Recently in Exciting News Category

A few days ago, I posted a picture of VIPEr tattoos, a physical manifestation of IONiC, the Inorganic Online Network of Inorganic Chemists started by Maggie Geselbracht and several collaborators across the nation. It seems, though, that a merely online presence wasn't enough for this lot. Maggie, her six IONiC collaborators, and Ethan Benatan, Reed's director of Computer User Services and the technical guru for the VIPEr-IONiC project, have gone hard-copy and published an article in the January 2009 issue of the Journal of Chemical Education (JCE, 2009, 86(1), 123) titled, "IONiC: A Cyber-Enabled Community of Practice for Improving Inorganic Chemical Education".

C&E News called me last week and asked me to tell all regarding the department's chemistry budget for next year. Since I haven't been told much myself, I couldn't offer much information (the reporter said she would call back in January to get an update). You can read the complete article, Schools Face Cuts, with its passing reference to Reed, in the Dec 15, 2008 issue of C&E News, p. 7.

"Ultra-liberal Reed College in Oregon is doing away with textbooks" is exactly how humorist P.J. O'Rourke described us when he started his yarn on yesterday's (Nov 15, 2008) Bluff the Listener segment on NPR's news-comedy show, Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. His fantasy (perhaps shared by more than a few students and professors?) featured Reed getting rid of all textbooks in order to fight "the unregulated hegemony of textbook publishers" and relying on bogus web sites and web calculators to support all student work. The listener turned out to be pretty savvy and didn't buy the story. To hear the entire segment, go to This Week's Show and select Bluff the Listener (runs 6:24). Or, to save time, you can jump in at 3:33 and listen O'Rourke's tale of over-enthusiastic web-based education.

Environmental Chemistry at Reed College. Reed College is inaugurating a new interdisciplinary program in environmental studies. To support this program, the Chemistry Department invites applications for a tenure-track position in Environmental Chemistry beginning August 2009. Preference will be given to candidates with additional expertise in either physical chemistry or analytical chemistry/instrumentation. The successful candidate will be expected to teach advanced courses in their area of expertise and to contribute to the introductory chemistry course sequence as well as an interdisciplinary team-taught course in environmental studies.  Teaching duties also include advising senior thesis students in year-long research projects. Excellent facilities for teaching and research are available, including a 400 MHz multinuclear NMR spectrometer, housed in a 45,000 sq. ft. dedicated chemistry building.  A Ph.D. is required, and postdoctoral experience is desirable. Submit curriculum vitae, an outline of research interests, statement of teaching philosophy, and arrange to have three letters of recommendation sent to Arthur Glasfeld, Chair, Chemistry Search Committee, Reed College, 3203 S.E. Woodstock Blvd., Portland, OR 97202-8199. Review of applications will begin on October 24, 2008 and continue until the position is filled. An Equal Opportunity Employer, Reed values diversity and encourages applications from underrepresented groups.

Following a 14 month "sabbatical", the Reed College Chemistry department's news blog is back in action at a new URL and with fancy new software (provided by CUS) to help us on our way. Look here for new posts while we catch up on 14 months of news and also post new arrivals. Also try out the blog's new features: comments, search engine, subscription to automatic updates.