News from Journal House

Chemistry Comes Alive! Is a Cool Site

The JCE Online Web site, Chemistry Comes Alive! Sample Movies, has won the Exploratorium’s Ten Cool Sites Award (accessed May 2003) for educational excellence. The Exploratorium describes the Web site as “…Exciting movies of some explosive, flaming, and colorful chemical reactions” .

The Molecular Frontier

The title of the June 2003 editorial was Challenges at the Molecular Frontier and it discussed a report published by the National Academies Press, Beyond the Molecular Frontier . The Department of Energy, one of the report's sponsors, has made the report, complete with color illustrations and in printable form, available in PDF format (accessed May 2003).

Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day

Six honorary employees of Journal House joined the JCE staff on Thursday, April 24, to celebrate “Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day”. The children, included in the photo below, range in age from a baby who had recently celebrated her first birthday to a teenager. All shared a bit of their parents’ work environment and experience—along with several delicious flavors of locally made Babcock Hall ice cream. If you are you interested in celebrating the day with your own children next year, visit this Web site for more information (accessed May 2003).

Staff, sons, and daughters gather on the Journal House steps. Pictured from left to right: (back row standing) Alice Teter; (back row seated) Randall Wildman, Edward Fedosky, Bernadette Caldwell; (middle row) Andrew Fedosky, Jon Holmes, Erica and Eva Jacobsen, Nancy Gettys; (front row) Mark Holmes, Mary Saecker and Emma Saecker Nathanson, Anna Caldwell-Overdier, Sonja Jacobsen.

Supplemental Guidelines, Laboratory Experiment Manuscripts

If you are submitting a Laboratory Experiment to JCE, you should note that the Supplemental Guidelines have recently been revised and updated. These guidelines supplement the Guide to Submissions. The Supplemental Guidelines are available in PDF format or are available on request from the JCE editorial office. Manuscripts that describe laboratory experiments should first follow the Guide to Submissions and then apply these Supplemental Guidelines.

Awards Announced

2003 AIC Gold Medal

The American Institute of Chemists (AIC) and the Chemical Heritage Foundation (CHF) will present the 2003 AIC Gold Medal to Ralph F. Hirschmann. The award ceremony will be part of Heritage Day festivities at CHF in Philadelphia, PA, on Thursday, June 12, 2003. Hirschmann has been on the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania since 1987. Prior to that he spent 37 years at Merck, where he was head of the effort that developed effective drugs to treat hypertension, congestive heart failure, severe infection, river blindness in developing countries, and many other illnesses.

The AIC Gold Medal has been awarded since 1926 in recognition of service to the science of chemistry and to the profession of chemist or chemical engineer in the United States. This is the first AIC Gold Medal to be awarded jointly by CHF and the AIC.

2003 Othmer Gold Medalists

The Chemical Heritage Foundation (CHF) has selected two recipients for the 2003 Othmer Gold Medal: John D. Baldeschwieler and George S. Hammond. Both will be honored during Heritage Day festivities at CHF in Philadelphia, PA, on Thursday, June 12, 2003. The Othmer Gold Medal was established in 1997 to honor outstanding individuals who have made multifaceted contributions to our chemical and scientific heritage through activities in areas such as innovation, entrepreneurship, research, education, public understanding, legislation, or philanthropy.

John D. Baldeschwieler is a professor emeritus at the California Institute of Technology, and is a successful entrepreneur as well as an academic and a scientist. He pioneered the use of nuclear magnetic resonance, ion cyclotron resonance, and other techniques that have yielded important insights into problems in chemistry and biology.

George S. Hammond began his academic career at Iowa State College in 1948 and moved to California Institute of Technology in 1958. Between 1960 and 1963, Hammond published the work that led to the creation of organic photochemistry as an academic discipline. He moved to the University of California at Santa Cruz in 1972, where he was professor of chemistry and vice chancellor of natural science. He has also served as the foreign secretary of the National Academy of Sciences and the research director of Allied Chemical Corporation. He retired in 1988 but has continued both academic and industrial consulting.

SNAP Awards

SNAP, the Society of National Association Publications, has presented three of its EXCEL Awards to NSTA. Science and Children, for elementary teachers, won a gold EXCEL award in the scholarly journal cover illustration category for the illustration featured on the April 2002 issue. The high school journal, The Science Teacher, received a bronze EXCEL award in the scholarly journal category for design excellence for its September and October 2002 issues. The Journal of College Science Teaching won one bronze award in the scholarly journal category for general excellence for editorial and graphic design and a second bronze award for the editorial, “Science Teachers and the War Against Terrorism” that appeared in the October 2002 issue.

Ciba Recognizes Outstanding Educators

Ciba Specialty Chemicals Foundation has honored five outstanding educators—three teachers and two principals. In conjunction with NSTA and the Council for Elementary Science International (CESI), Ciba sponsored five recipients for this year’s national Exemplary Science Teacher and Exemplary Science Principal Awards. All were bestowed at the NSTA annual convention in March 2003. Their aim is to honor teachers who make science come alive for children.

