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ChemDemos
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John W. Moore, Jerrold J. Jacobsen and Kelly Houston Jetzer University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706 Lynn R. Hunsberger University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40292 Steven D. Gammon University of Idaho, Moscow, ID 83843 John Zimmerman Wabash College, Crawfordsville, IN 47933 |
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Order Item Number: SP-8 Ordering Information ChemDemos video is now included in the Chemistry Comes Alive! collection of CD-ROMs |
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"ChemDemos" is a video laserdisc that includes 33 demonstrations suitable for use in introductory chemistry classes either at the high school or college level. The emphasis is on the chemistry, with most demos shown close up, full screen. In only a few cases, where scale is important, can more than the demonstrators' hands be seen. Each demo has been selected because it illustrates an important aspect of chemistry, involves substances or equipment that are not available in many schools, and/or is hazardous or causes problems of disposal or cleanup. Some demos are brand new and not yet published; others are old standards, sometimes with a new twist. All are certain to stimulate students' curiosity and help them learn. "ChemDemos" includes a voice-over explanation of what is happening in each demo. Chemical formulas and equations are provided on screen whenever appropriate, and more complete explanations of the demonstrations, the principles they illustrate, and their practical applications are given in printed documentation. The sound of a demo is included when it is important. Examples include the ice bomb and nitrogen triiodide explosions. The voice-over can be turned off so that teachers can provide their own descriptions, explanations, and discussions of each demo.
Several of the demos are accompanied by computer-generated animations that provide microscopic explanations of the macroscopic phenomena observed. Examples include the sodium chloride crystal cleavage and the mechanism of the hydrogen plus chlorine chain reaction initiated by short-wavelength light. Several of the demos illustrate processes that are of practical importance. The water-gas reaction, for example, was used to produce heating and illuminating gas from coal and may again be used for the same purpose if supplies of natural gas dwindle. Also shown are a chemical heat pack based on the crystallization of supersaturated sodium acetate, destructive distillation of wood, the effect of superheated steam on iron wool, and absorbance of ultraviolet light by ozone. Demos are arranged on the videodisc in approximately the order in which they might be used in a typical general chemistry course. Each demo can be accessed quickly and easily using a hand control for the videodisc player and the frame numbers included in the documentation. Bar codes are also provided in the documentation so that users with bar-code readers have easy access to each demo. Software is also provided so that those with Windows or Macintosh computers can click on a demo's name and have it displayed by a computer-interfaced videodisc player. The contents of the disc are listed below:
Side 1
Side 2
 Hydrochloric acid, acetic acid, and an acetic acid-acetate buffer (left to right) are added simultaneously to samples of sodium hydrogen carbonate to illustrate relative rates of reaction. Click image to view QuickTime video. (326 KB) Hardware and Software Requirements "ChemDemos" is a 12-in., double-sided, 60-minute, CAV-type video laserdisc in NTSC format (it is incompatible with the PAL standard used in many European countries). It may be operated from any videodisc player using a handheld remote-control keypad or a barcode reader. (Consult the supplier of your videodisc player to ascertain whether it can be used with a barcode reader.) To make the video presentation visible to students in a classroom either a large-screen color monitor or a color video projection unit will be needed. The size of the monitor (or the need for a projection unit) depends on the size of the class to which the presentation will be made. If the disc is to be used under computer control the videodisc player must have a serial (RS-232) interface. Software is supplied with the videodisc for both Macintosh and IBM compatible computers. The Macintosh version requires an Apple Macintosh with a hard disk drive and HyperCard or HyperCard Player version 2.1 or later. Macintosh computers running under System Software version 6 without MultiFinder must have at least 1 MB of memory, System Software version 6.0.5 or later, and HyperCard 2.0 or later. Macintoshes using System 7 or System 6 with MultiFinder require a minimum of 2 MB of memory. The Windows/IBM PC version requires Microsoft Windows version 3.0 or later and associated hardware as defined by Microsoft. We recommend an IBM-PC/AT, PS/2, or compatible computer with an 80386 or higher processor, a minimum of 4 MB of memory, a hard disk, one floppy disk drive to install the software, and a Windows-compatible graphics card, such as an IBM VGA or a Super VGA adapter with a compatible color monitor, and a mouse. DOS version 5.0 or later is highly recommended. (Run-time Toolbook is included with this issue; Toolbook software is not required.) Availability
Available: Now
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Last Updated: August 17, 2001 Created: December 3, 1996 |
Created by: J. L. Holmes Comments to: jceonline@chem.wisc.edu |
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| © 1997 Division of Chemical Education, Inc., American Chemical Society. All rights reserved. | |