Course Info: NS-0202

This course was an introduction to the basic principles of chemistry. The course began with a consideration of the composition of matter and the study of units of measurement, stoichiometry, the atmosphere, and the physical properties of gases, including gas laws. Considerable time was spent learning atomic structure and the use of the periodic table as a means of predicting the chemical properties of elements. The remainder of the semester was devoted to study of chemical bonds, molecular structure, acid-base chemistry, an introduction to oxidation-reduction reactions, and the chemistry of transition metals.

The course met for three one-hour-and-twenty-minute lecture/discussion sessions and for one three-hour lab each week. Students completed ten weekly problem sets and two review problem sets. They also completed seven concept laboratory exercises with associated reports and post-lab problem assignments and three project labs. As a significant part of the laboratory work, students also completed a discovery project on the environmental chemistry of acid mine drainage at the Davis Mine watershed in Rowe, MA. Students spent several laboratory periods both in the field and lab learning field measurement techniques; they gained hands-on experience in the use of inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES) methods as an analytical technique for trace elemental analysis; they have learned to use spreadsheet software for data analysis and graphics. Finally, students wrote a manuscript-style report on the project. The class used General Chemistry (10^th edition) by Whitten et al. and Experiments with Chemical Reactions by Hentz and Long for the laboratory. The students in the class represented a broad range of interest and ability.