Author Archives: alan

Study Tips '09

Posted on August 30, 2009 by alan

(updated version of post from Aug 20, 2008)An idiosyncratic assortment of suggestions and observations based on 23+ years of teaching…. Continue reading →

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Did You Lose Your Section?

Posted on August 29, 2009 by alan

The Registrar's Office has reassigned lab and/or conference sections for several students. Please check your class schedule this weekend to see whether it has been affected. If changes were made, they were made for a reason. You must attend your… Continue reading →

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Four Unsolved Problems

Posted on August 29, 2009 by alan

(initial version published Aug 20, 2008)Once you get used to them, you may find that the problems in your textbook have a game-like quality. If you make the right mental "moves", you will nearly always solve the problem. It's a… Continue reading →

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The Joys of Being a Chemistry Student

Posted on August 29, 2009 by alan

(first published Aug 20, 2008)My first genuine taste of organic chemistry came in my sophomore year of college (73-74). I studied from a large (1000 page) textbook not too different from yours. There was a lot to remember, but I… Continue reading →

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What's on deck for Fall '09?

Posted on July 6, 2009 by alan

This site will be updated periodically during summer '09. You can still look at the entire site, including all of the posts from '08-09, but not much has changed yet. Major changes will get announced by adding to this post…. Continue reading →

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Have tunes? Gotta dance?

Posted on December 25, 2008 by alan

Piles of paper surround me. Wrapping paper for presents. Your exams and lab reports. (Not to worry, no one in the family received socks wrapped in a lab report.) And it's snowing. So what do I do?What would anyone do?Surf… Continue reading →

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Rate of Nucleophilic Substitution Contest – My Response

Posted on December 18, 2008 by alan

If you recall, the winners of this contest were chosen by pulling cards out of a hat, an unusually large (size 7 3/4") black top hat. The questions asked by the winners* were:Fluffy C. – Are the low reactivity of… Continue reading →

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Cations, crowns, and phase transfer catalysts

Posted on December 9, 2008 by alan

The following images (click image for full-size view) show potential maps (0 –> +1500), ball-and-spoke formulas, and space-filling formulas of(CH3CH2CH2CH2)N+ (top left)PhCH2N(Et)3+ (top center)18-crown-6(K+) (right)Li+, Na+, K+ (bottom left) The potentials surrounding the organic cations are more moderate, but not… Continue reading →

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S/P electrophiles & crown ethers

Posted on December 5, 2008 by alan

The PowerPoint slides from today's lecture can be downloaded here. A couple of comments on each slide …… Continue reading →

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From O Chem to the Oregonian

Posted on December 1, 2008 by alan

The Oregonian ran an article today titled, "Markets Threaten Oregon University Endowments" (Nov 30, 2008, Metro NW section, B-1). The article profiles Reed College's finances (which are gloomy, but probably no worse than anyone else's) and it features a nice… Continue reading →

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