Microsoft word - syllabus.doc

Organic Chemistry 1 – CHM 2210 (Fall 2003) Mon, Wed, and Fri from 1:00 – 1:50 PM in Bus 141 Salvatore Lepore (slepore@fau.edu - best way to reach me) Mon & Wed in S&E 136 from 8:00 – 9:30 AM (other times by appointment only) Anita Khoram (akho9046@fau.edu), Deborah Bromfield (dbro1108@fau.edu), and Jason Tatalovich (say_jet@yahoo.com) TA Office Hours: No regularly scheduled office hours outside of recitation (see description for mandatory Organic Chemistry by Solomons & Fryhle (8th Ed.) with Solutions Manual and Darling Model Kit (the molecular model kit is very important) Course Description The course is designed to provide a theoretical description of compounds made up primarily of carbon drawing upon both valence bond and molecular orbital theories. A key objective is to establish a relationship between the electronic and space-filling properties of organic compounds and their reactivity. Tentative Schedule: Homework: While the homework will not count towards your grade, it is very crucial that you work all in-chapter and end-of-chapter problems except for those marked with an asterisk. Several problems from each chapter will be incorporated in the exams in modified form. It is suggested that you set aside 2-3 hours each day to careful read the textbook and work the problems from each chapter. Experience has shown that it is far more effective to study Organic Chemistry incrementally than in marathon-like study sessions. Please make sure that your schedule will permit for this level of time commitment. Exams: Each exam is worth 100 points. The combined recitation quizzes will also count for 100 points (see back for a description of the mandatory recitations). The final is worth 200 points and will consist of parts A and B. Part A will test on material from Chapters 9–11 and Part B will be a cumulative test. There will be no make-up exams except in extreme emergencies (a doctor’s note or other documentation will be required). Mandatory Recitation Sections: All students enrolled in this course are required to attend the regularly scheduled recitations. These recitations will be held in the first 50 minutes of the individual Organic 1 laboratory courses. Students who are not enrolled in the laboratory course should immediately contact Dr. Lepore. Starting from second week of the semester, there will be a weekly 10-minute quiz given during each recitation. Overall, ten quizzes will be given and the lowest two quiz grades will be dropped. There will be no make-up quizzes. The total score from the 8 quizzes will account for 20% of the lecture grade. Students will also participate in group problem solving during recitation. These sessions will be facilitated by one of three graduate teaching assistants: Anita Khoram, Deborah Bromfield, and Jason Tatalovich. ADA Statement: In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (A.D.A.) – Students who require special accommodations due to a disability to properly execute coursework must register with the Office for Students with Disabilities (OSD) located in the Library Room 175 (297-3880) and follow all OSD procedures. Frequently asked questions: 1) How do I study for this course? Read “To the Student” from the textbook (page xxxi). This course is very intensive and will likely require 10-15 hours per week of study outside of class. It is extremely important that time is set aside to study for the course on a regular basis. Do not attempt to cram your studies on the weekend prior to the test. 2) Do you lecture from the textbook? Yes. The textbook selected for this course is written by authors who have devoted nearly their entire careers to teaching organic chemistry – it’s an excellent educational resource. I will very rarely introduce material during lecture that is not given in the book - you will be notified when this occurs. 3) How do we know what’s going to be on the test? You will be responsible for ALL the material in each chapter unless I state otherwise. Keep in mind that there is only enough time in class to touch upon the more difficult concepts – I’ll try to clarify these as best I can. However, there may be concepts on the test that I have not been covered in class. 4) How should I prepare for the lectures? Read the textbook material that I’m going to cover in lecture BEFORE you come to class. My lectures will make more sense to you then. This will also make your learning experience far more efficient. 5) Are you going to drop one test? No. All tests will count towards your grade. You will only be allowed to make up a test if you can show documentation of an extreme emergency (police report of car accident, doctor’s note for medical emergency, etc…) 6) Does the homework count for a grade? No. Only the in-class tests and recitation quizzes will count towards your grade. Also, class attendance and office hour visits will not be considered when assigning grades. 7) Are you going to curve the final grades? In some cases, the grading scale may be lowered slightly depending on class performance. My expectations for student performance are based on national statistics published by the American Chemical Society (ACS). The chemistry curricula at FAU (including this course) are accredited by the ACS. 8) Do I really have to do ALL the homework? Organic chemistry is a very hands-on subject. Simply reading the textbook will not drive home the concepts or teach problem solving skills. Working homework problems will allow you to ‘flesh out’ the ideas introduced in the chapter with actual examples. These problems often combine several concepts together – this will also be true of the exams in this class as well as in many standardized tests (DAT, MCAT, GRE, and etc). About the Professor: Dr. Salvatore D. Lepore received his B.S. degree cum laude in Chemical Engineering from the University of South Florida in 1992. He then pursued doctoral studies at Purdue University under the direction of M.B. Andrus. The focus of Dr. Lepore’s dissertation research was the synthesis of a naturally occurring compound (Stipiamide) that reverses chemotherapy resistance in cancer cells. In 1997, Dr. Lepore went on to obtain further training in the area of organic synthesis as a post doctoral fellow at Eli Lilly and Company (the makers of Insulin, Prozac, Evista, and many other drugs). Starting in the Fall of 2000, Dr. Lepore began his teaching career as an assistant professor of chemistry at FAU. He and his research group are currently developing new methods to synthesize medicinally-active compounds including an exciting anti-HIV molecule. Dr. Lepore’s work is published in a number of prestigious journals including the Journal of the American Chemical Society, the Journal of Organic Chemistry, and Tetrahedron Letters.

Source: http://wise.fau.edu/~slepore/syllabus.pdf