Color to dye for: An interdisciplinary course a chemist can love

CHED 131

Jeanne M. Buccigross, jeanne_buccigross@mail.msj.edu, Chemistry Department, College of Mount St. Joseph, 5701 Delhi Road, Cincinnati, OH 45233-1670
Many colleges and universities require interdisciplinary courses in their LA&S cores. Textile dyes provide an interdisciplinary topic with broad appeal that can introduce science in a non-threatening way. Dyes and dyeing, innately complex topics, are well suited to integrate “ways of understanding” from science with other disciplines. Early dyers who produced the best natural dyes were sophisticated empirical chemists from Asia, Africa, and pre-Columbian America. This makes it easy to highlight the chemical contributions of non-Europeans and women. As European colonialism spread, dyes became a large part of the world economy. Perkin's discovery and application of “mauve” dye had a dramatic impact on the world economy and the fates of many cultures. The quest for more synthetic dyes led to a large chemical industry in Germany with impacts to this day. This course integrates history, the fiber arts, the natural sciences, and the social sciences to explore dyes and color.
 

General Posters
7:30 PM-9:30 PM, Sunday, April 6, 2008 Morial Convention Center -- Hall A, Poster

Sci-Mix
8:00 PM-10:00 PM, Monday, April 7, 2008 Morial Convention Center -- Hall A, Sci-Mix

Division of Chemical Education

The 235th ACS National Meeting, New Orleans, LA, April 6-10, 2008