Overwhelmed by the available chemistry resources? Looking for new chemistry teaching ideas? Elementary Articles is the place for chemistry, education, and everything else.

Elementary Articles is the official blog for the RSC's Learn Chemistry – your home for chemistry education resources and activities.

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Archive for March, 2013
In my role as keeper of legacy material, I have added the lengthily titled Chemical Misconceptions – prevention, diagnosis and cure. Volume II: classroom resources by Keith Taber to Learn Chemistry. This popular book has long been missing from Learn Chemistry and I hope our users will be pleased it has finally been added!

I am aiming to add a legacy resource a month, which will be advertised here on Elementary Articles and the Learn Chemistry Newsletter. If you have any requests for what to add next, comment below!
Posted by Alexandra Kersting on Mar 27, 2013 11:27 AM GMT
The Science Museum has launched an online poll to identify the top British innovations of the 20th Century.

Among the extensive list is X-ray crystallography (found right at the bottom of the voting page). The University of Leeds are championing this as William H. Bragg (the father of the father and son duo awarded the 1915 Nobel Prize in Physics) held the Cavendish Chair of Physics at Leeds from 1909-15, when the key experiments involving the first crystal structure determinations and the formulation of Bragg's Law for X-ray diffraction were carried out.

Take a look at all the entries and cast your vote here. Voting ends on 25th March so you've not got long to make your vote count!

Joanna Buckley is RSC Regional Coordinator for North East England and works with the education team.
Contact her at joanna.buckley@sheffield.ac.uk
Posted by Joanna Buckley on Mar 20, 2013 11:55 AM GMT
Fabulous news from Friday night's Education Resources Awards ceremony at the National Motorcyle Museum near Birmingham:

Learn Chemistry has won the 2013 Education Resources Award for 'Best Secondary Resources or Equipment - Including ICT'


The Education Resources Awards complement the large annual Education show, held annually at the Birmingham NEC. 
 
The judges' remarks in giving the award to the RSC's hub for chemistry education recognises the effort and energy RSC Education has put into developing Learn Chemistry:

“A high quality resource using  the opportunities offered by new technologies to present interesting, engaging materials that can be flexibly used and explored. The judges thought that Learn Chemistry was an inspiring, engaging, stimulating resource that could promote higher order learning – turning potentially ‘dry’ subjects into something interesting and exciting.”

For us at RSC Education and in the Learn Chemistry team, however, ths really exciting part is that we've got so much more to make and do with Learn Chemistry.

As ever, watch this space!
Posted by Duncan McMillan on Mar 18, 2013 6:00 PM GMT
The Big Bang Fair launches Thursday 14th March, and the RSC will be there!


The Big Bang Fair, and the associated National Science and Engineering Competition, is taking place at London's Excel Centre this year. the RSC will be in attendance for the first time, and we're sponsoring the special Royal Society of Chemistry Prize!


If you're visiting the show, come and see us at stand FCS4, in the 'Farm to Fork' section. We'll have:
  • A brand new chemistry iPhone game to show off
  • Against-the-clock chemistry challenges with our Gridlocks games
  • A live investigation into sunblock creams - do they work?
  • A sporty challenge, based on our 2012 Global Experiment
  • Fascinating spectroscopy demonstrations from Imperial College
  • Careers info, and more.
As for prizes, we have been working with the organisers to reward the best young chemists with the RSC Chemistry Prize. You can get involved, with our Chemistry Challenge worksheets. RSC CEO Robert Parker will be there to reward the winner(s). Ada Yonath, legendary Nobel Prize-winning chemist, was also present*. 

We've added Chemistry Challenge information for 2013 and 2014 to Learn Chemistry - check it out there, and be inspired by astronaut and former chemist Helen Sharman, or come and visit us at Big Bang!

[*CORRECTION 18/03/2013 - I'd formerly stated that Ada Yonath would be judging the RSC prize]
Posted by Duncan McMillan on Mar 12, 2013 2:57 PM GMT
Have you ever wondered what makes the lid stay on your shampoo bottle or why your bath foams up when you add bubble bath? Well, believe it or not, the answer is chemistry! Chemistry is in action all around the bathroom; so much so that the RSC have partnered with Croda to produce a brand new, interactive resource called Chemistry in your Bathroom.


Disarray: What your bathroom might look like without Croda chemicals

Chemistry in your Bathroom is a fun flash-based interactive resource that lets you explore where Croda chemicals are found and what they do around the bathroom. Hover over different parts of the bathroom to see where specific chemicals can be found and what effect they have. You can then download the related interactive PDFs – filled with videos, animations and interactive images, which help explain the chemistry behind soapy bubbles, fluffy towels, soft skin and much more… And at the end you can take a quiz to test what you learnt!


From frizzy to straight with the help of chemicals. Move your mouse across the
virtual bathroom to find out where else chemistry is involved.


It’s the first time we have used interactive PDFs and we really like them. But we’re keen to hear what you think about them as well. So get clicking around our virtual bathroom and let us know you feedback! We look forward to it.

We hope you enjoy using Chemistry in your Bathroom!

Posted by Richard Grandison on Mar 1, 2013 1:18 PM GMT