News from Journal House

Plan Ahead: Earth Day 2007 Issue

The tradition continues. The February 2007 issue of the Journal will feature articles related to Earth Day and this year’s theme: “Recycling—Chemistry Can!” Here is a preview of the special theme-related articles that the February 2007 issue of JCE will contain. Mark your calendar to look for the February 2007 issue in mid-January, in plenty of time to prepare to celebrate Earth Day on April 22, 2007.

• JCE Resources for Chemistry and Recycling, another useful, popular, illustrated Resource Paper by Erica Jacobsen that describes previously published JCE articles related to the Earth Day theme
• Garbage Juice: Waste Management and Leachate Generation, a JCE Classroom Activity by Jenna R. Jambeck and Jean M. Andino
• Rudolph Diesel Meets the Soybean, by Angela King
• Rubber Reclamation, a From Past Issues feature column, by Kitty Williams
• News from Online, by Erich Uffelman
• Sorting Recycled Trash: An Activity for Earth Day 2007, by Mary Harris and Hal Harris

In addition, there will be featured articles related to the Earth Day theme. Also, the American Chemical Society will have a wide range of resources, events, and products connected with Earth Day. The ACS Web site has more information (accessed Oct 2006).

Scanned Issues Available Back to 1955

Good news!

If you are looking for past issues of the Journal, the full text of back issues—now back to 1955—is available at JCE Online, delivered to you as PDF files. Here is what this continuing project now offers:

• Issues of the Journal available atJCE Online start with the January 1955 issue.
• The full text of articles from 1955 to the present are provided as PDF files.
• Browsing of issues starts with the January 1970 issue.
• To locate articles from 1955 through 1969, please use the JCE Index.
• You can also use the Past Issues link to browse issues from 1970 to present.

Back Issues Included with All Subscriptions

Back issues are included with your subscription with no additional charge—another good reason to subscribe to JCE today. You can do so as easily as pointing your WWW browser to the JCE Online Store.

Scanning and digitizing efforts continue, so expect further expansion of back issue offerings.

JCE Collaborates in ChemEd Digital Library

The JCE is a major partner with the ACS Education Division and the ChemCollective project at Carnegie-Mellon University on the ChemEd Digital Library, a Pathways project in the National Science Digital Library (NSDL; accessed Oct 2006). The NSDL is a NSF-supported portal into the Web for educational materials in all science, technology, engineering, and mathematics disciplines.

As stated by Lee Zia, a program officer in the National Science Foundation (NSF) Division of Undergraduate Education, the purpose of the NSDL is to provide “broad access to a rich, reliable, and authoritative collection of interactive learning and teaching resources and associated services in a digital environment” and to “encourage and sustain continual improvements in the quality of STEM education for all students, and serve as a resource for lifelong learning”.

The ChemEd Digital Library is one of 11 Pathways projects in the NSDL. The Pathways projects are the principal means by which the NSDL’s collections are connected with teachers and students in a broad range of STEM disciplines. In addition to the ChemEd Digital Library, these ten other Pathways projects are developing portals, new materials, and communities of developers and users with support from a variety of disciplines:

• Biological Sciences—BEN, AAAS
• Computational Science—Shodor Foundation
• Engineering—TeachEngineering, University of Colorado
• Engineering—National Engineering Education Delivery System, University of California, Berkeley
• Materials Science—MatDL, Kent State University
• Mathematical Sciences—Math Gateway, MAA
• Physics and Astronomy—ComPADRE, AAPT
• Middle School—Digital Library Projects, Ohio State University
• Multimedia Resources—Teachers Domain, WGBH
• Two-Year Colleges—AMSER, University of Wisconsin–Madison

The ChemEd Digital Library is described in more detail in this month’s editorial. Our budget from the NSF includes support for faculty fellows to visit the University of Wisconsin–Madison for periods of a month to a semester to work on developing communities of users, developers, and evaluators of digital resources. This is a particularly good opportunity to spend a sabbatical leave working on a project that can make a real difference in chemical education.

