News Release: Element Names
IUPAC Adopts Final Recommendations for Names of Transfermium Elements

The Council of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) approved final recommendations for names of elements 101-109. By a vote of 64 to 5 (with 12 abstentions) delegates from IUPAC's 40 member countries accepted the report of its Committee on Nomenclature of Inorganic Chemistry (CNIC), thus ending a three-year controversy over the names of these short-lived, artificially produced elements. The names and symbols recommended by IUPAC are as follows:

The Commission's report recommended that elements 101, mendelevium; 102, nobelium; and 103, lawrencium should retain their commonly accepted names although it is clear that the original claim of discovery of nobelium is in error. The priorities for the discovery of elements 104 and 105 are disputed. CNIC accepted the name proposed for 104 by the Berkeley group, rutherfordium, and recommended that element 105 should be called dubnium in honor of the Dubna laboratory, where important contributions to the creation of transfermium elements have originated. Element 106 was uncontested as a discovery, and the name seaborgium (Sg) was accepted. Elements 107, 108 and 109 are also uncontested discoveries and CNIC accepted the proposals of the discoverers in the Darmstadt group, except for bohrium, rather than nielsbohrium for 107, after consultation with Danish authorities.

The final recommendations are based partly on suggestions received during the official five-month comment period called for in IUPAC's Bylaws. Comments came from individual chemists worldwide and from the 40 National Adhering Organizations that comprise IUPAC. The new names replace the provisional recommendations initially proposed by CNIC in August 1994. The naming of the transfermium elements has been controversial, partly because of disagreements on priority for discovery of several elements. According to Alan Sargeson, Chairman of CNIC, the Commission accepted the conclusions on discovery reached by the Transfermium Working Group (TWG) in 1993. The TWG was formed jointly by IUPAC and the International Union of Pure and Applied Physics in 1986 to establish criteria that must be satisfied for the discovery of a new chemical element to be recognized and to evaluate competing claims. In selecting names, CNIC gave great weight to proposals by discoverers of the elements but considered other factors as well.

IUPAC's recommendations in a wide range of chemistry carry no legal force but are normally viewed as authoritative throughout the world. IUPAC President Albert Fischli pointed out that the process of proposing provisional recommendations, soliciting comments from the chemistry community and making revisions where indicated has worked well. "Unfortunately, he said, "with conflicting claims and preferences, it has not been possible to devise names that are completely satisfying to all the laboratories involved in these discoveries. I believe that the final recommendations come close to achieving our goal and hope they will be used worldwide."

Further information:

Dr. John W. Jost
Executive Director, IUPAC
Telephone: +1 919 485 8700
Fax: +1 919 485 8706
E-mail: secretariat@iupac.org

Awards

Award Announcements

ACS Award for Encouraging Disadvantaged Students into Careers in the Chemical Sciences, sponsored by the Camille & Henry Dreyfus Foundation Inc.
Zafra M. Lerman, Columbia College, Chicago

ACS Award for Encouraging Women into Careers in the Chemical Sciences, sponsored by the Camille & Henry Dreyfus Foundation Inc.
Madeleine M. Joullié, University of Pennsylvania

ACS Award for Research at an Undergraduate Institution, sponsored by Research Corp.
Rabindra N. Roy, Drury College, Springfield, MO

James Bryant Conant Award in High School Chemistry Teaching sponsored by Albemarle Corporation
Maria R. Walsh, Pike High School, Indianapolis

George C. Pimentel Award in Chemical Education, sponsored by Union Carbide Corporation
Stanley G. Smith, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign

Note: A complete list of the ACS 1998 National Award Winners appears in the September 8, 1997, issue of Chemical & Engineering News.

