• To become familiar with the scope, methodology, and application of modern chemistry and to learn to appreciate its ability to explain the physical world.
  
• To understand that all matter consists of atoms, and that the limitless variety observed around us stems from the ways that these atoms bond with one another.
  
• To become adept at problem solving by learning to interpret data, to employ valid and efficient methods of analysis, and to assess whether or not the results of calculations are reasonable.
  
• To learn the principles of chemical kinetics, chemical equilibrium, thermodynamics, and nuclear chemistry.
• To generalize the analytical and quantitative skills gained in this course and to apply them in more advanced courses and throughout ones career.
  

To receive credit for this course, you must register for and attend four (4) sections. The sections are:

• the lecture section (sect. 001)
  
• a recitation section (sects. 101-119)
  
• a laboratory section (sects. 201-239)
  
• a LG section (sects. 301-330; not on Albert - registration info will be provided via e-mail)

The required materials for this course are:

• Textbook - Chemistry: The Molecular Nature of Matter and Change, 8th Ed., by Martin S. Silberberg (available as a digital rental as part of your tuition and fees via the includED program).
  
• Lecture notes - available at the NYU BookCenter (do not mistakenly purchase the CHEM-UA 125 notes!)
• iClicker - available at the NYU Bookstore
• Scientific Calculator - Your calculator must be capable of evaluating logarithms, performing exponentiation, and calculating trigonometric functions. It must have at least an eight-digit display and you must be able to switch manually between scientific notation and decimal notation. Most standard scientific calculators have these features and they are priced as low as $13. If you use an advanced scientific calculator, you must delete all programs and/or text related to chemistry before an exam or quiz.

Since this is the second semester of General Chemistry, no doubt most of you are already aware of the purpose of the lecture class. As during the last term, (slightly) abridged copies of the lecture notes will be available at the NYU Bookstore. For those of you new to my course, let me explain that I provide these lecture notes because the large class size forces me to use a computer display rather than a blackboard and you cannot copy everything as fast as it appears. However, a LOT more is said in lecture than appears in the notes. There are BIG margins and a small "Notes" section every other page so that you can and SHOULD add your own additional notes. If you don't, you'll have less information when you study and you might need that extra information when exam time arrives. Taking notes will keep you more alert during lecture too. The notes do not replace the lecture. If you do not attend the lecture, you will miss material and it is therefore less likely that you will excel in the course.

Last semester, our coverage of the material differed slightly from the text for certain topics. You can expect more of that this term, especially in the equilibrium chapter (though the difference is one of "convention" - the book is chemically/physically correct for that topic and you should still read it). You are responsible for everything covered in lecture, according to the methods and the conventions used in the lecture, as well as for all material in the text unless I specifically tell you to omit a portion of the text. Where the notes differ from the text, follow the notes.

The lecture section is very large in this course. This should be no surprise to you since this is a very big university. The large lecture environment requires self-discipline on your part. If you talk to a friend during the lecture, I will probably never notice, so that you'll "get away with it." Your neighbors will certainly notice though, and it will make it difficult for them to listen to the lecture. If you have ever been annoyed by people distracting you during the lecture, please keep that in mind and save your conversation for after class.

Attendance of the lectures is required and will be monitored through the iClickers. After you miss five (5) lectures, I will begin to deduct one (1) point from your possible 400 points for the course for each additional unexcused absence from lecture. If you don't check in or answer a question with your device during a lecture, then you were not there (forgotten devices, arriving too late, dead batteries, etc., count as absences).

There will be a web page for this course within the NYU Web site. The URL to use is

The web page contains the syllabus (i.e., this document), lists of recitation and LG times/locations, a list of auxiliary materials and internet links, the list of assigned problems from the textbook, numerical answers to those textbook problems, and, most importantly, a list of class announcements. In this last item, I will post administrative information about the course that you need to know, such as what is available on reserve at Bobst, optional review sessions, etc. I'll keep it up to date and it will probably be a lot easier to access "the page" than to find me, so you really ought to use it. I will NOT be putting the lecture notes on the web page. This is NOT a "distance learning" course. If you want the notes, get them at the NYU Bookstore.

A note about e-mail: Like last semester, do not send e-mail to me. See me in person whenever you have a question or need something from me. I have 4.5 hours set aside to meet with you each week and I am willing to talk with individuals at the end of each lecture (in the lobby of Skirball). I will not reply to any e-mail sent to me (so you will be wasting your time by sending it).

While most questions can be asked in the lecture class, those requiring extensive answers or those that are not of interest to the majority of the class should be posed during the recitation section. Questions about homework problems are also appropriate for recitations. It is a good idea to write out your questions as they occur to you so that you do not forget to ask them when you have the opportunity.

The recitation will include a 10-minute quiz (except during exam weeks). Like last semester, the quizzes will be partly problem solving and partly in multiple-choice format. When you do calculations you must show your work. Partial credit will be awarded where merited.

Transfers between recitation sections will be discouraged and will require written permission from me (Prof. Halpin). There will be no transfers allowed during the first three weeks of the semester. If after trying your section for three class meetings you present a reasonable request for transfer, I will consider it. Taking a quiz in another section to replace a missed quiz or to avoid missing a quiz will also require written permission from me, obtainable during office hours. Unauthorized transfers or quizzes will result in no credit. Most of the recitation sections are already filled to capacity and these restrictions are necessary to preserve the "small class" format.