If you are interested in participating in this project, contact John Moore. Fellows could begin work as early as the spring semester of 2007.

Awards Announced

Holme Receives 2006 ACS Volunteer Service Award

Thomas A. Holme of the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee is this year’s recipient of the Great Lakes Regional Award for Volunteer Service to the American Chemical Society. The award is given in recognition of the volunteer efforts of an individual who has served the ACS, contributing significantly to the goals and objectives of the Society.

Holme’s previous ACS Awards include the Helen Free Award for Public Outreach, the Milwaukee Section Award, and an ACS ChemLuminary Award for his efforts organizing National Chemistry Week (NCW) activities for high school students. Holme currently serves as the General Chair of the Great Lakes Regional Meeting in addition to serving as a Councilor from the Milwaukee section. He has conducted ten tours for the ACS Speakers Service since 1998 and is at present the Director of the ACS Exams Institute, which is responsible for coordinating the distribution and grading of the Chemistry Olympiad Program in addition to overseeing the production of ACS Exams.

Heinz Awards Announced

The Heinz Family Foundation has announced the five recipients of the 12th annual Heinz Awards: a photographer, chemist, physician, attorney, and a biologist. Each will receive a prize of $250,000. The awardee in the Environment category is the chemist Paul Anastas, founder of the Green Chemistry Institute (which merged with the American Chemical Society in 2001).

Anastas began to formulate his broad vision for change in the early 1990s while serving at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Recognizing that wastes released into the environment represent an economic investment for manufacturers, he sought to redesign chemical processes and products at the molecular level, thereby eliminating potential wastes before they are ever produced. He was instrumental in establishing the Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award in 1996, and set out the “Twelve Principles of Green Chemistry” in his book (co-authored with John Warner), Green Chemistry, Theory and Practice.

Additional information about the Heinz Awards is available online (accessed Oct 2006).

Chemical Heritage Foundation Awards Neville Prize

The Chemical Heritage Foundation (CHF) has honored the book, The Enlightened Joseph Priestley: A Study of His Life and Works from 1773 to 1804 by Robert E. Schofield with its first annual Roy G. Neville Prize in Bibliography or Biography. The work is the second volume of Schofield’s definitive biography of Priestley. The Neville Prize, established in 2006, is presented annually by CHF to recognize an outstanding monograph in the areas of the chemical and molecular sciences. The objective of the prize is to encourage emulation, inspire achievement, and promote public understanding of modern sciences, industries, and economies.

Award Deadlines

2007 Pittsburgh Conference College Grant Program

The Pittsburgh Conference and its sponsoring societies, the Society for Analytical Chemists of Pittsburgh (SACP) and The Spectroscopy Society of Pittsburgh (SSP) announce the 2007 Pittsburgh Conference Memorial National College Grants Program, which serves as a memorial to deceased members of the Pittsburgh Conference Committee by promoting excellence in science education. Through the program, small colleges can enhance their science curricula through grants to purchase equipment and course materials. The maximum funds available for any 2006 grant is $9000. In 2007, at least $115,000 is available for about 12 of these awards. The amount requested in each proposal may not exceed $10,000.

The deadline for receipt of completed applications and proposals is December 1, 2006. Copies of these documents and some additional information are available at the Pittsburgh Conference Web site (accessed Oct 2006). For additional information, contact Daniel A. Wilson, The Pittsburgh Conference—PCNMCG, 300 Penn Center Blvd., Suite 332, Pittsburgh, PA 15235-5503; phone: 412/825-3220, ext. 218; fax: 412/825-3224. Announcement of the awards will be made during February 2007.

Courses, Seminars, Meetings, Opportunities

C₃S Now Part of DivCHED

The College Chemistry Consultants Service (C₃S) consists of independent chemistry educators and professionals committed to promoting positive change in chemistry education. Upon request, C₃S consultants offer advice to academic institutions nationwide. The goal of C₃S is to help two- and four-year colleges and universities provide their students with quality science education.