Courses, Seminars, Meetings, Opportunities: 15th Biennial Conference on Chemical Education

The Call for Papers for the 15th Biennial Conference on Chemical Education has now been published. This indicates the symposia and workshops that have been scheduledthese are the categories for which abstracts may be contributed. Get your copy of this Call for Papers list by sending a request to:

15-BCCE: 9-13 August 1998
Department of Chemistry
University of Waterloo
Waterloo, ON, Canada N2L 3G1
bcce@uwaterloo.ca

Important Deadlines:
· 15 December: all Workshop and Symposium proposals
· 1 February: individual poster and oral papers

Contacts

General Chair: Reg Friesen, Department of Chemistry, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada N2L 3G1; phone: 519/746-0435; friesen@sciborg.uwaterloo.ca

Program Chair: Anna Wilson, Department of Biochemistry, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907; phone: 765/494-1644; wilson@biochem.purdue.edu

Courses, Seminars, Meetings, Opportunities: Eastern Analytical Symposium

The Eastern Analytical Symposium will be held November 17-21, 1997, in Somerset, New Jersey. The theme of the meeting is Continuous Improvement Through Change. There will be traditional "grass roots" sessions such as Microchip Separations, Novel NMR Techniques, New Developments in NIR, and Advances in MALDI Analysis.

An extended session known as Circle of Specialists will be initiated this year. It will last from morning to mid-afternoon and be followed by a panel discussion by knowledgeable individuals. There will be two circles at the 1997 meeting: Interpretive NIR of Consumer Products, and Mid-IR Analysis as Applied to Food Chemistry.

There will be two Lunchtime Colloquia, each of which will focus on technical issues of interest to the general public. On Monday, November 17, Richard N. Zare will speak about his experiences as the lead investigator of the Martian rocks project. On Wednesday, November 19, Agent James Kallstrom of the Federal Bureau of Investigation will discuss aspects of the investigation of the July 1996 crash of TWA Flight 800.

For further information contact EAS Hotline (302/738-6218); EAS Faxline (302/738-5275); EASOnline (easinfo@aol.com); or http://www.eas.org/.

Courses, Seminars, Meetings, Opportunities: ACS Congressional Fellowship

The ACS Office of Legislative and Government Affairs is seeking applicants for its Congressional Fellowship Program for the 1998-99 term. The Program places an ACS member in a congressional office to:
· gain firsthand knowledge of the operation of the legislative branch;
· make scientific and technical expertise available to the government; and
· forge links between the scientific and government communities.

Applications are due January 1, 1998, and must include a letter of intent, a resume, and two letters of reference. The letter of intent should be two pages long, explaining your reasons for applying, your background in science and public policy, and what you would seek to accomplish as a Fellow. The letters of reference are to be sent directly to ACS. ACS provides a stipend in the high $40,000s and an additional allowance for relocation expenses. Support from other sources, such as a present employer, may be allowed. The position is available in the fall of 1998.

Application materials should be sent to: Congressional Fellowship program, Office of Legislative and GovernmentAffairs, American Chemical Society, 1155 16th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20036. For more information, contact Margaret Carey, 202/872-4467 or m_carey@acs.org.

Courses, Seminars, Meetings, Opportunities: On-Line Conference

The ACS Division of Chemical Education is sponsoring another on-line conference from January 16 to May 1, 1998. The abstracts and papers will be available on the World Wide Web (http://www.wam.umd.edu/~toh/ChemConf98.html).

Discussion will occur on the CHEMCONF Listserv. To register send the message:

SUBSCRIBE CHEMCONF JANE DOE

(where JANE DOE is your name) to:

LISTSERV@UMDD.UMD.EDU

One week will be devoted to the discussion of each paper. Short questions will be sent on Friday and discussion will occur from Monday through Thursday.

The Conference is being organized by the Division's Committee on Computers in Chemical Education. Co-chairs are Thomas O'Haver (University of Maryland, College Park, MD; to2@umail.umd.edu) and Donald Rosenthal (Clarkson University, Potsdam, NY 13699; rosen1@clvm.clarkson.edu).

The schedule of topics and the times at which they will be discussed follows.

