Final Grade
Final grades will be determined based on the grading scheme posted on
the first day of class. The only extra credit assignments will be the
two we had during the semester. There is no other opportunity for other
credit.
Many people have emailed me wanting to discuss their final grade.
Your grade is based solely on your performance in the
course on the homework, iclicker, exams and final (plus any extra credit assignments you choose to do).
The only issue is whether or not I have your scores correclty recorded.
Final Exam
There is no curve on the Final exam
Exam for 2011
I have put up copies of the four exams that don't have answers or explanations. These should be more helpful for you to test your understanding. If you want the answers and explanations you can get those on Quest. They are posted near the bottom of the worksheet page.
TA Office Hours
Katie's office hours:
Tuesday 10-11 am Cubicle B Welch 1st floor
Wednesday 6-7 pm Cubicle B Welch 1st floor
Matt's office hours:
Thursday 5-6 pm Cubicle B Welch 1st floor
Friday 3-4pm Cubicle C Welch 1st floor
Vanden Bout Office Hours
Dr. Vanden Bout will be having office hours
Tuesday 2-3
Wed 10:30-12:00
Thursday 10:30-12:00
Final Exam formula sheet
A formula sheet for the final exam is here.
Final Exam
The final exam will be on Saturday May 14 from 7-10 PM.
A-K will be in WEL 2.224
L-Z will be in WEL 1.308
Bring your ID, a pencil, and an appropriate calculator to the exam.
Your score as of today
To find your score as of today (Method 3), do the following. Your exams (all 4 will count) would be 90%,
your HW would be 5%, and your iClicker score would be 5%. If you have trouble with math, that
is (exam avg)*0.9 + (HW avg)*0.05 + (iClicker)*0.05 = your score. If you did one of the extra
credit assignments add 1 point to this number. If you did both add 2 points.
To covert this
to a letter grade look at the cutoffs on the syllabus. This is the lowest score
you can get. If you are happy with this score, then you don't need to take the final.
These are not approximate cutoffs. They
are exact cutoffs. The grades are rounded to the tenth of a percent. Thus if you have 72.85 that
is not a 73.0 needed for a C+. However, a 79.952 would be B-. There will always be people who are
very very close to the next grade.
However, you need to get the scores posted on the syllabus. If you feel this is really
"unfair" then simply substract the extra credit points from your grade and you will no longer be
anywhere near the cutoff.
If you take the final, I will also calculate your grade with method 1 and method 2. In these
you will get to drop your lowest exam score and count the final exam as either 30% or 50% of your grade.
I will calculate all three methods, and you'll get the highest of the three.
All scores on Quest
Everything should now be loaded on quest. Exams and HW, the final iClicker score that counts that last two days (not Thursday), and the extra credit scores. The extra credit is listed either as a zero or 100 depending on whether you did it or not. If you feel you did the extra credit, but have not received credit please email me (Dr. Vanden Bout) with your name, EID, and an explanation so I can check my records.
Review slides
Here are a few of the questions from the review.
Exam 4
Exam 4 will be on WEDNESDAY night 5/4 from 7-9PM. The exam will be in one of two rooms based on the
first letter of your last name. NOT the same as last time for those of you who were in Welch
A-K will be in UTC 2.102A
L-Z will be in UTC 2.112A
Bring your ID, a pencil, and an appropriate calculator to the exam.
Exam 4 formula sheet
A formula sheet for exam 4 is here.
The formula sheet will be updated shortly to include the radiation units.
Review Exam 4
Review for Exam 4 on Tuesday 5/3 in WEL 2.308 from 5-6
Functional Groups
A handout on functional groups in Organic Chemistry is here.
Organic Chemistry Worksheet Posted
Nuclear Chemistry Worksheet Posted
iClicker score update
I have no updated the iClicker scores through last Tuesday. If you answered at least 50% of the questions (any answer) on a given day you got credit for that day. If you got credit for 75% of the days we have had class you got a 100%. If your score is still 0 or 20% or something very very low, then either you are not coming to class, you never got an iClicker, or there is a problem with your registration. If you think the registration is the problem then email Dr. Vanden Bout with both your UT EID and the iClicker number off the back of your iClicker. If you have rubbed off the number you can visit Jeff Daily in the undergraduate chemistry office WEL 2.112 to retrieve the number. As long as we sort out the registration problem before the final grades are submitted we can get it fixed for the whole semester.
