Chem 319: Introduction to Chemical Literature, Fall 2012
Instructor: Dr Vincent Sichula Office: 163 Beauregard
Phone: 985-448-4504 E-mail:
Course Meeting: Thursday 17:30 pm-18:35 pm Room: Beauregard Hall 248
Office Hours: Posted on moodle and on the office door
Whenever, l am in the office you are welcome to come in and ask questions.
COURSE DESCRIPTION. CHEM 319. Introduction to Chemical Literature. 1-1-0. Prerequisites: CHEM 222, 300. Important sources of chemical information, traditional and electronic searching techniques, software tools to assist in writing about Chemistry, and the American Chemical Society style guide. (40.0599)
PREREQUISITES. CHEM 222, 300. CHEM and CHDM majors are strongly encouraged to take this required course as soon as they have completed CHEM 222 and 300.
REQUIRED TEXTBOOK: http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Chemical_Information_Sources
Chemical Information Instructional Materials at the University of Indiana, as listed below under “Course Content.” http://www.indiana.edu/~cheminfo/cciim50.html
Handouts (assignments, PowerPoint notes, etc.) will be posted on the moodle.
REQUIRED SUPPLEMENTS. Chemical information Sources wikibooks Coghill, The ACS Style Guide: Effective Communication of Scientific Information, 3ed (ACS Press).
COURSE GOAL. The goal of this course is to familiarize students with the most important sources of chemical information and help them develop skills required to efficiently find and utilize information. The skills developed in this course should allow students to adapt to the rapidly evolving chemical literature.
STUDENT OUTCOME OBJECTIVES. At the end of this course, students will be
· able to use the chemical literature available in the Nicholls library and other libraries
· able to use software tools designed to assist in writing about chemistry
· able to recognize the primary literature by format
· able to construct appropriate bibliographic citations (references) in the correct format
· adept at using Chemical Abstracts, print and electronic (STN) versions, and all its component services, as well as other important sources to solve specific chemical information problems, such as
o finding patent information, journal articles, monographs, reviews by author, by subject, or by chemical substance
o finding physical and chemical properties of a compound
o finding methods for chemical analysis
o finding methods to assist in designing and performing chemical syntheses
· able to compose a review of literature pertaining to a possible subject of a laboratory investigation
Course Content:
1: Communication in Chemistry
· Science Writing Aids.
· http://cheminfo.informatics.indiana.edu/cicc/cis/index.php/Science_Writing_Aids
· The Publication Process. http://cheminfo.informatics.indiana.edu/cicc/cis/index.php/The_Publication_Process:_Primary%2C_Secondary%2C_and_Tertiary_Sources
2. How and Where to Start
· Guide to Chemical Information Sources and Databases.
· http://cheminfo.informatics.indiana.edu/cicc/cis/index.php/Guides_to_Chemical_Information_Sources_and_Databases
· General Information on Computer Searching. http://cheminfo.informatics.indiana.edu/cicc/cis/index.php/General_Information_on_Computer_Searching
· Current Awareness, Reviews and Document Delivery,
· http://cheminfo.informatics.indiana.edu/cicc/cis/index.php/Current_Awareness%2C_Reviews%2C_and_Document_Delivery
· Dictionaries, Encyclopedias and Other books, http://cheminfo.informatics.indiana.edu/cicc/cis/index.php/Background_Reading:_Dictionaries%2C_Encyclopedias%2C_and_Other_Books
3. General Search
· Searching by Author, Organization Name, or known Citations.
· http://cheminfo.informatics.indiana.edu/cicc/cis/index.php/Searching_by_Author_or_Organization_Name_and_by_Known_Citations
· Searching by Subject, http://cheminfo.informatics.indiana.edu/cicc/cis/index.php/Searching_by_Subject
· Searching by Chemical Name and Formula, http://cheminfo.informatics.indiana.edu/cicc/cis/index.php/Chemical_Name_and_Formula_Searching
· Structure Searching,
· http://cheminfo.informatics.indiana.edu/cicc/cis/index.php/Structure_Searching
4. Specialized Searches
· Patents,
· http://cheminfo.informatics.indiana.edu/cicc/cis/index.php/Chemical_Patent_Searching
· Analytical Methods, http://cheminfo.informatics.indiana.edu/cicc/cis/index.php/Analytical_Chemistry
· Synthetic Methods,
· http://cheminfo.informatics.indiana.edu/cicc/cis/index.php/Searching_for_Synthesis
· Chemical Safety and Toxicology, http://cheminfo.informatics.indiana.edu/cicc/cis/index.php/Chemical_Safety
· Physical and Chemical Properties,
· http://cheminfo.informatics.indiana.edu/cicc/cis/index.php/Physical_Property_Information
· Chemical History, Biographies, Directories, Industry, http://www.indiana.edu/~cheminfo/C471/471chbdi.htm
Course Topic Schedule
Day / Topic / General Information08/23 / Communication: Science writing aid
Chemical Drawing and Nomenclature Programs / Assignment # 1
08/30 / Communication: Science writing aid
Personal Database Software Packages (Citation Managers) / Assignment # 2
09/6 / How and where to start
The publication process / Assignment # 3
09/13 / How and where to start
Guide to Chemical Information Sources and Databases. STN database
Chemical Abstracts Learning file on STN / Assignment # 4
09/20 / How and where to search: General
Author and citation searches
09/27 / How and where to search: General
Chemical, Formula and structure searches / Assignment # 5
10/04 / How and where to search: Specialized Searches
Synthesis and reaction searches / Assignment # 6
10/11 / How and where to search: Specialized Searches
Searching by subjects
How to make a presentation
Students should choose a day for their presentation
