Essay
Assignments, Chemistry 4380
See the current Chem 4380
Syllabus and Daily Boardlists for specific due dates.
Read Robert Lichter’s editorial “So,
What Do You Do for A Living” published in Chem. & Eng. News August 4, 1997, p. 5.
Lichter makes a good case for the need for scientists to effectively represent their disciplines.
One important quality for any scientist is the ability to effectively
communicate complex scientific issues to the general public in both oral and
written formats. Many of these issues will ultimately benefit those who hear or
read the presentation.
Your paper should be written at a level understandable by
an educated layman. Such examples are articles in Scientific American, Discover,
or the ACS periodical Chem Matters.
These articles are informative and avoid heavy technical jargon (unless clearly
defined). Being able to write at such a level demonstrates your understanding
of the topic being discussed and related scientific principles. Scientists live
in the real world and must be able to share knowledge for the benefit of
others.
Essay topics:
Chemical
Bonding Grading
expectations for bonding essay.
General Essay Logistics
· 2 pages (~ 700
words excluding, figures, tables, references) maximum, double spaced, 1 inch
margins, 12 point type
· Paragraphs
should have good topic sentences. Paragraphs should flow from one idea to the
next.
· The paper
should come to a definite conclusion. Often it helps to point out where an idea
is headed in the future.
· Figures can aid
effective communication. These are to be pasted into the document or stapled to
the back of the two pages of text and MUST BE REFERRED TO IN THE TEXT TO BE
INCLUDED AS PART OF THE PAPER.
· Properly cite
work from the literature or web sources. Your essay SHOULD NOT be a two page
paraphrase of a work already published.
· Consult
www-posted essay assignments above for additional specifics to include for each
essay.
Grading
· How readable is
the paper? ENLIST THE HELP OF A PROOF-READER.
· Have someone
proof-read your paper. The quality of a wonderfully researched paper can be
greatly diminished if the paper is poorly written. Does it flow? Are their
clear transitions between topics and ideas? Is the paper relatively free of
typos (run spell check)? Is the grammar usage sound?
· Is the depth of
coverage appropriate? Were sufficient numbers of examples given to support the
major point of the paper?
· Were the
analogies accurate? Did they demonstrate clear understanding of the concept
discussed?
· Were the
figures and tables used effectively, or are they merely window dressing?
· Were the
references cited properly?
· Did the writer
hit the correct target audience? Is the writer writing to an educated layman or
a trained chemist?
Do not plagiarize someone else’s
original work. It is very easy today to
copy and paste web material. Do not do
this. Un-cited website or other
copyrighted material presented by students as original work will be considered
a violation of the UCA policy on academic misconduct.