CHEM 211 is a laboratory course that aims to provide a hands-on approach for learning organic chemistry concepts while at the same time demonstrating why those concepts have relevance to real-world contexts. The course aims to develop your scientific mindset, including formulating hypotheses, designing experiments to test a hypothesis, collecting and interpreting new data, and creating a scientific explanation. To achieve these course goals, you will work collaboratively and cooperatively in the lab, mirroring the more collaborative nature of scientific research. The course is also designed to acquaint you with different forms of science communication through writing assignments. Although we will cover some concepts from CHEM 210, there is no expectation that you are currently (or were previously) enrolled in this course, although it is highly recommended.

NOTE: Attendance

If you are not feeling well and will miss a scheduled lab session, you should contact the professor and your GSI by email as soon as possible. Documentation (i.e., a doctor’s note) must be provided for the absence to be excused. Your overall course point totals will be adjusted accordingly. If you miss more than one lab session due to an illness, please contact the professor as soon as possible to discuss your options. There are no make-up lab sessions. If you need to miss a lab due to a religious holiday or because of a sporting event (for student-athletes only), please contact the professor three weeks in advance of the missed date and, depending on course enrollments, s/he will make an effort to get you into another lab session the SAME week. However, depending on your schedule and space availability in other sections, this may not always be possible. As such, if you have (or think you may develop) a recurring time conflict with a particular lab section, you should register for a different section for which you have no potential conflicts.

Class Format:

The course consists of a weekly 3-hr laboratory period and a 1-hr pre-lab lecture.