Reviews the physical and chemical properties of polymers and the two major methods of polymer synthesis: addition (chain, chain-growth, or chain-reaction), and condensation (step-growth or step-reaction) polymerization. (JN)

Describes developments in the stereochemistry of coordination compounds. Includes chemical structures and chemical reactions of selected compounds. (JN)

Explains how using computers to generate images, to gather high-speed data, and to make better models has greatly improved x-ray crystallography results. (Author/GA)

A paramagnetic substance is attracted by a magnetic field with a force proportional to its magnetic susceptibility which is related to the number of unpaired electrons in the atoms. Data are used to establish oxidation states and bonding properties. Describes a simple setup to demonstrate the paramagnetism of common inorganic compounds. (DKM)

Examines four processes involving homogeneous catalysis which highlight the contrast between the simplicity of the overall reaction and the complexity of the catalytic cycle. Describes how catalysts provide circuitous routes in which all energy barriers are relatively low rather than lowering the activation energy for a single step reaction.…

The biotechnology revolution is making contributions to the improvement of health care. Some of the biotechnology-based pharmaceuticals in the marketplace include human hormones, enzymes, enzyme inhibitors, vaccines, immunomodulators, growth factors, and monoclonal antibodies. Many new diagnostics will appear and be used by patients in their own…

Compares the effects of using two- and three-dimensional model representations of molecular structures on student learning of organic chemical structures. Reports that students using both three-dimensional computer models and ball-and-stick models scored higher on the three-dimensional retention test of isomeric identification but lower on a…

A single, didactic criterion for the description of all biological macromolecules is proposed. This criterion is applicable to globular, fibrous or mixed proteins, as well as to nucleic acids and lipids or polysaccharides. Specific examples are given for all except lipids and polysaccarides. (KR)

A molecular approach for introducing entropy in undergraduate physical chemistry course and incorporating the features of Davies' treatment that meets the needs of the students but ignores the complexities of statistics and upgrades the qualitative, intuitive approach of Lambert for general chemistry to a semiquantitative treatment using Boltzmann…

The computer systems available for molecular modeling are described, along with a discussion of a molecular modeling program created and supported by computational techniques for the first-semester general chemistry course. Various exercises are listed, which direct the learner from a beginner's course in software practice to more complex…

A scanning tunneling microscope (STM) project designed as a module for the undergraduate physical chemistry laboratory is described. The effects of van der Waals interactions on the condensed-phase structure are examined by the analysis of the pattern of the monolayer structures.

The PC-based software technology, a computational-modeling course, for undergraduate chemistry students helps them to understand the molecular modeling in a better way. This course would be able to accommodate a wider array of topics and a greater depth of theory as the modeling is increasingly incorporated into the chemistry curriculum.

Since the identification of the FMR1 gene basic research has been focused on the molecular characterization of the FMR1 gene product, the fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP). Recent developments in fragile X research have provided new insights and knowledge about the physiological function of FMRP in the cell and the nerve cell in…

Nanotechnology deals with machines, materials, and structures and their behaviors at the scale of atoms and molecules, or the nanoscale. By working on this scale, scientists are able to create enhanced materials with desirable properties, such as stain-resistance. The authors developed the activity described in this article to introduce middle…

The origins of the pion exchange model of nuclear forces are described and the exchange process is reinterpreted in the light of current views on the quark-gluon structure of nucleons. It is suggested that the reinterpretation might provide a picture of cohesive nuclear forces that is more intellectually satisfying than that produced by the…