Administrative Issues Lecture 1a Administrative Issues
Course Overview I Why do students take chemistry labs? Most lecture courses provide a theoretical background in general and in organic chemistry but usually do not consider the practical aspects of the experiment much Conducting an experiment in lab is often times much more complicated than chemistry conducted on paper because many details have a significant impact on the overall outcome of the experiment Performing an actual experiment in the lab is a learning experience on how to combine many theoretical and practical aspects together (i.e., theory of the reaction, Le Châtelier Principle, polarity, acidity, kinetics, etc.)
Course Overview II Experiments and Activities Meeting 1-8: Synthesis of Jacobsen’s Catalyst and Chiral Epoxidation of an Unknown Alkene
Course Overview III Experiments and Activities Meeting 9-11: Synthesis of Lidocaine Meeting 12-14: Synthesis of Methyl m-nitrobenzoate Meeting 15-18: Synthesis of Acetyl ferrocene and Ferrocene derivatives
Administrative Issues Make sure that you arrive on time to your first in-lab meeting because if you are more than 15 minutes late, you will lose your spot in the course. Excuses do not count later on i.e., “I did not think that the lab meets during meeting 1” or “I did not find the lab”! (Hint: Only the elevator in the east wing goes all the way up to the 6th floor!) Wait-listed students will be accommodated if spaces become available during the first meeting of the section: chemistry> biochemistry> other majors >> extension students, priority in within a group will be given to seniority If the student is added to the roster, the instructor will report the student to the department to been enrolled (usually at the end of the first week and not on the same day!)
Textbooks/Readers Course reader bundle (= main reader (purple), Survival Kit reader (=SKR, orange), exam collection (light purple), all readers underwent revisions over the summer) is available from Course Reader Materials (1081 Westwood Blvd) for $60. It is highly advisable to have the latest version (Winter 2015) because this is the reference for the experiments, the quizzes and the final exam. Recommended: Mohrig et al., Techniques in Organic Chemistry (online: $33.99 for a 360 day subscription for the 3rd edition via coursesmart), most students usually have a copy already if they were enrolled in Chem 30BL recently Organic textbook for reference i.e., Brown and Foote, Mc Murry, Wade, Vollhardt and Schore, etc.
Preparation for in-lab meeting Pre-lab: title, purpose, introduction, balanced chemical equations, detailed procedure, safety information of all chemicals used (review the MSDS for each compound used in the experiment), spectroscopic information (Xerox copy if available, if not the numbers will do fine as well), answers to pre-lab questions (posted on course website), a sample pre-lab can be found on page 9 in Survival Kit Reader (=SKR) Consult the appropriate reading assignments to get a better in-depth understanding of the material. It could not hurt to review the techniques used in the project as well before entering the lab Bottom line: The better you understand what you are about to do, the easier it will be in the lab. If you put in the time beforehand, you will be less stressed in the lab. Copying reports from friends or room mates, etc. might safe time, but it will show in the end (=final exam), where many of these students have experienced a Waterloo.
Grades In-lecture quiz (20 points each, seven total, schedule to be announced, lowest score dropped) Pre-lab (5 points) and post-lab (5 points, no post-lab questions!) Formal report for epoxidation project (20 points draft (due: January 23, 2015 at 4:30 pm), 60 point final version (due: February 6, 2015 at 4:30 pm) Proposal and oral presentation for ferrocene project (20 points each) Product evaluations (3*20 points=60 points) TA/Instructor evaluation (10 points per meeting, average student 7-8 points) Lab notebook (20 points max, due immediately after final exam) Final Exam (200 points, March 18, 2014, 11:30-2:30 pm), no make-up exam Bottom line: Both the in-lab portion and the final exam have to be passed to pass the course. In order to get a high grade in the course, the student has to perform very well in both portions, not just in one portion.
Instructor Office: Young Hall 3077E Office hours: M-F 10-11 am and M 3-4 pm in YH 3077 or by appointment (please do not schedule an appointment before 8 am or after 4:30 pm, if you do make an appointment, make sure to show up on time!) Email: bacher@chem.ucla.edu Course website: www.chem.ucla.edu/~bacher (Note that the instructor does not use the CCLE website!) Course discussion board: www.piazza.com/ucla/winter2015/chem30cl The course discussion board has to be used for general chemistry questions only. This means that you cannot post homework questions! Sign up for Scifinder before the first meeting