Extra Credit Opportunity
To help determine how best to reorganize and use resources in this course,
we would like to know about your experiences. Please respond to this survey,
which will take less than five minutes to complete. The survey results will
be analyzed by researchers in the Center for Teaching and Learning. Data collected
will not be associated with any individual student.
The survey can be completed at: www.surveymonkey.com/s/L5VQ657
The survey period ends on Tuesday, May 3, 2011.
With the exception of your name if you choose to write it in for participation credit,
all of your responses will remain anonymous. Extra credit will be the same as the previous
EC assignment. 1 point added to your final score.We appreciate your participation.
Summary. Do the survey. Get Extra Credit. You must give your name to get the credit. But
your answers will not be associated with your name.
Formula Sheet
The formula sheet for exam 3 is here.
no Exam review
As we are reviewing in class on Tuesday we won't go over the exam topics on Monday night as we have done before. Use the list below, the HW, and the work sheets for study. The TA's will be available for office hours on Monday as usual.
Exam III
A general breakdown
of the questions for Exam 3.
There are 30 questions on the exam (plus on extra credit that I will use if we need it).
The exam covers 8 lectures (15-23). 4 on electrochemistry and 4 on kinetics.
Electrochemistry
Redox numbers and balancing Redox equations
Standard Reduction Potentials
Oxiddation/Reduction Strength
Ecell Nomenclature
Standard Cell Potentials
Concentration dependence of cell potentials (Nernst Equation)
Relation of E, G, and K
Echem Stoichiometery. Relating n, I, and F
Kinetics
Differential Rates
Rate Laws
Method of initial rates
Integrated Rate Laws
Half-lives
Mechanisms
Reaction Coordiantes
Transitions states and intermediates
Catalysis
Extra Credit Opportunity
It could not be easier.
Here is what you need to do.
1. In a couple of weeks is the undergraduate research forum. It will be held in Welch Hall (in the
area outside our class room on Friday 4/8. Many undergraduates will be presenting posters
on their research. You need to go a poster and talk to one of them.
2.Send me an email and tell
me the following. The undergraduate researcher's name. The title of their poster. And one thing you learned
talking to them.
3. Make sure your email has the correct address vandenbout_class@mail.cm.utexas.edu
4. Make sure your email has the subject line "Research Poster Extra Credit"
5. Make sure your email has your UT EID
6. Make sure I receive you email before midnight on April 22th
How can you mess this up? Simple. Blow off the chance to see some great research from your peers
at the university. Alternatively, don't follow directions. For example you could send an email
with the subject line "That research poster extra credit thing" or "Research Poster EC". You could forgot to put your
EID in the emai. You could send the email to mail.utexas email and not my vandenbout_class email. You could send me
an email with nothing in it at all except your EID....
What if you can't go Friday 4/8?
Not a problem. All over campus there are posters up in the hallways of buidling explaining
research projects. Take a wandering walk around Welch Hall or any othe science buliding
and you'll find plenty. Go to one. Learn something. Enjoy. Send me an email.
What will you get for taking the time to see some undergraduate research? Besides the excitement
of learning some new science and seeing what is possible for students just like yourself at our wonderful
university, you will also get some points. I will add one point on to your final class average. Don't
be fooled into thinking this is not a lot. This is essentially one more percentage point on every
single assignment in the course. We will also have another EC later in the semester. They add up. Don't miss out.
Not only is it easy points, it is a great opportunity to learn about the incredible sciencific research
going on all around you (that you could be a part of).
Echem
You can now finish all the worksheets. There is also a new HW. The HW is heavy on things that
are not covered in the worksheets. The exam coverage will have material from both. For the HW many
problems require you have a table of standard reduction potentials. There is one in the book.
You can find many online. Lastly, if there are problems you have no idea what they are asking,
then think about them for a while, ask a friend, ask a TA, etc... In particular there are some
questions that ask about whether a reaction will happen. Write down what you think the reaction is.
Then think about how you know figure out if it will be spontaneous. Finally a bit of language.
I want to be sure we all have some definitions.
