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This study details the design and implementation of an online materials chemistry general education (GE) course during the COVID-19 pandemic. While many pedagogical techniques involving active learning have been established in STEM major courses, their use within STEM general education courses for non-majors are not as well-established. The recently developed GE course at UCLA (termed Chemistry 3: Material World) utilized high-impact practices to introduce students to the scientific process and impart skills of critical thinking and scientific communication through its flexible activities and assignments. Emphasis was placed on collaborative learning, problem-solving, and interpreting scientific information from published reports. Additionally, content focused on social justice and community engagement was introduced throughout several topics (e.g., underrepresentation in science, war on drugs, nuclear proliferation, pollution, and global climate change) to showcase that chemistry is intricately related to bigger societal challenges. This article details our efforts in achieving the course learning outcomes and shares tangible results regarding the assessment of our teaching strategies from student feedback and reflections. We envision that this work will assist faculty in designing inclusive chemistry GE courses that focus on process versus content and adopting our teaching strategies in both in-person and online classrooms.

This work describes select narratives pertaining to undergraduate teaching and mentorship at UCLA Chemistry and Biochemistry by Alex Spokoyny and his junior colleagues. Specifically, we discuss how individual undergraduate researchers contributed and jump-started multiple research themes since the conception of our research laboratory. This work also describes several recent innovations in the inorganic and general chemistry courses taught by Spokoyny at UCLA with a focus of nurturing appreciation for research and creative process in sciences including the use of social media platforms.

This study details the efforts taken in remotely teaching a large organic chemistry lecture course in the midst of the recent COVID-19 pandemic. The course lectures were taught synchronously via Zoom and student feedback was gathered regarding effective teaching strategies and assessment tools in a remote course setting. The precourse and midcourse surveys also provided insight into challenges and time commitment issues that students are facing when learning in this new situation. We highlight the instructor’s experience combined with student perspectives to tackle this situation moving forward. We hope that this work can assist faculty in remotely teaching their chemistry courses, and contribute to the information that is being collected globally regarding remote learning in light of the recent events.

Metal oxides are ubiquitous in our daily lives because they are robust and possess versatile electrochemical properties. Despite their popularity, these materials present limitations with respect to effective large-scale implementation. Recently, there has been growing interest in creating hybrid metal oxides to tailor the morphology and properties of these materials. From this perspective, we highlight several recent developments in cross-linked hybrid metal oxides, focusing on chemical cross-linking techniques to enrich their properties. We discuss future directions of this cross-linking approach that could enable further manipulation of these materials. Chemical cross-linking represents a unique approach for creating hybrid materials with enriched properties. This method facilitates the formation of interconnected networks within the material, which can modulate its porosity, conductivity and photophysical properties. Porous morphologies are beneficial for electrochemical applications as they enable the smooth diffusion and penetration of ions, effective ion transport at material interfaces, and also offer a synergy of the properties of the constituent materials and cross-linker. This perspective article highlights the recent advances in the area of covalently cross-linked hybrid metal oxides.

We report our discovery of utilizing perhydroxylated dodecaborate clusters ([B12(OH)12]2-) as a molecular cross-linker to generate a hybrid tungsten oxide material. We further demonstrate how these robust B12-based clusters in the resulting hybrid tungsten oxide material can effectively preserve the specific capacitance up to 4000 cycles and reduce the charge transfer resistance as well as the response time compared to that of pristine tungsten oxide.

We describe the top-down nanostructuring of a metal boride using SrB6 as an example. To accomplish this transformation, we demonstrate (1) the direct lithiation of a metal boride using n-butyllithium and then (2) the reactive disassembly of Li-SrB6 into nanoparticles using water. The identity of the Li-SrB6 intermediate, a mixture of Li2B6, LixSr1-2xB6, and SrB6 phases, was established by powder X-ray diffraction (PXRD), solid-state 11B and 7Li NMR, transmission electron microscopy, selected-area electron diffraction, and scanning electron microscopy. The necessary 2Li+/Sr2+ substitution is enabled by cation mobility within the hexaboride lattice. The subsequent reaction with water results in Li2B6 decomposition and the release of

