CHY 115: Principles of Chemistry II
Summer 2017
Syllabus
This course happens when you work the problems.
Please note: Syllabus might still undergo minor revision.
I may revise this table of assignments as the course proceeds. I will inform you when I make changes.
Make sure you get full credit for your work. See this statement of policies, practices, and penalties.
The main purpose of Chemistry 113 and 115 is to begin equipping you to use chemistry as a tool. Most of you are here becauseyour major (or a major you are considering) contains a chemistry requirement. This requirement is present because the designers of yourcurriculum know that workers in their field must understand chemical concepts and use chemical techniques in their everyday work. Forinstance, modern biology draws heavily on chemical skills: such techniques as genetic engineering, detecting viruses, screening forAIDS antibodies, testing for pregnancy, assessing water quality, and establishing evolutionary realtionships among animals and plants allrequire understanding, judgment, and skill in chemistry. Chemistry is biology's most important tool, and it is vital also in physics and engineering, where it provides a basis for understanding the substances that make up construction materials, semiconductors, andnew high-temperature superconductors. Chemistry is crucial in the geosciences as well, providing the basis for understanding the structures andchemical reactions of the earth's minerals. Whatever scientific field you choose, you will be, at least in part, a chemist.
A skilled chemist
understands chemical terms and concepts;
knows how to make and interpret chemical measurements;
knows how to solve mathematical problems in chemistry, which usually entails drawing conclusions from chemical evidence; and
knows how to find, read, and use chemical information in the form of procedures, explanations, and tables of useful data.
In this course, you will have the opportunity to develop all of these skills. How skilled you become depends mostly on how much timeand energy you are willing to invest. In the end, no matter how hard I work in the course, the amount and quality of your work will determine whether chemistry becomes one of your tools.