Evaluation of Existing and New Periodic Tables of the Elements for the Chemistry Education of Blind Students ~ Dennis Fantin, Marc Sutton, Lena J. Daumann, and Kael F. Fischer
QR-Coded Audio Periodic Table of the Elements: A Mobile-Learning Tool ~ Vasco D. B. Bonifácio
Additional recent resources for engaging students with the periodic table and periodic trends include:
Discovering Periodicity: Hands-On, Minds-On Organization of the Periodic Table by Visualizing the Unseen ~ Jodye Selco, Mary Bruno, and Sue Chan
The People Periodic Table: A Framework for Engaging Introductory Chemistry Students ~ Adam Hoffman and Mark Hennessy
Building the Periodic Table Based on the Atomic Structure ~ Mikhail Kurushkin
Constructing an Annotated Periodic Table Created with Interlocking Building Blocks: A National Chemistry Week Outreach Activity for All Ages ~ Thomas S. Kuntzleman, Kristen N. Rohrer, Bruce W. Baldwin, Jennifer Kingsley, Charles L. Schaerer, Deborah K. Sayers, and Vivian B. West
Exploring the Everyday Context of Chemical Elements: Discovering the Elements of Car Components ~ Antonio Joaquín Franco-Mariscal
Black Panther, Vibranium, and the Periodic Table ~ Sibrina N. Collins and LaVetta Appleby
Additional games for exploring the periodic table:
ChemMend: A Card Game To Introduce and Explore the Periodic Table while Engaging Students’ Interest ~ Vicente Martí-Centelles and Jenifer Rubio-Magnieto
An Educational Card Game for Learning Families of Chemical Elements ~ Antonio Joaquín Franco Mariscal, José María Oliva Martínez, and Serafín Bernal Márquez
Using a Table Tennis Game, “Elemental Knock-Out”, To Increase Students’ Familiarity with Chemical Elements, Symbols, and Atomic Numbers ~ Chang-Hung Lee, Jian Fan Zhu, Tien-Li Lin, Cheng-Wei Ni, Chia Ping Hong, Pin-Hsuan Huang, Hsiang-Ling Chuang, Shih-Yao Lin, and Mei-Lin Ho
How Heavy Are You? Find the Answer in the Periodic Table ~ Klaus Woelk
An Effective Method of Introducing the Periodic Table as a Crossword Puzzle at the High School Level ~ Sushama D. Joag
Celebrating the JCE Periodical Table of Contents: A Monthly Resource Since 1924
With JCE in its 96th volume and for each volume there are 12 issues, you’ll find lots and lots of content in the Journal of Chemical Education to examine and use—including the present articles in the current issue, as well as in past issues of the Journal of Chemical Education. Articles that are edited and published online ahead of an issue (ASAP—As Soon As Publishable) are also available.