Students can choose a topic of their interest from the list
below / Assignment # 7
10/25 / How and where to search: Specialized Searches
Searching by subjects / Assignment # 8
11/01 / How and where to search: Specialized Searches
Chemical patent searches
How to write a scientific journal and a report
Student Presentations/ Miscellaneous / Assignment # 9
Report Assignment Given
Students can choose a topic of their interest from the list
below
11/08 / How to write a scientific journal and a report
Student Presentations/ Miscellaneous
11/15 / Student Presentations/ Miscellaneous
11/29 / Student Presentations/ Miscellaneous,
Last day of class / Report Assignment due
PROPOSED GENERAL TOPICS FOR PRESENTATIONS
Chemical warfare agents Hormones and behaviour
Forensic chemistry Biological warfare agents
Pesticides Hallucinogens
Drug design and Pharmaceuticals Organic antioxidants
Steroids Vitamins and cofactors
Chemistry of lethal injections Chemicals for art preservation
Poisons and venoms Magnetic resonance imaging
Photographic chemicals Sex pheromones
Chemistry of cosmetics Chirality and biological activities
organometallic catalysts Spices and chemistry of flavors
Essential oils and perfumes Organic metals (molecular conductors)
Herbal medicine Chemistry of brewing and wine making
Specialty fuels (race cars, jets, space shuttles) Molecular basis of odor
Polymers and fashion (synthetic fabrics) Dyes and chemistry of colors
Organic semiconductors Soaps and detergents
Course Requirements:
Literature search assignments: There will be 9 literature search assignments
Presentation: Each student will give a power point presentation during the class on the chemistry topic of interest. The presentation should be more than 15 slides and not less.
Students should pick a day from the schedule when they want to present.
Report: Students will write a scientific report which will be due on the last day of the class. Select the topic you will need to write a report on. You can choose the same topic for your report and the presentation.
Attendance: Any absent will result in loss of 10 points per class.
METHODS OF EVALUATION:
Literature search assignments: 180 points
Presentation: 100 points
Report: 130 points
Total Points: 410
A straight percentage is used to determine grade.
A = 90% B = 80% C = 65% D = 55%
Attendance: Attendance is required.
Make Up: Make up work will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis. The student must provide a valid, verifiable excuse.
Academic Honesty Policy: Any student found cheating on any report will be subject to the penalties as stated in the Student Code of Conduct handbook; including but not limited to a score of zero on an assignment, expulsion from the class or expulsion from the University. Electronic copies of all requirements must be submitted through the Blackboard digital dropbox so that they can be checked against the turnitin.com database for plagiarism.
Semester Withdrawals: The last day to withdraw from the class with a ‘W’ is November 7, 2012.
Academic Disabilities Policy: If you have a documented disability that requires assistance, you will need to register with the Office of Disability Services for coordination of your academic accommodations. The Office of Disability Services is located in Peltier Hall, Room 100-A. The Phone Number is (985) 448-4430 (TDD 449-7002).
Academic Grievances: The proper procedure for filing grade appeals or grievances related to academic matters is listed in Section 5 of the Code of Student Conduct and at the following link: http://www.nicholls.edu/documents/student_life/code_of_conduct.pdf.
Continued Learning following an Extreme Emergency
The following guidelines are meant: to help the business of education continue at Nicholls State University in the aftermath of an extreme emergency situation; to help faculty and students understand their roles in completing education requirements for courses in progress when the emergency began; and to encourage faculty to be imaginative and resourceful in finding ways to continue the education of students and the work of the university.
Faculty responsibilities:
• Faculty members are responsible for their development in the use of the Blackboard software.
• Faculty members are responsible for having a plan for continuing their courses using only Blackboard and email.
• Faculty members should be allowed to continue their course in whatever way suits the completion of the course best, and encouraged to be creative in the continuation of these courses.
• Any adjustments or compensations made to a student’s progress in special programs with labs, clinical sequences (i.e. Culinary, Nursing, etc.), or the like should be made only in the immediate semester following the emergency.
· Faculty members are responsible for including these guidelines in all syllabi.
Student responsibilities:
• Students are responsible for reading regular emergency notifications on the NSU website.
• Students are responsible for knowing how to use and access Blackboard.
• Students are responsible for being familiar with emergency guidelines.
• Students are responsible for evacuating textbooks and other course materials.
• Students are responsible for knowing their Blackboard login and password
• Students are responsible for contacting faculty regarding their intentions for completing the course.
NOTE: Faculty and students should be open, flexible, and show compassion in determining the precise course of action.
Class Disruptions are not tolerated. The use of cell phones, pagers and/or any other electronic personal device in class is prohibited. Any infractions will result in the dismissal from class.