C₃S is now housed within the ACS Division of Chemical Education. With a wide consultant base and competitive rates, many institutions utilize C₃S to conduct departmental reviews on a regular basis or specialized visits on:

• Recruitment and retention
• Curricular development
• Departmental development
• Establishing and maintaining partnerships
• Facilities
• Funding and grant proposals
• Periodic program review evaluations
• Safe laboratory design
• Preparations for approval by CPT and CTPAS
• Articulation issues

Institutions that use C₃S find the visits and follow-up reports useful and helpful. Throughout its history, C₃S has had many success stories. As a result of C₃S visits, chemistry departments have designed safer laboratories, prepared for approval by the ACS Committee on Professional Training (CPT), and written successful grant proposals. Some departments have used consultant reports to justify obtaining additional funds from the college administration for a variety of projects and programs. To learn more about C3S and its consultants go to the Web site (accessed Oct 2006). This Web site includes a list of active consultants and their specialties, information about costs, guidance for preparing for a visit as well as contact information.

Forgotten Genius: NOVA Film on Percy Julian

Forgotten Genius is a special two-hour NOVA television presentation that will premier nationally on the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) in February 2007. The film presents the remarkable life story of Percy Julian, one of the great African American scientists of the 20th century. Julian was the grandson of Alabama slaves; he won worldwide acclaim for his work in organic chemistry by discovering a way to turn soybeans into synthetic steroids on an industrial scale. His innovative approach to chemistry helped to make drugs like cortisone widely available to millions. Find a program preview and more information (accessed Oct 2006).

5th International Conference on the History of Chemistry: Chemistry, Technology, and Society

The 5th International Conference on the History of Chemistry, organized by the Working Party (WP) on History of Chemistry of the European Association for Chemical and Molecular Sciences (EuCheMS) (formerly Federation of European Chemical Societies (FECS)), was held in Estoril and Lisbon, Portugal, in September 2005. Under the large umbrella of the theme, “Chemistry, Technology, and Society”, this conference mainly focused on three topics, which have all attracted public and scholarly attention in recent years. By discussing the cultural and material influences on chemistry, as well as the practical and cultural impacts of this discipline, the conference aimed at improving our understanding of the place of chemistry in its technological and social environments.

The main topics of the conference were:

• The material culture of chemistry: laboratory practices and instruments
• Applied chemistry: the chemical industry, military technologies, technological processes, agricultural and food chemistry, and the environment
• The popularization of chemistry: practices, spaces, audiences
• Portuguese chemistry

The previous conference also organized by the WP took place in Budapest in September 2003 on “Communication in chemistry in Europe, across borders and across generations”. A major aim of these conferences organized by the WP is to facilitate communication between historically interested chemists and historians of chemistry from all over Europe. More information is available at the conference Web site (accessed Oct 2006).

Chemistry Olympiad Mentors Wanted !

The U.S. National Chemistry Olympiad invites high school and college educators to apply for a position as mentor for the U.S. National Chemistry Olympiad program. (Preference will be given to high school teachers.) Duties during the three-year term include helping to conduct the national study camp for high school students held at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado during mid-June 2008, 2009, and 2010. Generally, in their second and third year, mentors accompany four U.S. student competitors to the International Chemistry Olympiad (IChO). During the competition, the mentors will serve as members of the IChO Jury. The 2009 and 2010 IChO events are scheduled to be held in England and Japan, respectively. The ACS sponsors the U.S. National Chemistry Olympiad program.

Most students at the study camp have completed advanced placement chemistry or the equivalent; therefore instruction at the camp is well beyond the level of high school general chemistry courses. The curriculum also includes considerable laboratory work.

Successful applicants are expected to have background in one or more of the areas of organic, inorganic, analytical, physical, or biochemistry with classroom experience; they should also demonstrate involvement with students in special projects or activities. Applicants must be prepared to make a three-year time commitment as outlined above. ACS pays all expenses and travel costs, as well as an honorarium.

