Making a laboratory science course accessible to distance learners requires eliminating certain barriers. This paper describes one semester introductory chemistry courses for science and non-science majors that feature laboratory experiments that students can do at home, using materials readily available from local grocery and hardware stores. Courses using this approach have been offered successfully for several years at the University of Colorado at Denver, Cape Fear Community College and the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, and the laboratory experiences of the distance learners compares favorably with that of traditional students. This paper describes the important features of the distance learning courses, and provides assessment results that indicate the suitability of these experiments as replacement for traditional laboratories.

No abstract

This article briefly describes the experience of the ACS delegation from the United States to the Havana, Cuba venue of the International Congress of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering.

Reforming the General Chemistry TextbookIt was exhilarating to read your commentary on one prescription for launching "The Reformation" (J. Chem. Educ. 1997, 7 4, 484). I've voiced an opinion for some years now that the macro-to-micro connection is a viable way to make chemistry intrinsically interesting to "clients" whose curriculum forces them to enroll in introductory chemistry courses. I advocate a top-down approach wherein, for example, a printed circuit is examined initially as a macroscopic composite "solid." Then the solid would be examined with increasing magnification-the nature of the materials used to encapsulate the electronic components, the composition (and fabrication) of the component parts such as silicon wafers for integrated circuits, etc.-until one can appreciate the structure/bonding in silicon and the roll that impurities play in electronic conduction.Thanks for making the case for the macro-to-micro connection so convincingly.