January 16-22, 1998
From Pre-School to Death: Life-Long Learning and the ACS Education
Sylvia Ware, Education Division, American Chemical Society, Washington, DC 20036; saw97@wash24.acs.org

January 23-29, 1998
Do I Really Need To Know This Stuff? A Dialogue between Student and Teacher
Julie A. Grundman and Paul B. Kelter, Department of Chemistry, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588-0304; pkelter@unlinfo.unl.edu

January 30-February 5, 1998
Silicon Cognition and Teaching
David W. Brooks, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588-0355; dbrooks@unlinfo.unl.edu

February 6-12, 1998
Collaboration: Why Participate in an Unnatural Act?
John Clevenger, Truckee Meadows Community College, Reno, NV 89512; clevenge@scs.unr.edu

February 13-19, 1998
First, Do No HarmThe (Moral) Obligation of the Faculty
Brian P. Coppola, The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1055; bcoppola@umich.edu

February 20-26, 1998
Students Response to the Use of ComputerMediated Communication (CMC) for Teaching Chemistry
Rosamaria Fong, British Columbia Institute of Technology, Burnaby, BC, Canada; rfong@bcit.bc.ca

February 27-March 5, 1998
Teaching Forensic Analytical Chemistry
Scott R. Goode and Stephen L. Morgan, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC 29208; Goode@sc.edu
William E. Brewer, South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, Toxicology Department, Columbia, SC 29210
Stephen J. Lambert, South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, Serology Department, Columbia SC 29210

March 6-12, 1998
I.O.N.S.Innovative Options and New Solutions: A CD-Rom Based Chemical Technology Curriculum Supplement
Paul B. Kelter, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588-0304; pkelter@unlinfo.unl.edu
John Kenkel, Southeast Community College, Lincoln, NE 68520
Julie A. Grundman, Darren Jack, and Bradette Hammerling, University of Nebraska, Lincoln, NE 68588-0304

March 13-19, 1998
Pulling Out All the Stops: Applying Technology to Every Facet of Chemical Education
Jimmy Reeves, University of North Carolina at Wilmington, Wilmington, NC 28403; reeves@uncwil.edu

March 20-26, 1998
On-Line Exercises and Public Domain Data Bases in Chemistry
George Wiger and Oliver Seely, California State University, Dominguez Hills, CA 90747; oliver@dhvx20. csudh.edu

April 10-16, 1998
High School Student Use of World Wide Web Based Hypermedia
M. Gwen Sibert, Roanoke Valley Governor's School for Science and Technology, Roanoke, VA 24015; sibert@rbnet.com

April 17-23, 1998
Using the World Wide Web to Provide Teaching on Demand in the Physical Chemistry Laboratory
Gabriela C. Weaver, University of Colorado, Denver, CO 80217-3364; gweaver@carbon.cudenver.edu

Courses, Seminars, Meetings, Opportunities: Call for Proposals: International Consortium for Educational Development

On April 19-22, 1998, the International Consortium for Educational Development (ICED), in conjunction with the Center for Teaching Effectiveness at the University of Texas at Austin and the Professional and Organizational Development Network in Higher Education (POD Network), will host an international conference. The conference theme is Supporting Educational, Faculty, and TA Development within Departments and Disciplines. Some of the subthemes are (i) supporting research into teaching and learning within departments; (ii) running discipline-specific short courses and workshops; (iii) funding and supporting educational, faculty, and TA development projects within departments; and (iv) incorporating technology to facilitate educational, faculty, and TA development that is discipline specific.

The keynote speakers will Philip Candy, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Scholarship) at The University of Ballarat in Victoria, Australia, and Uri Treisman, Dana Center for Mathematics, The University of Texas at Austin.

Information about ICED and the Call for Proposals may be found at http://iced.cte.utexas.edu:8001. For a hard copy of the Call for Proposals or additional information about the conference, please contact Karron G. Lewis, Conference Coordinator, kglewis@mail.utexas.edu

Courses, Seminars, Meetings, Opportunities: History of Science Tour, 1998

A custom-designed tour to visit places of interest to science teachers is being planned by Yvonne Twomey and Lee Marek. It will take place during second half of June 1998. The theme of the tour will be "Landmarks in 19th Century Science and Technology". Graduate credit will be available at a modest extra cost.