Interested individuals may obtain an application form (accessed Oct 2006) or contact Margaret Thatcher, Senior Program Associate, U.S. National Chemistry Olympiad Program, American Chemical Society, 1155 Sixteenth St., NW, Washington, DC 20036; phone: 202/872-6328. The deadline for completed applications is January 29, 2007. Applicants must also arrange to have three letters of reference forwarded to Cecilia Hernandez at the above address by February 7, 2007; for more information, please telephone Cecilia Hernandez at (202) 872-6169.

Online Course on Incorporating Nanoscience

Are you interested in learning about nanoscience and how to incorporate it into your current curricula? The University of Wisconsin–Madison is offering an eight-week online course about nanoscience that starts January 22, 2007.

Specifically geared towards high school or middle school science teachers, the course shows teachers how to bring nanoscience into classrooms and touches on a broad variety of fascinating subjects. The course offers instructors materials and suggested activities for use with students. Teachers may choose to receive two hours of graduate credit for completing the course. Here is a typical student reaction to a the course: “I am a middle school science teacher…with a so-so background in chemistry…and no background in nanotechnology. I learned so much, and I can see ways that I can teach nanotech concepts to my 8th graders through my curriculum”. For more information, contact Janice Hall 608/262-8647.

Proposal Deadlines National Science Foundation Division of Undergraduate Education (DUE) The following NSF deadlines have been established or are anticipated. Course, Curriculum and Lab Improvement (CCLI) Full Proposals, Phase 2 and 3: January 10, 2007 Discovery Research K–12 (DR-K12) Preliminary and Full Proposal dates vary depending on focus; see NSF EHR Web site for details Experimental Program to Stimulate Competative Research: Workshop Opportunities (EPS) Full Proposals: accepted any time Historically Black Colleges and Universities Undergraduate Program (HBCU-UP) Full Proposals: December 15, 2006 Informal Science Education (ISE) Full Proposals: December 14, 2006 Preliminary Proposals: March 8, 2007 Full Proposals: June 21, 2007 Major Research Instrumentation Program (MRI) Full Proposals: January 25, 2007 Partnerships for International Research and Education (PIRE) Full Proposals (by invitation only): February 28, 2007 Presidential Awards for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring Full Proposals: March 6, 2007 Research and Evaluation on Education in Science and Engineering (REESE) Full Proposals: January 29, 2007 Official deadline dates for proposals will be specified in the new program solicitation for each program, to be published at least three months before the relevant deadline date. Consult NSF Education and Human Resources (EHR), Division of Undergraduate Education for the most up-to-date listings and guidelines; phone: 703/292-8670; email. The Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation, Inc. Camille Dreyfus Teacher–Scholar Awards Program: Janury 10, 2007 [revised] Faculty Start-Up Award Program: May 10, 2007 Henry Dreyfus Teacher–Scholar Awards Program: June 28, 2007 New Faculty Awards Program: May 10, 2007 Postdoctoral Program in Environmental Chemistry: May 24, 2007 Senior Scientist Mentor Program: Completed Proposals: October 4, 2007 Special Grant Program in the Chemical Sciences: Preliminary Proposals: June 7, 2007 Completed Proposals: August 23, 2007 Further information and confirmation of the above deadlines may be obtained from The Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation, Inc., 555 Madison Avenue, Suite 1305, New York, NY 10022-3301; phone: 212/753-1760; email. Research Corporation Cottrell College Science Awards: May 15 and November 15 Cottrell Scholar Awards: September 1 Research Innovation Awards: suspended 2004-2006 Research Opportunity Awards: May 1 and October 1 Special opportunities in Science Awards: suspended 2006-2008. Further information may be obtained from Research Corporation, 4703 East Camp Lowell Drive, Suite 201, Tucson, AZ 85712; phone: 520/571-1111; fax: 520/571-1119; email.