Chemistry 101 Inquiries into the nature of matter
Hunter College of the City University of New York
Department of Chemistry
Lab Lecturer: Dr. Gabriela Smeureanu [email protected]
Lab Coordinator: Dr. Gabriela Smeureanu [email protected]
Laboratory location: Brookdale Campus Room BC 201 or BC 203
Phone: (212) 481 5150
Brookdale Campus is located at 425 E 25 St. (25 St between 1st ave and FDR)
Instructor: MohammadSadeq Mottaqi
Email: [email protected]
Office Hours:
Welcome!
Chemistry is all around us: in the food we eat, in the clothes we wear, in the technology you are using to read this right now, and in you yourself! In this course we will be looking at the world around us through the lens of chemistry and how we can measure and observe things in a laboratory in order to learn more about chemical processes.
The course will be taught as hybrid model (lecture fully online and lab in person) with the primary delivery of course content through a custom-made lab manual that covers twelve different experiments with videos, images, readings, and questions. The majority of the course will be synchronous in person, meaning that you are required to attend in person lab and meet all the course deadlines.
Course Description
CHEM 101: Essentials of General Chemistry Laboratory: 3 credits. Introduction to laboratory experimentation to familiarize students with scientific measurements and practical chemical reactions.
Purpose of the Course: This is a one-semester general chemistry laboratory course which will serve as an introduction to the basic principles of chemistry using a puzzle solving inquiry-based approach to laboratory experimentation.
Academic or Learning Objectives: After completing this lab, students should be able to:
- use information provided in a puzzle to design a scientific experiment that addresses a specific scientific problem.
- understand how make precise and accurate measurements using physical and chemical equipment and instruments.
- use measured data and theoretical concepts to solve problems.
- understand the principles that govern chemical transformations in chemical reactions.
Instructional Technology: As part of this course, we will be using two course platforms: Blackboard and Top Hat. You should log on to both as soon as you can so that you can familiarize yourself with the look and feel of the web interfaces.
Blackboard: You should automatically gain access to the Blackboard site if you have registered for the course. All course announcements, course documents, and discussion boards will be hosted on Blackboard.
Top Hat: You will receive an email from Top Hat inviting you to join this course which will require you to create an account within Top Hat. This email will be sent to the email address associated with your Blackboard account. If you cannot find your invitation email, please contact me. You will need to create your Top Hat account with the email address used in Blackboard and entering your EMPLID as your student ID.
The Top Hat site we will use has been designed specifically for our course. You should think of it is a virtual interactive lab manual. This is where you will read and watch all the material for the different experiments we will be covering as well as where you will complete most of the coursework. Please note that the Top Hat lab manual for CHEM 101 is completely separate than the Top Hat course for CHEM 100. They are two separate courses with their own course materials and grades.
Course Components
Experiments: For this course we will be using an online lab manual through Top Hat containing twelve different experiments. All the laboratory material and assignments can be found within this Top Hat manual. Please make sure you get signed up for Top Hat on the first day of class.
Each experiment contains the following six sections:
- Pre-Lab Background: (5 pts)
- Pre-Lab Skills: (15 pts)
- The Puzzle: (no points)
- Notebook and Data Analysis: (45 pts)
- Post-Lab Questions: (25 pts)
- Connections to Human Health: (10 pts)
These sections will be completed at once according to deadlines.
Each experiment corresponds to a specific day of class as indicated in the syllabus below. The pre-lab components (Background & Skills) are due by the start of class. The core of the experiment (Notebook and Data Analysis) is due on the day we have the lab. The post-lab components (Post-Lab Questions & Connections to Human Health) are due before our new class. Please pay close attention to the deadlines in TOP Hat and make sure your work is completed on time.
Student Presentations: The final assignment for this course will be a presentation made by you and presented to your classmates.
Detailed Course Outline: This lab course will cover twelve different experiments over the course of the semester. All deadlines are listed below and on Top Hat.
Grading Policy:
Your overall letter grade will be based on the total number of points you earn in both the lecture and laboratory components of the course. The total number of points that can be earned in this course is 1900 (500 pts from the lecture component and 1400 pts from the lab). This total will be converted to a percentage (out of 100%) andscaled according to the Hunter College Grading system.
| Lecture Graded element | TOTAL Points |
| Quizzes | 100 |
| Exam 1 | 200 |
| Exam 2 | 200 |
| TOTAL | 500 |
| Week | Date | Content | Title | Point Value |
| 1 | 08/31 | Introduction | Course Intro & Safety Overview | 25 |
| 2 | 09/07 | Experiment 1 | The “Mysterious Matter” Column | 100 |
| 3 | 09/14 | Experiment 2 | Messing with Mixtures | 100 |
| 4 | 09/21 | Experiment 3 | Chemists Make Things: Change that Matters | 100 |
| 5 | 09/28 | Experiment 4 | Precipitation Reactions Part 1: The Role of Reactants | 100 |
| 6 | 10/05 | Experiment 5 | Precipitation Reactions Part 2: The Law of Definite Proportions | 100 |
| 7 | 10/12 | Experiment 6 | Precipitation Reactions Part 3: Mass Conservation | 100 |
| 8 | 10/19 | Experiment 7 | Like Dissolves Like | 100 |
| 9 | 10/26 | Experiment 8 | Rainbow Cabbage | 100 |
| 10 | 11/02 | Experiment 9 | A Titration Competition | 100 |
| 11 | 11/09 | Experiment 10 | Alka-Seltzer and the Escaping Gas | 100 |
| 12 | 11/16 | Experiment 11 | That’s Cool | 100 |
| 13 | 11/30 | Experiment 12 | What a Flame! | 100 |
| 14 | 12/07 | Presentation | Student Presentations | 105 |
| 5 attendance/participation points for each class session | 70 | |||
| Total Grade Goal | 1400 | |||
LABORATORY POLICY:
Attendance for each laboratory experiment is MANDATORY. You will be allowed one excused absence for the semester*. Any subsequent absences will result in a grade of zero for that experiment. If you are more than 10 minutes late for lab you will not be allowed to complete the experiment. This will count as your one excused absence for the semester. NOMAKE-UP labs.
One lab with the lowest score will be dropped.
All cell phones must be turned off while in the class. Any students who disrupt the class will be asked to leave.
