I hope you all are having a great first full weekend of the term. Hopefully you have the chance to maybe relax a bit, hit the gym, do some laundry, and of course hopefully you have some fun! I’m sure many of you have done some studying too. I have a few ideas for goals you can set over throughout the semester and how you can use the weekends to help reach these goals.
One goal I wouldn’t recommend setting is that you simply read the chapter we covered in one sitting from start to finish or that you do every single homework problem in the book using the internet as a resource. This isn’t Harry Potter, it’s way to boring and probably too complicated for that to make much sense. And the goal of doing homework should practicing solving those problems, not just getting the answer. So try to do most of your homework problems without any outside resources.
Goal 1: Make sure you understand the sample exercise problems from the sections covered in the past week. So this would be all of the chapter 1 sample exercises. If you are stuck on these, use those examples to help guide some reading of the chapter so you can understand those problems. Keep your focus on understanding, not necessarily memorizing.
Goal 2: Be able to solve the practice exercise problems. Most sample exercises in the 13th edition text are followed up with two questions, one is multiple choice and the other is short answer. The short answer questions are all answered in the back of the book. I will work on posting answers on Carmen to the multiple choice problems next week and I will get those up sooner for all other covered chapters so you can check those answers if you wish.
Goal 3: Be able to solve most of the problems from the end-of-chapter problems. I would focus most of your attention on the items highlighted in lecture, so for chapter 1 that would be sig figs, unit conversions, and dimensional analysis. If you get stuck on a problem, use that to either go re-read something if the issue seems to be understanding the content or try a simpler problem if you are stuck on applying what you know.
Since most of you have had some high school chemistry, I think doing a light skimming and then trying goal 3 is a great way to see how much work you truly need to do in a particular chapter. Just remember, all of the covered content from a chapter and just about any kind of question that can be answered using that info will be fair game for exams in the course.
One last reminder is to spend a few moments skimming and looking at topics in chapter 2. Chapter 2 starts off with some historical aspects of how modern atomic theory was developed. I think we all know that modern atomic theory is that atoms are arranged where each atom contains a positively charged nucleus containing protons and neutrons with very light, negatively-charged electrons spinning around the nucleus in what is described as electron clouds. We then move on to isotopes, atomic weights, the periodic table, and molecules/compounds. We finish the chapter with an introduction to several different types of compounds and systematic ways name them through nomenclature rules. We will begin chapter 2 following a couple sig fig examples Monday morning.
A reminder for the upcoming week: The first homework assignment required for credit will open Monday at about 9:00 am and it you must complete the assignment by 11:55 pm this Thursday evening. Keep in mind you only get 2 hours to complete the assignment and the timer begins the moment you start the assignment (and the timer continues even if you log out of Sapling). Make sure your browser works (especially for Safari and IE users) before hand. Recitations this week will discuss topics from chapter 1, so you might benefit from seeing recitation this week prior to do the assignment. The first assignment covers chapter 1 and you can see the HW schedule in the study guide post or on Carmen under pages. You also have your first pre-lab due this week before you go to your lab this week. Make sure you are all set on the lab policies. Email your lab TA and/or visit the Learning Resource Center in CE170 for help if needed. Finally, make sure you complete the Carmen quizzes on academic misconduct and lab safety by their deadlines.
Enjoy the rest of the weekend!
Dr. Kroner