The LGs are another "small class" environment, with a less formal and more interactive atmosphere than is found in recitations. The LGs will employ "cooperative learning". That means that your section will be broken into small groups. The members of a group openly discuss the assigned problems and solve them together. The instructor serves as a moderator and expert. Part of your LG grade will be determined by how well you "cooperate" with the members of your group.

LG attendance and participation are worth up to 15 points toward your grade. That number of points can mean a difference between letter grade increments. To attend and to participate is definitely worth your while. The emphasis on participation is to remind you that the instructors should not, and will not, grant full credit for a LG meeting unless you make some contribution to the class. Ask questions or answer questions; work with the other members of your group; get involved. You'll get more than just the points if you do!

Each LG section meets ten (10) times per semester. Attendance will be taken at your LG and you must attend and participate during at least six (6) weekly meetings in order to earn full LG credit. You are encouraged to attend all ten meetings, and you might also want to get together with your LG classmates outside of class to complete your homework and to study.

LGs start on Monday, Feb. 11 and end on Friday, May 10. LGs will not be held during the week of Presidents' day (2/18-2/22), nor during the week immediately following exam 2 (no LGs Apr. 15-19).

A list of the homework assignments and their due dates will be sent to you by e-mail and they are also listed on the course web page. If we fall behind schedule in lecture then I will extend the due dates and show the new deadlines on the course web page. You must carry out the assignments and hand them in to your recitation instructor on the due dates in order to receive credit. The homework that you turn in must be legible, with problem numbers listed, with work leading to your answers shown, on stapled pages, with your name and your NYU ID number. The homework is worth only a few percentage points of your grade (5%). However, those points might make the difference between two letter grades. More importantly, if you don't do the homework, you will not perform well on the quizzes and exams. No matter how well (you think) you understand the material, unless you can rapidly and correctly solve problems, you will not do well in this course. You must practice and gain the experience before the quizzes and exams. Homework will not be graded for accuracy. You will receive credit for a problem as long as you have shown a credible effort toward solving it. Problems that are not attempted, or answers for which no work or reasoning are shown (even if correct), earn no credit.

Late homework will not be accepted. Medical excuses for missed recitations do not cover homework. If you miss a recitation, turn in your homework at the next meeting. Of course, it will be accepted at that later date only if you missed the previous recitation.

Numerical answers to the homework problems will be posted on the course webpage shortly before the due date. This is so that you can determine if your answer is correct or not. If it is not correct, and you do not know how to correct it, ask about that problem in your next recitation class. Do not try to obtain copies of the complete solutions because, while they might make perfect sense once you see them, you will not gain anything from the problem unless you work it out yourself.

A quiz or a midterm exam missed for medical reasons will not count against you if you provide verifiable documentation written on a physician's stationery. All such documentation must be given directly to Prof. Halpin (but, documentation for the lab should go to Prof. Geggier!). All documentation MUST include your name and the dates to which it applies as part of the physician's entry. You MUST attach to that a "documentation cover sheet" (downloadable in PDF format from our course web page) that shows exactly what sort of work you missed (e.g., exam, quiz) and the section number of your recitation (if that cover sheet is missing, the documentation will not be used and the absence will go unexcused). All documentation is subject to verification. I will need to keep the documentation, so if you'll need it for another course, make a (good) copy for me. A mid-term exam cannot be "made-up" during this course (but may be made up later during the summer Gen. Chem. II course) and quizzes may be replaced only during an earlier or later section on the same day (and with permission). For excused absences your grade will be calculated so that the missed work does not detract from your grade. No more than one (1) midterm exam may be missed. If you miss both midterms or if you miss the final exam or if you miss more than four (4) quizzes (and have medical documentation) you will be given a grade of incomplete (I). You can then complete the missing work when the course is given in the summer (early July thru mid August) or in Spring 2020.

If you are ill on an exam day (or have been ill prior to it and have not been able to prepare adequately) talk with me before the exam - I visit every exam room before the exam begins. If you take the exam on that day it will have to count regardless of how you were feeling.

When I catch a student cheating they receive an automatic F for the course and they are reported to the dean of their school. This has happened many times; most recently during fall 2018. The only sure way to avoid this is: do not cheat. Most students would not even consider cheating. However, if you are thinking about it, consider the consequences.

Cheating includes carrying any unauthorized written material during a quiz or exam, storing any information in your calculator (which we will check for), talking to anyone other than an instructor during a quiz or exam, copying work from another student (or allowing another student to copy from you), changing an answer on a quiz or exam after it has been graded, and anything else that would give you an unfair advantage over other members of the class. If your cell phone rings during an exam, you lose 10 points (so ... turn it off before the exam!).

If you have a documented disability, you can arrange to take quizzes and/or exams at the Center for Students with Disabilities, on the 2nd Floor of 726 Broadway. It is your responsibility to make arrangements with that office and with me before the first quiz or exam.

If you have a religious obligation that prevents you from attending, I recognize your right to miss class. The procedure for a quiz or exam missed because of a religious commitment is similar to that for medical excuses, except that you can write the documentation. As for medical documentation, you must specify the date of the absence, the reason (i.e., what holiday), what type of work was missed, and give the section number for your recitation. You must also attach a "documentation cover sheet", as described on the previous page.

You will be graded according to a fixed point scale. There are no curves, there is no reason to compete with your colleagues, and you might all get A's if the grades are high! The maximum point values for the course components are:

You must earn a grade of C or higher in order to proceed to the organic chemistry course.