Discusses various ethylenediaminetetraacetate (EDTA)-type chelating agents found in ophthalmic products, personal care products, and disinfectants. Also discusses the properties and action of these EDTA agents. (JN)

Describes the use of balloon models to illustrate chemical bonding in atoms. (BR)

Describes how to construct a model of a DNA molecule with inexpensive materials. (BR)

Provided is a review of a chemical software package. The package makes possible an instructional technique that is not effective by any other means, namely the ability to view molecular shapes in three dimensions. The program can be used with either IBM or Apple hardware. (RH)

Reviewed are experimental methods (diffraction, spectroscopic, and resonance methods) used to obtain the structural parameters of bond angles and bond lengths in molecules. The valence shell electron pair repulsion theory (VSEPR) is summarized and applied to several real molecules. (CS)

Examines four processes involving homogeneous catalysis which highlight the contrast between the simplicity of the overall reaction and the complexity of the catalytic cycle. Describes how catalysts provide circuitous routes in which all energy barriers are relatively low rather than lowering the activation energy for a single step reaction.…

Considered are the underlying ideas of nucleophilic substitution and some of the misconceptions regarding this topic. Discusses methods for teaching this topic and includes definitions for key ideas and terms. (Author/CW)

Described is the use of molecular model kits in high school biology class and gives a laboratory unit for studying molecular structures of fats, proteins, and carbohydrates. (BB)

Proposes a simple solution to the problem of expressing graphically absolute configuration, racemic character, and relative configuration in molecules. As demonstrated by several examples, the proposed convention brings added clarity and simplicity to structural drawings and renders graphic displays of chiral molecules as explicit and information…

Lists and explains the major characteristics of water. Compares water's molecular structure and its temperature-related properties with four other lightweight molecules. Discusses why water is considered the universal solvent. (ML)

A Macintosh microcomputer and MacPaint program can be used to quickly make charts of structural formulas that fill standard-sized paper with a minimum of instruction, and smaller drawings or structures or fragments may be inserted into text composed with a word processing program. Shows how this is done. (JN)

Describes a card game that uses chemical symbol and number cards to represent chemical formulas. Also discusses an end-of-term review game that utilizes competing teams. (MLH)

Includes a discussion of the structure of some molecules and the design of an experiment to replace CHEM Study Experiment 7. (GS)

Provides background information about paper. Describes the manufacturing process, chemical composition and structure, associated environmental effects, uses of paper, and recycling. (JM)