Chem 201 Archive – Alan Shusterman

Category: Class schedule

  • Day 0, 2019 – the things you need to do BEFORE your first class

    Welcome back to Reed. We have an exciting organic chemistry curriculum planned for the 2019-20 editions of Chem 201 and 202, and we will get off to a flying start so here goes…

    Reed’s first week of classes is short because Monday is Labor Day. This means that two Chem 201 sessions, the Monday afternoon lecture and the Monday evening lab lecture, cannot meet. And because the course schedule ties the Monday and Tuesday lectures together, the Tuesday, Sept. 3, morning lecture is cancelled too. Our first days (Day 1) of lecture will be Wednesday, Sept. 4, and Thursday, Sept. 5. Your attendance at your scheduled lecture section on Day 1 is absolutely required.

    The Labor Day holiday does not impact the lab schedule. Our first (Week 1) lab sessions will meet Tuesday-Friday, Sept. 3-6. Check the schedule for your lab day (Tu/W sections meet 1:10-5 pm, Th/F sections meet 12:30-4:20 pm) and show up in Rm. 209 at the scheduled time or maybe a few minutes earlier.

    What will you be doing in lecture and lab? What do you need to do before class and lab so that you are prepared? These are excellent questions and the following instructions will guide you. Note: the following instructions have already been sent to all registered 201 students by email. Read, review, act as your situation requires.

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  • READ ME – this blog is dormant through Fall, 2018

    This web page will not be maintained during the 2017-18 academic year. All course-related materials should be obtained from the appropriate Moodle pages. This site will resume business in Fall, 2018.

  • Preparing for EsCENTial Oil lab – weeks 2 & 3

    This lab experiment lasts 3 weeks. Students finished varying amounts of lab work during the first week so planning the remaining work is a little complicated. I’ve written up a two-page set of instructions to guide you. Please read this well ahead of your lab day and prepare accordingly.

  • Week 1 in Chem 201

    Welcome back to Reed.

    The attached file contains information about the first week of Chem 201. Lab (p. 1) and lecture (p. 2). Please read this file right away.

    Note: lab will meet beginning tomorrow, Tu, Sept 2, but lecture will not.

    201 is a complicated course that includes multiple sections, books, clickers, online homework, safety and chemical disposal training, and a whole lot more. This email just scratches the surface of what you need to know and look at regarding the lab. If you would like to learn more about Chem 201, visit our course and lab manual web pages:

    https://blogs.reed.edu/chem201202/ (right here)
    http://blogs.reed.edu/chemistry201-202-lab-ref-manual/

    – Alan

    PS the course and lab manual web pages are still being modified (a lot) so bear with me for awhile

  • Office hour canceled for doctor’s appointment

    The office hour scheduled for Monday, Sept 23, is canceled. I have a doctor’s appointment in NE Portland at that time. I will be on campus for lab on Monday and will answer questions that you bring there. Normal office hour schedule resumes on Wednesday, Sept 25, 10:30-11:30.

  • 201 Web Site: Changes & Updates

    I’ve made a number of changes on the web site this weekend. Let me know if there’s something that you’d like to see.

    • Classes page – this replaces the old Syllabus page. Go here to find out what we are covering and when. Also go here to download learning activities, answers, and other in-class handouts. Warnings: 1. I’m still working on the schedule between class #14 (RF before Fall Break) and Thanksgiving. 2. I haven’t found all of the old links to Syllabus yet – if you see one, let me know what URL it appears on.
    • Conferences page – Go here to download conference problems and answers
    • Exams page – Go here to find exam policies, dates, old exams. The latter part of the exam schedule hasn’t been set – stay tuned.

  • Lab schedule for Week #1

    Not everyone has found a place in lab yet (see previous post), but that’s OK because we aren’t going to do any ‘wet’ experiments during the first week of classes. Here’s the plan for week #1 broken down by day and lab section:

    • Sept 2, M – Labor Day (no class)
    • Sept 3, Tu – Tu lab meets at Chemistry loading dock at 1:10 PM for fire extinguisher training. From there go inside to C209 (our lab) for the first half of a safety and lab policy meeting (starts at 1:30). Next, if you haven’t already done so, read the relevant portions of the Chemistry Safety Manual. Complete the Safety Quiz that will be distributed in lab. Sign the Safety Contract. Meet back at C209 at 3:00 to go over the Quiz and turn in your signed Safety Contract and Quiz.
    • Sept 4, W – same as Tu
    • Sept 5, Th – same as Tu
    • Sept 6, F – same as Tu, but meet at loading dock at 2:45 PM and in C209 at 3:15/4:30

    If you are enrolled in the Tu or W labs, please attend on your lab day. If you are enrolled in the M lab or if you haven’t yet found a lab, you can attend any day, but W/Th are best and Tu/F are worst.

    Wondering what is coming ahead? Check out the lab manual link and the lab calendar link (click on a blue box to see what is scheduled).

  • Not in the lab (you want)? Patience…

    61 students had signed up for lab lecture as of last Wednesday. As of today (Saturday), there are 68 lab students: 24 students in the M lab, 24 students in the Tu lab, and 14 students in the W lab (and 10 students on wait lists). We have room for 72. There should be room for everybody, but I have learned the hard way that allowing students to sign up for all of the classes they need (or want) independently of other students almost never produces a useful set of enrollments.

    I don’t have a solution for any of this yet so I am going to spend the next few days playing ‘wait and see’. Here’s what I think will happen:

    • The wait list students will come tell me their stories (why you need to take Chem 201 and why you need to be in the M/Tu lab instead of W)
    • Some students will do us all a Big Favor (really!) and switch from M or Tu labs to the W lab
    • The wait list students (and maybe others) will ask themselves some existential questions about class schedules: Do I need to take Chem 201 right now or is it something that can wait until another year? Do I need to take the course that conflicts with the W 201 lab right now or can that course wait until another year? Is there more than one way to be happy?

    In the meantime some lab periods will slip by and we will approach the Add deadline (Sept 13). Don’t worry about missing lab. We won’t start ‘wet’ experiments in Chem 201 during the first (shortened) week of classes. But that’s the subject of another post …

  • Clickers: register online

    Please obtain a clicker from the bookstore before Tuesday (last year’s clicker is fine, but it might need a new battery?) and register your clicker with this handy online form (note: Reed login required to reach the form; if you have already logged in to some other personal account, you may need to ‘switch accounts’ and log in with your Reed credentials)

    I can’t give you credit for clicker use unless your clicker has been registered.

    There will be clicker questions every day in lecture so bring your clicker to Day #1 (Tuesday/Wednesday) and every day thereafter.

  • Preregistration – Fall 2013

    Preregistration for Chem 201-202 is strongly encouraged.

    You can preregister if you have completed the prerequisites (Chem 101 & 102), or if you have received the instructor’s consent. I’m the instructor: Alan Shusterman. Send me an email or drop by my office (C408).

    Most students should register for one lecture section (TuTh 10:30-11:50 AM or WF 1:10-2:30 PM) and one lab section (MTuW 1:10-5:00 PM). If you sign up for lab, you must also sign up for the lab lecture (Th 6:40-7:30 PM).

    Some more things to consider:

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