My students were taking midterms when my phone erupted with urgent messages. “Student is having a panic attack,” texted a teaching assistant. I ran out of my office, down a flight of stairs and found the student—a pupil in my 350-person organic chemistry class—lying motionless on the ground outside the exam hall. “I can't move my fingers, head, or legs,” she cried. “I don't know what's happening to me.” My mind raced as she slipped in and out of consciousness. I asked a bystander to call 911 and held the student's hand, reassuring her that help was on the way. “Did my exam really trigger a panic attack?” I asked myself. “Why am I not prepared to deal with a situation like this?” ![][1] ILLUSTRATION: ROBERT NEUBECKER > “I think of [my students] as flowers—different flowers with different needs.” It was my first time teaching the course. But I knew that the subject was challenging for my undergraduate students. I also knew that the course had a reputation for doling out few A's. This was a source of stress for premed students in particular, who feared that a low grade in organic chemistry would keep them from getting into medical school. I had no idea that my exam could elicit a full-blown panic attack, though. The saving grace that day was another student, who had emergency medical training and rushed over to help. She led the student through a series of breathing exercises that calmed her down and helped her regain the use of her limbs. Afterward, I asked her what happened. “I panicked when I was reading the questions,” she said. My heart sank, wondering whether I could have done anything to prevent this. The following day, I was scheduled to lecture to the same class. I knew that I had to address what had happened during the midterm. I didn't want to infringe on the student's privacy by mentioning her. So, I started by saying: “I want to take some time today to talk about something important. How many of you think that this is a weed-out course?” Half of my students raised their hands gingerly. “I'm sorry to hear that,” I continued. “I want you all to know that I do not consider any of you to be weeds; you all deserve to be here.” I flashed a slide of flowers in various shapes and hues—a stark contrast from the chemical structures I'd shown in past lectures. I smiled at my students and said: “I think of you as flowers—different flowers with different needs. You may not bloom at the same time, but you will bloom! You may not do well in a midterm exam, but you will learn from your mistakes and do better on the final exam. I believe this. I believe in you.” From that point on, my office hours were packed. Previously, only a few top-performing students had come, but the new batch included students who were struggling as well as those who were first-generation college attendees. Some asked about lecture topics and study strategies; others opened up about personal issues—family health problems, impostor syndrome, depression—that they'd been struggling with. I was amazed that a simple, frank discussion in lecture could make such a difference. We educators shouldn't need a crisis to remind us of our students' emotional needs. But it took a crisis to transform my approach to teaching. I now make a point of talking about mental health at the outset of every course, giving the students my “flower” speech and mentioning places where they can go for extra support. Before exams, I ask my students to use digital clickers to rate their current mental health and I share the results onscreen, which helps students realize that they're not alone in feeling stressed. Finally, I do my best to learn my students' names. This may seem like a small thing, and it's challenging in such a large class. But I've found that they feel valued—and are more likely to ask me for help—when I put in the effort to recognize them as unique individuals. [1]: /embed/graphic-1.gif

Author(s): Ramachandran, Roshini | Abstract: This lesson plan was created to support non-chemistry major students in making connections between chemical kinetics and biological systems. Chemical kinetics is often viewed by students as an abstract topic, and one that is limited only to chemical reactions that occur in a laboratory. The subtopics of chemical kinetics can be challenging for students to apply in a different context, and students often learn the topic as remote tidbits of knowledge without a clear indication of its application. The lesson involves an activity utilizing real-life case studies with biological applications of chemical kinetics to enhance student understanding and improve interest and engagement in the topic. The case studies detail the immobilization of cold-blooded animals at very low temperatures and enlightens students about the unfortunate situation that iguanas and sea turtles faced as consequences of a particularly cold spell in in Florida during winter 2018. This activity allows students to view chemical kinetics in a new light and to brainstorm on methods to solve such problems faced in real-life.

We report the discovery that a perhydroxylated dodecaborate cluster ([B12(OH)12]2-) can act as an inorganic polyol, serving as a molecular cross-linker in the synthesis of polyurethane-based materials. We further demonstrate how the inherent robustness of the utilized boron cluster can effectively enhance the thermal stability of the produced polyurethane materials incorporating [B12(OH)12]2- building blocks compared to analogous polymers made from carbon-based polyols. Ultimately, this approach provides a potential route to tune the chemical and physical properties of soft materials through incorporation of polyhedral boron-rich clusters into the polymer network.

We report 1–2 unit-cell-thick CaF2 nanosheets, which can be converted topochemically into LaF3–2xOx nanosheets that scroll spontaneously. The formation of CaF2 nanosheets is achieved through interlayer confinement and templating within CaSi2 during reaction with aqueous HF. The structure and morphology of these nanosheets are characterized by HRTEM, AFM, and powder XRD. Solid-state MAS and solution 19F NMR spectroscopies provide further information about interstitial fluoride sites within CaF2 nanosheets as well as help identify side products of the CaSi2 + HF reaction. CaF2 nanosheets react with lanthanide salts at room temperature to yield nanostructured hexagonal LnF3 (Ln = Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Eu), orthorhombic LnF3 (Ln = Gd, Dy, Ho, Er, Yb), and cubic YbF3–x products. Furthermore, the reaction of CaF2 nanosheets with lanthanum salts is unique in producing LaF3–2xOx. The evidence for this composition includes powder XRD, EDS, XPS, and 19F NMR data. The structure of LaF3–2xOx differs from hexagonal LaF3 onl...