The Exemplary Science Teacher Awards are presented to elementary, middle school, and high school teachers who have demonstrated exemplary science teaching performance, including: creativity in the creation and use of science teaching materials; the design and use of innovative teaching plans and ideas; the development and implementation of department, school, or school-community programs for the improvement of science instruction, or the stimulation of interest in science. The 2003 recipients were Linda S. Harrelson, first-grade teacher at Codington Elementary School in Wilmington, NC; Jennifer Linrud, fifth-grade science teacher at Wichita Collegiate Middle School, Wichita, KS; and Laverne Hamlin, tenth- and eleventh-grade science teacher at Armstrong High School, Richmond, VA. Each award consists of a $1000 prize, complimentary membership in NSTA and CESI, up to $500 toward expenses at the NSTA national convention.

The Exemplary Science Principal Awards are presented to elementary, middle school, and high school principals who have demonstrated leadership in the development, implementation, and maintenance of an outstanding science program; supported staff development in science; promoted positive relationships between the school’s science program and the community; and have been advocates and leaders for the development of science process skills and positive attitudes towards science among children, teachers, and parents. The 2003 recipients were Janis Wingate Stewart, principal of Meadowview Elementary School, Selma, AL, and Robert E. Burke, principal of Chattahoochee High School, Alpharetta, GA.

Award Deadlines

New NSTA Awards

The National Science Teachers Association has announced two new awards to recognize and honor outstanding science educators. The deadline for nominations for the 2004 awards program is October 15, 2003. Applications and information can be found at the NSTA Web site, or by telephone at 703/312-9217.

The Delta Education Awards for Excellence in Inquiry-Based Science Teaching will recognize three teachers—one from each of the grade categories pre-K–5, 6–8, and 9–12—for their successful use of inquiry-based science to enhance teaching and learning in the classroom. The winning teachers will receive $1500 to attend the NSTA national convention and a $1500 cash award.

The Vernier Technology Awards will recognize seven science educators—one in grades K–5, two in grades 6–8, three in grades 9–12, and one at the college level—for their innovative use of data collection technology using a computer, graphing calculator, or handheld computer in the science classroom. Each award-winning teacher will receive $1000 to attend the NSTA national convention, a $1000 cash award, and $1000 in Vernier equipment.

Courses, Seminars, Meetings,Opportunities

18th BCCE Deadlines

The deadline for proposals for symposia, workshops, and exhibitor contracts for the 18th Biennial Conference on Chemical Education (BCCE) is approaching. The conference, sponsored by the ACS Division of Chemical Education, will be held July 18–22, 2004, at Iowa State University of Science and Technology, Department of Chemistry.

Attending and participating in the 18th BCCE will give you an opportunity to expand your teaching strategies and techniques. Designed for anyone teaching chemistry to grades 6–16, the 18th BCCE will include hands-on workshops, symposia, poster sessions, plenary sessions, and exhibits.

If you are interested in organizing a symposium or leading a workshop, the deadline for submitting a proposal is July 1, 2003. Submission by this date will allow the title of your symposium or workshop to appear in the 18th BCCE Call for Papers. If you are interested in having a booth in the exhibition area, exhibitor booth contracts are due March 5, 2004. Abstracts for papers to be presented at the various symposia are due January 26, 2004.

For information about the 18th BCCE, an on-line symposium proposal form, a workshop proposal form, and an abstract and registration system, go to this Web site.

BCCE organizers appear below.

• Secondary School Chemistry Co-Chairs: Jeff Hepburn, Central Academy, Des Moines Public Schools, Des Moines, IA; phone: 515/242-7911 ext 3438; and Ken Hartman, Ames High School (retired) Ames, IA.
• 2YC₃ Program Chair: John Kenkel, Southeast Community College, 8800 O Street, Lincoln, NE 68520; 402/437-2485.
• 18th BCCE Program Co-Chairs: Mark Freilich, Department of Chemistry, 213 J. M. Smith Hall–Chemistry, The University of Memphis, Memphis, TN 38152-3050; phone: 901/678-4445; fax: 901/678-3447; and Bill Harwood, Department of Science Education, Education 3010, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405; phone: 812/856-8164; fax: 812/856-8116.
• General Chair: Tom Greenbowe, Department of Chemistry, 1608 Gilman Hall, Iowa State University, Ames, IA 50011-3111; phone: 515/294-7718, 515/294-6352, 515/294-4050; fax: 515/294-0105.

Materials Available

It’s Science Fair Time

NSTA Press, the book-publishing arm of the National Science Teachers Association, has released Science Fairs Plus: Reinventing an Old Favorite, K–8. The publication provides teachers with a collection of 19 classic journal articles from NSTA journals, such as “Oh No! A Science Project!” and “Science Festival Fun: A Teaching and Learning Experience”. The articles bring together the very best creative wisdom of veteran science teachers. The teachers share their secrets for planning, facilitating, and judging fairs, and most importantly, enhancing the learning experience for participants. Several articles also offer tips on running creative alternatives to science fairs, including festivals and expos. Copies are available at the Web site (accessed May 2003) or by telephone at 800/277-5300 or 301/638-0200.