Cell E > 0, voltaic cell, galvanic cell, battery
Cell E < 0, electrolytic cell
E, cell potential, voltage, or electromotive force (EMF)
Equation relating E to Q is the Nernst Equation
Electrochemistry worksheets are posted
There are three electrochemistry worksheets posted. The first one worksheet9 takes you through balancing redox reactions. Worksheet 10 has practice on balancing equations, electrochemical cell conventions, and finding standard potentials. We have dealt with some of the first two. You should be able to work parts I and IV. You can do part II, and III with the lectures after spring break. Or you can read ahead and knock them out. Worksheet 11 you can do the balancing the equations part now.
Exam 2
Exam 2 will be on night of 3/8 from 7-9PM. The exam will be in one of two rooms based on the
first letter of your last name. Same rooms as last time
A-K will be in WEL 2.224
L-Z will be in UTC 2.112A
Bring your ID, a pencil, and an appropriate calculator to the exam.
Exam 2
A general breakdown
of the questions for Exam 2.
There are 31 questions on the exam (plus on extra credit that I will use if we need it).
The exam covers 7 lectures (8-14). 1 on solubility and roughly 6 on acid/base chemistry.
The coverage will reflect this with 5 question on solubility, 26 on acid base equilibria. They are roughly as follows.
Solubility Equilibria
Solubility and Ksp
Common Ion Effect
Selective Precipitation
General ideas of equilibria related to solubility
Acid/Base Equilibria
Ideas of autoprotolysis
Relations of [H+],[OH-], pH, pOH
Strong Acid and Strong Base calculations
Weak Acid and Weak Base calculations
Buffers and buffer capacity
Neutralization concepts and calculations
Interpreting titration curves, titration calculations, ...
Polyprotic Acids as related to all of the above
Polyprotic species, amphiprotic calculations, (other issue specific to polyprotic acids)
General equilibria concepts as related to all of the above
Conceptual questions regarding chemical equilibria
This list is not any different from what you already know based on the homeworks, the notes,
and the lectures. But here it is.
Exam 2 Review
We will have a review session for our second exam on Monday from 6-7 in WEL 2.224
Exam Formula
The formula sheet for exam 2 is here.
Acid/Base problems
If you are having trouble or even if you have figured it all out. Be sure to look at this document to help you solve Acid/Base problems. We also have these helpful notes that we put together in response to the many emails asking acid base questions Notes
iClicker Scores
If your iClicker score is a 20% then check to be sure you have registered your iClicker with iClicker.com (not on Blackboard. not on quest. on iclicker.com). Also your registration should link your iClicker number to your EID (not the number on your UT ID card).
More Acid/Base Pracitce
There are two more worksheets on acid/base problems. Worksheet 7 on buffer, neutralization, and titration problems. Worksheet 8 on polyprotic acid problems. Finally I've made another identify what the species is worksheet. Worksheet 6a (the actually worksheet is labelled 4a). This one has polyprotic species on it.
HW4 selective precipitation
Mg2+ and Pb2+ would be the easiest to separate. Everyone has credit for this probelm.
HW4 issue
As with all numerical problems use an unreasonable number of digits in your answer. Also, there is a typo in one of the Ksp problems. In the rank the solubility of the silver compounds it is Ag2CO3. Also, for any problems dealing with Kw if it is not explicitly stated, treat the problem as if it was at 25 C.
HW4
On this homework are many problems to give you practice with dealing with acid/base calculations. Many are related to converting pH, pOH, [H+], and [OH-]. Do not think that since there are so many of these problems on the HW that that is all that will be on the exam. This is just to give you practice so you don't stumble on this partion of longer problems. Also, there are not so many given the concentration, Ka(Kb), of a weak acid(base) find the pH. That is because there are many of these on the worksheet. Be sure to do those problems for practice.
No Office hours DVB 2/16
I can't have my office hours on Wed 2/16 at 3 PM
Acid Base Worksheets
It is critical in our acid base chemistry that you both be able to identify compounds quickly and that you can do simple calculations with logs. If you can't quickly go from [H+] to pH to pOH etc.. then you get lost quickly in more complex problems. There are two worksheets posted that you should try to work through quickly to give you practice this this. One is simply on identifying compounds. We will practice this on Thursday (2/17). The other is on simple acid/base problems that don't involve any neutralization.