Course Syllabus

CHEM 1015 Introductory Chemistry Laboratory

Course Description

This is a hands-on laboratory experience that accompanies the CHEM 1010 course. It is designed to give students a feel for basic laboratory equipment and measurement. It also provides reinforcement of the concepts covered in the class. The lab also enables students to visualize many concepts and experiments discussed in class.

Justification

This course is offered by chemistry departments at most institutions in the state and may transfer to them. This course fulfills the Physical Science Lab General Education requirement. Science is the systematic inquiry into natural phenomena, organizing and condensing those observations into testable models and hypotheses, theories or laws. The success and credibility of science is anchored in the willingness of scientists to: 1) expose their ideas and results to independent testing and replication by other scientists which requires the complete and open exchange of data, procedures, and materials; 2) abandon or modify accepted conclusions when confronted with more complete or reliable experimental evidence. Adherence to these principles provides a mechanism for self-correction that is the foundation of the credibility of science. (Adapted from a statement by the Panel on Public Affairs of the American Physical Society which was endorsed by the Executive Board of the American Association of Physics Teachers in 1999.)

General Education Knowledge Area Outcomes

1. Students will demonstrate the ability to apply the concepts of the scientific method, chemical stoichiometry, gas laws and solution chemistry to draw conclusions related to their laboratory projects. These laboratory projects relate to topics such as: how soap functions, distillation, and combustion. Students will be evaluated through written lab reports and the lab final.  Students will demonstrate the ability to apply the concepts of the scientific method, chemical stoichiometry, gas laws and solution chemistry to draw conclusions related to their laboratory projects. These laboratory projects relate to topics such as: how soap functions, distillation, and combustion. Students will be evaluated through written lab reports and the lab final.

Course Content

Chemistry 1015 is an introduction to General that includes the following major laboratory experiments: Safety in the Chemical Laboratory, Measurements, Density, Chemical Changes, Double Displacement Reactions, Gas Laws, Chemical Equilibrium, Acid/Base and pH, Organic Models, Melting Points, Oxidation and Reduction reactions, and Intermolecular Forces. Course content will be conveyed through the lab manual, hands-on lab experience, and written lab reports to provide an application of the course material in the corresponding lecture course.Scientists from any background may be highlighted as to their role in these historical experiments. Including the various perspectives of historical and modern scientists as well as from the students in this course are invaluable in aiding accessibility for all students to understand the chemical context of everyday life.