what’s up with chem 125? faq. who is a scientist and how does science work? what do these images...
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What’s Up With CHEM 125?FAQ
Who is a scientist and how does science work?
What do these images have in common?
A more realistic view
Structural Basis for Efficient Chromophore Communication and Energy Transfer in a Constructed Didomain Protein ScaffoldJames A. J. Arpino, Honorata Czapinska, Anna Piasecka, Wayne R. Edwards, Paul Barker, Michal J. Gajda, Matthias Bochtler, and D. Dafydd Jonespp 13632–13640
Stable Alkanes Containing Very Long Carbon–Carbon BondsAndrey A. Fokin, Lesya V. Chernish, Pavel A. Gunchenko, Evgeniya Yu. Tikhonchuk, Heike Hausmann, Michael Serafin, Jeremy E. P. Dahl, Robert M. K. Carlson, and Peter R. Schreinerpp 13641–13650
A Mononuclear Fe(III) Single Molecule Magnet with a 3/2↔5/2 Spin CrossoverSusanne Mossin, Ba L. Tran, Debashis Adhikari, Maren Pink, Frank W. Heinemann, Jörg Sutter, Robert K. Szilagyi, Karsten Meyer, and Daniel J. Mindiolapp 13651–13661
Second-Generation Covalent TMP-Tag for Live Cell ImagingZhixing Chen, Chaoran Jing, Sarah S. Gallagher, Michael P. Sheetz, and Virginia W. Cornish pp 13692–13699
What’s the point?Science needs people who can:
work in diverse groups on interdisciplinary problems
Why Not Lecture and Exams?Lecture is passive
watching someone do something is not the best way to learn Does watching World Cup Soccer make you a
soccer player? Does listening to music make you a musician? What works?
How does?
How does?
Practice
We learn by mistakes but it is not always pleasant
How do we practice? “Flipping the class.”
Traditional Class Come to class, listen to lecture on the topic of the day, take
notes. After class, work on homework problems. Next day, new topic Repeat
Active Class Before class, read about topic of the day and work a few
simple problems In class, practice on more sophisticated problems with
support of a team and an expert (me). Reinforce with homework Next day, new topic, but periodically integrate old knowledge
into new knowledge.
Why do we do this?Most experts in the educational process say
that we construct our own knowledge.
Active learning allows this construction to happen in class, with support from team members and instructor.
Why teamwork?Collective IQ is higher in groups!
Research at Carnegie Mellon University collaborative groups more efficient at
completing tasks (and produced better results) than groups dominated by individual.
Two studies with 699 participants Groups develop collective intelligence
“C factor” strongly correlated with interactions in the group
Groups can solve harder and more interesting problems
Woolley, Science, October 2010
Why teamwork?Employers want employees with teamwork
skills. 70 biotech companies in MN surveyed for top
characteristics wanted in employees Top 16 characteristics:
Why teamwork?Teams perform better than individuals
Death rates in hospitals and on airlines Recent study in VA hospitals indicates that
surgical teams trained in teamwork had 20% fewer deaths
JAMA, 2010, 304(15), 1693-1700 70% of airline accidents and incidents over the
past 20 years related to crew communication, workload management and decision-making skills
Why do we do multi-topic problems from the workbook?Science is interdisciplinary.
Emerging fields arising at the boundaries of several disciplines.
Must consider issues from a variety of knowledge bases.
Workbook problems allow practice in the process of solving a problem. Scientific issues change but a foundation in the
process of problem solving (instead of getting the right answer to a particular question) will prepare you to be a 21st century scientist.
What do the experts say?Dr. Joseph Francisco, former chair of the
American Chemical Society in a presentation in August.
The Increasing Multidisciplinary Nature of ChemistryCurricula must challenge students to solve
problems such as Environmental issues Energy Materials Catalysis Drug discovery and synthesis Nanoscience
All of these require a multidisciplinary perspective.
The Increasing Multidisciplinary Nature of ChemistryWhat tools should students have?
Expertise in a domain of knowledge Breadth of knowledge Problem-solving skills The ability to find and define new problems Teamwork experience Communication skills Confidence, independence Creativity Ability to work across cultures
TeamworkA good team member is
present at all meetings prepared for the topic a good communicator is willing to listen to teammates is an active participant, contributing ideas able to resolve differences of opinion