The details of the itinerary are not yet available, but there will be visits in Ireland, Wales, and England. We shall include some of the most interesting sites visited during the very successful tour of Ireland and England during June 1997. Lectures by specialists will be provided at appropriate places. The visits will be set into the historical and cultural background of the countries and will include opportunities for archeological, artistic, and cultural experiences.

Accommodation will be comfortable, with single, double, and larger rooms available. Price will be based on double occupancy. All accommodations, breakfasts, many other meals, surface transportation by luxury coach, lectures, and entrance fees will be included. The duration of the trip will be 16 days. For those who wish to spend time in London at the end of the organized tour, this can easily be arranged. Inexperienced international travelers will be given much help.

Cost of the 1998 trip is not yet available, but should compare favorably with the 1997 cost of below $2999 per person including transatlantic airfare. Traveling companions (or nonscientists) are welcome. For more information contact Yvonne Twomey, 841 Kinston Court, Naperville, IL 60540; phone: 630/961-9811; fax: 630/961-0495; email: ytwomey@mcs.com or Lee Marek, LMarek@aol.com.

Proposal Deadline Alert!

National Science Foundation

· Instrumentation and Laboratory Improvement (ILI) - November 14, 1997

· Professional Opportunities for Women in Research and Education (POWRE) - December 9, 1997

Further information about either NSF program can be obtained by consulting the DUE Website at http://www.ehr.nsf.gov/EHR/DUE/start.htm or by calling the DUE Information Center at 703/306-1666.

The Camille & Henry Dreyfus Foundation, Inc.

· Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Awards Program - November 14, 1997

· Postdoctoral Program in Environmental Chemistry - February 27, 1998

Further information may be obtained from The Camille and Henry Dreyfus Foundation, Inc., 555 Madison Avenue, Suite 1305, New York, NY 10022; phone: 212/753-1760; email:admin@dreyfus.org; http://www. dreyfus.org/.

You are invited to send contributions to the JCE Announcements column. They should be sent to Elizabeth A. Moore, Associate Editor, by email at betmoore@chem.wisc.edu or at the address on the masthead. Contributions should be concise, to the point, and appropriate for the Journal's audience. They may be edited for clarity, timeliness, appropriateness, or length.

Materials Available: The International Newsletter on Chemical Education

The Committee for the Teaching of Chemistry (CTC) of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) has announced that, with a view to widening the distribution of its International Newsletter on Chemical Education, publication in the future will be by electronic means. An index of the features of the International Newsletter will be send via email to all interested parties, without cost.

The full Newsletter will appear on the IUPAC/CTC page on the World Wide Web. At the present time this page is under construction, but to continue receiving the Newsletter or for further information contact its editor, Stuart Bennett, via email: s.w.bennett@open.ac.uk.

The Committee on Teaching Chemistry has also announced a shift of emphasis in the Newsletter away from short articles and more toward an information source of publications, meetings, and resources for chemical education.

Materials Available: Anuario Latinamericano de Educacion Química

Anuario Latinamericano de Educacion Química is a popular chemical education journal in Mexico and Central and South America. Published in Argentina, it has Editorial Board members throughout Latin America and, as of fall 1997, in the U.S. The journal is seeking to broaden its base by soliciting papers from the United States and becoming available to U.S. colleges and universities. Those interested in submitting papers on any chemical education-related subject for peer review (English or Spanish-English papers would be translated into Spanish) should contact Paul Kelter, Department of Chemistry, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588-0304; pkelter@unlinfo.unl.edu; 402/472-3512.

Corrections: JCE Publications Coordinator Term

In the announcement of the appointment of Richard Schwenz as the new Publications Coordinator for the Journal, we discussed briefly the history of this position. It was in this context that we referred to our first Publications Coordinator, James V. DeRose. The dates of his tenure were incorrectly stated. They should be 1974-1993.