Chem 201 Archive – Alan Shusterman

Category: Exams

  • Exam #3 results

    I posted answer keys for Homework #7 and for Exam #3 over
    the weekend. I have also finished grading Exam #3 and I tried to hand back as
    many exams as I could during class today. If you didn't receive your exam, stop by
    Kathy Kennedy's office (Rm. 303) to pick it up. I am still reading homework assignments (and
    lab reports) so more paper will come your way on Wednesday. (more…)

  • Q&A session for Exam #3

    I will answer your questions on the material in chapters 1-9 on Tuesday, 6-7 PM, in Eliot 314.

    By the way, I will be running for the door immediately afterwards to make it to an off-campus appointment at 7:30 so please don’t wait until afterwards to ask special questions.

  • Final exam '09 date/time set

    I just noticed that the Registrar’s Office has posted dates and times for final exams. The final exam in this class will start at 6 PM on Tuesday, Dec 15 in the Psych auditorium and adjoining rooms. You can download the complete final exam schedule here.

  • Schedule changes: Exam #3, HW #6, Syllabus

    Since no strong objections were raised to the schedule changes that I had proposed, I have made the following changes for the upcoming exam, homework and classes (all of the appropriate online schedules have been updated to reflect these chanes):

    Exam #3 – Thursday, Nov 19, in conference. Please attend conference at your normal time and location. Bring a model kit. Keep in mind that some students may have already taken the exam or will be taking the exam later than you, so please do not blurt out anything about the exam and do not discuss the exam publicly until 2 PM.

    HW #6 – out late Monday, Nov 9; due Monday, Nov 16, noon; returned Wednesday, Nov 18, 9 AM.

    Syllabus – I am gaining an extra lecture day on Monday, Nov 16 and this will affect the lecture schedule for the rest of the term. I will start lecturing on Chapter 10 on Monday, Nov 16. There will be two additional lectures on Chapter 10 on Wednesday, Nov 18 (note that these first two lectures are coming before exam #3) and on Friday, Nov 20. There will also be a lab lecture on Thursday, Nov 19.

  • URGENT – Change schedule for Exam #3 ???

    I’ve been looking over Chapter #9 and the schedule for the next two weeks
    and I’m kicking around two options in my mind.

    Option #1
    Exam #3 would still be on Monday, November 16. However, if the exam were
    to be held on this day, I would abbreviate the exam’s coverage of
    chapter 9 topics slightly (and these topics would appear on the final
    exam instead). The “abbreviated” exam would not include sections
    9.6-9.8, but would include 9.1-9.5 which is the bulk of the chapter.

    Option #2

    Exam #3 would be moved to Thursday, November 19, i.e., you would take
    the exam during your conference hour and in your conference room. The
    exam would cover all of Chapter 9 right through section 9.8. To support
    this, the next homework assignment would also cover all of chapter 9 and
    the due date would be extended. Monday, November 16 would just be a normal lecture (finishing chapter
    9?, starting Chapter 10).

    Frankly, option #2 is a much more sensible way to proceed (but it has
    never occurred to me before to use conference time in this way). I would
    like to follow option #2, but because this is a major schedule change, I
    would like to consult with the class first. Please let me know ASAP if
    you have any objections to option #2.

  • Exam #2 results

    Exam #2 has been graded and is available for you to pick up in Kathy Kennedy’s office.

    Kathy will be out of the office on Th-F during Fall Break so please stop by early in the week if you want your exam back. If you would like to meet with me, I will be here the rest of Monday afternoon and most of the day on Tuesday. I will be out of town from W-Su.
    (more…)

  • What's on deck for Fall '09?

    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. If you have nothing better to do, check back every few days. [last changes posted 8/30/09, see below]

    Pre-registration for fall

    • You must complete the pre-requisites for Chem 201 before you can pre-register. That means if you took intro chem (the equivalent of Chem 101/102, lecture + lab) at another school this summer, you need to provide evidence of satisfactory completion of these courses to Reed’s Registrar’s Office before SOLAR will allow you to pre-register for Chem 201. This requirement may create some difficulties for summer students at PSU (and possibly elsewhere) because the PSU summer term ends on Wed, Aug 26 and pre-registration at Reed is Fri, Aug 28. If you bring me a signed note on Th-F, Aug 27-28, from your PSU chemistry instructor (email is also acceptable) that says you have completed PSU Chem 221/222/223 with grades of C- or better, I will allow you to pre-register for Chem 201 by overriding SOLAR. [posted 8/10/09]


    Changes

    Summer reading

    • “The Promise of a Cure: 20 Years and Counting”. The inability of gene therapy to deliver a treatment for cystic fibrosis and the role of conventional (small organic molecule) treatments is reviewed in this interesting, non-technical article (Science, 19 June 2009, 324, 1504-1507, listen to podcast interview with author Jennifer Couzin-Frankel).
    • “Antibiotics in Nature: Beyond Biological Warfare”. Scientists are challenging the conventional paradigm that fungi and bacteria use antibiotic molecules to kill off microbial competitors. According to these scientists, antibiotics could be used for communication and metabolism (Science, 26 June 2009, 324, 1637-1639).