GENERAL CHEMISTRY II

CHM 120

Spring 2005 – Lyon College

Professor: Dr. Floyd Beckford                     Office: Room 240, Derby Center, 698-4212     

Email: fbeckford@lyon.edu

Class Meetings: MWF, 10:00 – 10:50 a.m. (Derby 016)                

Problem session (voluntary): R, 7:00 p.m.

Office Hours: MWF (8:10 – 9:30) or by appointment

Text: Chemistry, The Molecular Nature of Matter and Change, 3^rd Edition, Martin S. Silberberg

Check out CHM 120 at www.lyon.edu/webdata/users/fbeckford

************************************************************************

COURSE OUTLINE

CHM 120 is the second semester freshman chemistry course at Lyon. It involves three lectures per week as well as a laboratory component that meets once a week.

Lecture

Lecture is designed to clarify the concepts covered in the textbook used in this course and provide examples of what you are expected to be able to do and how to do it. The text will therefore be an important part of the course. I strongly advise that you read the text before the lecture. Reading the material before hand helps you better understand and participate in the discussion during class. Class notes will be placed on the class website (above) at least two days before a new chapter begins. It is your responsibility to have the notes by class-time.

Course Description and Goals:

Chemistry is often referred to as the central science because the application of chemical principles is central to many other sciences. Chemistry 120 is the second part of a two-semester sequence in general chemistry to be taken by all science majors at Lyon but should also appeal to students in science education, pre-professional science and engineering tracks. This course assumes the knowledge in and will build on chemistry learned in CHM 110.

In this course we will study a variety of chemical topics from solutions to kinetics, equilibria, and nuclear reactions. We will try to establish connections between seemingly different areas and probe their importance to nature, the environment and society. This course is designed to give all students a general background in chemistry. It will serve to provide a solid start in scientific reasoning to science majors but aims as well to provide some necessary training that will allow all students to be scientifically literate, a very important skill in today’s world. Outlined below are some of the goals of this class. We aim to achieve these objectives by taking a combination of qualitative and quantitative approaches to the course material. However you will be required to “explain…” and “analyze…” more than you will be asked to “state…” and “calculate…”

            We want you to

·        Recognize the importance of chemistry and the scientific endeavor - (why do we do science?)

·        Develop critical thinking skills – (the transfer of learned concepts to areas unfamiliar or new to you).

·        Develop problem solving skills that are transferable -

-          What do I want to do? Or where do I want to go?

-          What am I starting with?

-          Use the skills from the second point above to figure the most efficient way to link the two

Other goals are more narrowly related to chemistry:

·        Learning a variety of chemical principles and how they are applied

·        Developing some basic analytical laboratory skill

·        Introduction to the classical analytical techniques including treatment of analytical data

In addition,

1. You are expected to remember what was taught in CHM 110. We will be building on this knowledge in CHM 120.
2. Some of the material in CHM 120 requires some mathematical skills. You will have to recall your basic algebra including manipulation of logarithmic equations. In relation to this you will be expected to remember chemical formulas. This is the only rote memorization required for this course.
3. You will be held responsible for the course material not directly covered in class when so directed.
4. You are expected to follow instructions on all exams and quizzes. As a general rule you will not receive majority credit for just answers. How you solve the problem is just as important. For instance if you obtain the correct answer to a problem by doing it incorrectly you will not receive any credit.
5. You are expected to participate in class and you may be called upon to answer questions.
6. Related to 5: you are expected to stay awake in class. Not only is sleeping during classes bad manners, but if you do I am likely to ask you a question.
7. The laboratory component to CHM 120 is very important. We will be seeing techniques you have not seen much of before and you will be asked to think on your feet. Note that analytical procedures are subjected to random errors. YOU MUST BE PREPARED FOR LABS to avoid your laboratory sessions running beyond 4:00.

Some course policies

Attendance: Attendance at lectures and laboratory is mandatory. Any student who misses 3 lecture classes over the course of the semester for ANY^* reason (see Grades below) WILL HAVE THEIR FINAL GRADE DECREASED BY ONE FULL LETTER GRADE. Attendance is defined as being in class for the entire period.

·        You are expected to be on time for classes.

·        Class ends when the instructor indicates that it is over. Putting away books before class ends is disrespectful at worst and disruptive at best.

·        In accordance with traditional good manners, you are expected to pay complete attention during lectures. As such unnecessary conversation will not be tolerated.

·        Since everyone deserves to have the best learning environment, you are asked to be respectful and polite to your fellow students.

·        The use of cell phones, beepers and other such electronic devices is strictly prohibited.

