Analysis of 2-D representations of substituted methane: Representations from art-related fields of study

CHED 158

Danielle Hall, hall2199@unco.edu, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Northern Colorado, Campus Box 98, Greeley, CO 80639
How do drawings of a substituted methane molecule compare when represented by a chemist, an artist, an architect, and a civil engineer. Each field uses drawings to represent 3-dimensional objects as 2-dimensional images. When asked to draw a methane molecule without prior knowledge of traditional chemical representations, will practitioners of different fields use different methods? Practitioners will be instructed via an interview to draw the molecule. The interviewees will be given the opportunity to revise their drawings based on three criteria: estimated reproducibility by a chemistry student, ease of comprehension by a chemistry student, and ease of mental visualization by a chemistry student. Results will be presented. Future research involves the use of the interviewees' new representations in a classroom to determine benefits or disadvantages from a student's perspective.
 

General Posters
7:30 PM-9:30 PM, Sunday, March 25, 2007 Hyatt Regency Chicago -- Riverside Center, Poster

Division of Chemical Education

The 233rd ACS National Meeting, Chicago, IL, March 25-29, 2007