SCH-1011-215
GENERAL & ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY I FALL
2009
INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Joe Lanzafame
Office: 08-A256
Phone: x5-7471 E-Mail:
jmlsch@rit.edu
Web Site: www.chemgod.com
Office
Hours: MTR 10:00-11:00 a.m., F 9:00-11:00 a.m. or by appointment.
TEXTS: Nivaldo Tro, Chemistry: A Molecular Approach
COURSE
OUTLINE:
Objective: Present college chemistry as a science based
on empirical evidence that is placed into the context of conceptual, visual and
mathematical models. Students will learn the concepts, symbolism and
fundamental tools of chemistry necessary to carry on a discussion of chemistry.
Emphasis will be placed on the relationship between atomic structure, chemical
bonds and the transformation of these bonds through chemical reactions.
Throughout the course you will gain some important skills. These include:
·
Dimensional analysis & unit conversion
·
Basics of chemical nomenclature
·
Balancing chemical equations
·
Solving limiting reagent problems
·
Chemical logic – Qualitative Analysis
·
Use of the Periodic Table to predict behavior
·
Working with moles, molar mass, and molarity
Schedule: Class will meet four times a week, 3 lectures
and 1 recitation session (NOTE: Your recitation instructor may be different.)
In addition, all students should be registered for the 1-credit laboratory
course, Chemical Principles I (1011-205) which meets for one 3-hour session each
week. The lab is independent of the
course and graded separately.
Lecture notes will be available on
the web site for the course.
Recitations will be held weekly. Topics
covered during recitation will
appear on the hourly exams. Topics and readings for the recitation sessions are
provided in the schedule given below. Recitations will be used to provide
individual attention, particularly in clarifying the more quantitative elements
of the course.
Exam dates will be finalized later. Tentative schedule
Exam #1 week of 9/21/09
Exam #2 week of 10/19/09
Exam
#3 week of 11/02/09
Final Exam (during finals’ week)
COURSE
ASSESSMENT:
Exams
(3 hourly + 1 final) : 400 points
Homework/Attendance: 100 points
Weekly
Quizzes (+review homework): 100 points
Total
available points: 600 points
DROPPED
-100 points
Your
grade out of: 500 points
Your progress through the course
will be assessed using exams, homework/quizzes, and in-class responses. Three
exams will be given throughout the quarter, during weeks 4, 7 and 9 and one
Final (finals week). Each exam will account for 100 points. You will also be
assessed based on weekly homework/quizzes. The cumulative homework/quiz score
will account for 100 points. There is
also 100 points in online homework and attendance. I WILL DROP THE LOWEST OF: exam, total quiz
grade, homework attendance grade. In
other words, if you do well on the quizzes and homework/attendance but poorly
on one of the exams, I will drop the exam grade. If your CUMULATIVE quiz grades aren’t good
but your exams are, I will drop the quiz grades.
The
final grade for the course will be based roughly on the scale given below.
Points Grade
450
or better A
400
– 449 B
350
– 399 C
300
– 349 D
299
or below F
Homework/Attendance: Homework will be collected through the www.masteringchemistry.com
website. The log-in information came
with your textbook. The course ID for
this particular class is “CHEM215FALL2009”.
Homework assignments are assigned on a daily basis. There is a pre-class and a post-class
assignment for each lecture (except exams and review days). The problems come directly from the
even-numbered questions in your text.
There is a corresponding odd-numbered question that is very similar and
has the answer in the Appendix at the back of the book.
These problem
sets will help you understand my emphasis in the course. More importantly, the
homework will guide you in the practice of chemistry. Practice is crucial to
perform well in a quantitative, problem-oriented discipline such as chemistry. The schedule of topics is laid out in the
accompanying “course schedule” and includes reading assignments from the book
that correlate to the problems. Homework
can be COLLABORATED UPON, so you may work in teams.
Each pre-class assignment is due by midnight of the
day before class. Each Tuesday
post-class assignment is due by Friday midnight. Each Thursday post-class assignment is due by
Monday midnight before the following class.
The total number of problems/points on the
electronic homework is 80 points.
I will also be using the “clickers” to take daily
attendance worth another 20 points, for a total of 100 homework/attendance
points. It should be EASY to get 80-90
of these points and it would be a shame to throw them away for either not doing
the assignments or skipping class.
BONUS CLICKER POINTS: There will also be questions asked in class
for which you will get bonus points (not included in the 500 points
above). I expect that there will be
20-30 such opportunities during the semester and these just get added to your
grade.
IT IS POSSIBLE FOR ONE PERSON TO OPERATE MULTIPLE
CLICKERS, so you could click-in for your friends while they are sleeping. This would constitute fraud and if I catch
anyone with more than 1 clicker in class, I will eliminate all attendance
points and clicker points for the entire semester for all parties
involved. There is no leniency for this
and the penalty will attach to the FIRST such incident. (Losing the attendance points will likely
result in a 1 letter grade penalty at the end of the quarter.) A second incident will result in an automatic
“F” for the entire course and possibly referral to the student Judicial Board
for censure.
Weekly quizzes: Weekly quizzes will be electronic and found
under “quizzes” on “myCourses”. There will be 7 weekly quizzes, one each week
in which there is NOT an exam. During
exam weeks, instead of an electronic quiz, there will be a REVIEW HOMEWORK. QUIZZES MAY NOT BE COLLABORATED UPON IN ANY
WAY WITH ANYONE. Homework is, as always,
collaborative. Quizzes will be due by
Friday at 8 p.m. every week.
Examinations: There will be three hourly examinations
during the 10-week quarter and 1 final exam. These examinations will be
cumulative, although the emphasis will be on material that has yet to appear on
an exam. Each exam will count 100 points toward your course grade. There will be no make-ups for missed exams
during the quarter unless by PRIOR permission from me. Missed exams will
count as a 0. However, the lowest grade is being dropped.
You should bring a scientific
calculator and extra pencils (pens). The use of laptops and headsets will not
be permitted during an exam. The use of cell phones is discouraged in class. If
you have to be reached, set your phone on vibrate; if an important call comes
through, quietly exit the room to answer the call.
All exams are closed-book,
closed-note, but you may bring a single sheet of 8-1/2x11 paper with any
algebraic formulas or other information that you want. All physical constants or tables of constants
and a periodic table will be provided to you for each exam.
Plagiarism or cheating in any form
will not be tolerated in the course. Any case of plagiarism or cheating will
result in an automatic grade of zero for the exam, and a memo documenting the
event will be sent to the student’s department. A second occurrence will result
in a grade of “F” for the course and possible disciplinary action from the
institution.