About Mark Alber

"My own interest in this area dates back to my time as an undergraduate when I found myself equally drawn to chemistry and English literature. As I went back and forth between the classes I couldn't help but compare the two fields and look for connections between them. Since the school I attended did not allow a double major, I ultimately chose a degree in chemistry. After working in the chemical industry for several years and moving from industry to teaching, I went back to school and got a graduate degree in English. For the past twenty years I have taught science in both public and private schools, affluent and inner city, in this country and abroad. Through it all I have continued to look for connections between chemistry and the rest of the world."

Articles

Mission Statement

This new column features interdisciplinary connections between chemistry and areas such as art, literature, and history. Chemistry-oriented articles describing successful and innovative approaches to interdisciplinary connections will meet a need that has not been addressed previously through a feature column. The objectives for developing interdisciplinary connections are (i) to reach students who exhibit an interest in the arts and humanities but not in science and (ii) to help students who primarily are interested in science to understand that discovery and technological innovation are influenced by the culture of the time and place. Accounts of collaboration of chemistry teachers with teachers in other disciplines are especially encouraged. Approaches taken should be described in sufficient detail that readers could duplicate them, with or without modification, in their teaching situations. The results obtained from classroom implementation by the authors should be included in the manuscript.

Articles Published

Sir Humphry Davy and Frankenstein by Charles J. Thoman; J. Chem. Educ. 1998, 75, p495. (April 1998)

Philosophy of Chemistry--A New Interdisciplinary Field? by Eric R. Scerri; J. Chem. Educ. 2000, 77, p522. (April 2000)

Creative Writing and Chemistry by Mark Alber; J. Chem. Educ. 2001, 78, p478. (April 2001)

The Art and Science of Light. An Interdisciplinary Teaching and Learning Experience by A. M. R. P. Bopegedera; J. Chem. Educ. 2005, 82, p55. (Jan 2005)

Translating a Linguistic Understanding of Chemistry to Outcome Achievement and Interdisciplinary Relevance in the Introductory Classroom by Joseph M. Nemeth; J. Chem Educ. 2006, 82, p592. (Apr 2006)

Report on an Interdisciplinary Seminar in the Philosophy of Chemistry by Steven Gimbel and Michael Wedlock; J. Chem. Educ. 2006, 82, p880. (Jun 2006)

Color Science, a Course for Nonscience Majors by Maria C. Gelabert; J. Chem Educ. 2006, 82, p1155. (Aug 2006)

Peer Review of Chemistry Journal Articles: Collaboration across Disciplines by Bozena Barbara Widanski and Debra Courtright-Nash; J. Chem Educ. 2006, 82, p1788. (Dec 2006)

Interdisciplinary Educational Collaborations: Chemistry and Computer Science by Ronald S. Haines, Daniel T. Woo, Benjamin T. Hudson, Joji C. Mori, Evey S. M. Ngan, and Wing-Yee Pak; J. Chem Educ. 2007, 83, p967. (Jun 2007)

Chemistry, Poetry, and Artistic Illustration: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Teaching and Promoting Chemistry by Ping Y. Furlan, Herbert Kitson, and Cynthia Andes; p1625 (Oct 2007).