Homework: Homework assignments are attached to the end of this handout. They are VERY important. A SIGNIFICANT portion of every exam will be taken from textbook (end-of-chapter questions, though not necessarily homework). As such the assigned problems should definitely be viewed as the minimum you need to be doing and doing as much of the problems as is possible, is recommended. You will be held responsible for these questions. Selected questions from the homework will be collected and graded. Here is how it works. I can at anytime, with no notice, request that you turn in a set of homework problems. So even if we are doing Chapter 23 I may ask for homework from Chapter 12.

Examinations: Exams will be administered as outlined below. Only under extreme circumstances will a makeup exam or quiz be issued. Excused absences will be given only to students who miss an exam under the conditions listed below. IF an excuse is acceptable, the final course grade will be computed on all work except that exam.

EXAM DATES:

            Quiz 1             Feb. 4, 2005                           Exam 1           Feb. 25, 2005                        

Quiz 2             Mar. 16, 2005                         Exam 2           April 1, 2005                                       Quiz 3             April 15, 2005                         Exam 3           April 27, 2005            

Final               Finals week                                                                                                   

The final is a multiple-choice exam (110 min). The final covers both CHM 110 and CHM 120 material. For this exam you will NOT be allowed to use a programmable calculator.

^*Exam Policies: The exams in this course are 100% comprehensive. An exam will cover all material discussed during the semester up to that point. All exams and quizzes will be done outside of class on the date shown above. You may take this exam anytime between 12 noon and 9 p.m. that day in the library or Derby Center. Exams are due by 9:00 p.m. on the day it is taken.  Students who will not be able to take an exam at the scheduled time due to an irresolvable conflict with a major responsibility must provide some written documentation to verify the conflict. This situation may occur for students on official college business, including athletes. Approval must be obtained before the scheduled test date. Students who do not take an exam due to illness, car accident or similar extreme circumstance should inform their instructor of their difficulties as soon as possible. These difficulties must also be documented by physician’s notes (legible), accident reports, etc. Prescriptions are not acceptable. A telephone call within 24 hours of the exam is expected.

Laboratory

Materials:

·        Catalyst Lab Manual 2004.

·        Side-bound Official Laboratory Research Notebook, Jones and Bartlett Publishing.

·        Safety glasses. Issued in lab from the Chemistry Stockroom

Honor Code.  (Honesty & Ethics)  As we will emphasize in this class, scientific knowledge depends on experimental data, and the individual scientists’ reports of this experimental data.  In the scientific community, we depend on others to be honest in reporting their data and in crediting those who provide original ideas and information.  In this class, you are learning how to become a scientist; thus, it is important that you practice ethical behavior.  Cooperative work is an important part of science, so you are encouraged to work together on assignments (when permitted) and study together for exams and quizzes.  However, all work with (only) your name on it should be exclusively your own.  All graded work is to be done by you without ANY form of assistance from other student, and they must be “pledged” (handwritten).  Graded work means exams, quizzes, homework and the workbook.  You may not collaborate on any of these and you may ask for assistance only from the chemistry faculty.  You may not use any solutions manuals or answer keys from previous years. If anything needs clarification, please feel free to discuss it with me.

Important Policies:

·        No late assignments will be accepted, except under extreme circumstances. If an assignment is late, it will be penalized according to my discretion.

·        It is NOT permissible to use examinations from previous years unless I give them to you.

·        Plagiarism and data falsification are considered violations of the honor code.

GRADES

Grades will be assigned on an ABSOLUTE scale based on the total number of points you earn. There will be no curve applied. How well you do in this class is your responsibility.

NOTE:  Total points are subject to change depending on added/removed assignments.

^‡There will be 500 points scaled down to 250.

^*You must satisfactorily complete 90% of the experiments in the lab component in order to pass the course, regardless of the total points accumulated.

Bonus points: You will receive ½ point for each assigned homework problem that you do CORRECTLY, up to a maximum of 50 points. (This is separate from the 10 or so problems that you will have to turn in.) These are due in class on the day of an exam.

Risk Statement:

In the lab component of this course, you will work with chemicals that have the potential to be harmful to your health or to the health of an unborn child.  Please be attentive to any cautionary statements given during pre-lab and to those listed on the labels of chemical containers.  If you may be pregnant, it is your responsibility to alert the instructor so that additional safety precautions may be taken.

Learning disabilities: Students seeking reasonable accommodations based on documented learning disabilities should contact the Office of Academic Services at 698-4332.

Some important dates:

Jan. 20                         Final day to enroll for a course

Feb. 9                          Last day to drop a course and receive a “W” grade

Mar. 4                          Mid-semester grade reports due

Mar. 7 – 11                  SPRING BREAK

Mar. 25 – Mar. 28        EASTER HOLIDAY

Apr. 4 – 7                    Registration for Fall 2005 and Summer term

Apr. 28                        Last day of classes

May 2 – May 5             Final Exams

May 7                          Commencement

Lecture Schedule

The following is a tentative schedule of material coverage for the semester.