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This Today’s Science for Tomorrow’s Scientists (TSTS) tutorial introduces current scientific research from Shannon Stahl’s group at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Stahl’s group works on the development and investigation of new catalysts for the selective oxidation of organic substances by molecular oxygen. The topics covered in the grades 5–8 section of the Stahl tutorial include: - The periodic table
- Transition metals
- Catalysis
- Compounds containing transition metals
- Practical applications of catalysis
The topics covered in the grades 9–12 section of the Stahl tutorial include: - The periodic table
- Transition metals
- Catalysis
- Compounds containing transition metals
- Valence electrons
- d orbitals
- Molecular oxygen
- Practical applications of catalysis
Screenshot of a Web page from the Stahl Research Tutorial for grades 9–12.
In many cases creative and tangible analogies are used to convey scientific information. For example, when discussing valence electrons in the grades 9–12 section of the tutorial, a picture of a jawbreaker is used to illustrate the Bohr model. In this analogy, each ring in the jawbreaker represents a shell in the atom (see the figure). In addition to description and pictures, there are also movies in the tutorial that help illustrate catalysis (catalase in a potato converting hydrogen peroxide to water and oxygen) and oxidation of transition metals (Jones reagent oxidizing primary and secondary alcohols). This tutorial helps middle and high school teachers to introduce organometallic chemistry research while simultaneously aligning with National Science Education Standards in the physical sciences.
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