Lecture Schedule and Outline |
Lectures: | Section 001 | Time: M, W 8:00-9:15 a.m. | Room:Skirball Ctr. |
DATE | DAY | CHAP. | TOPIC |
Jan. 27 | M | 11 | Covalent Bonding |
Jan. 29 | W | 11 | Covalent Bonding |
Feb. 3 | M | 12 | Review of some Chapter 12 concepts |
Feb. 5 | W | 13 | Properties of Mixtures |
Feb. 10 | M | 13 | Properties of Mixtures |
Feb. 12 | W | 16 | Kinetics |
Feb. 17 | M |   | No class (Presidents' Day) |
Feb. 19 | W | 16 | Kinetics |
Feb. 24 | M | 16 | Kinetics |
Feb. 26 | W | 17 | Equilibrium |
Feb. 28 | F |   | Exam 1 (chaps. 11, 13, 16) (2:10 p.m.) |
Mar. 2 | M | 17 | Equilibrium |
Mar. 4 | W | 17 | Equilibrium |
Mar. 9 | M | 18 | Acid-Base Equilibria |
Mar. 11 | W | 18 | Acid-Base Equilibria |
  |   |   | Spring Recess (Mar. 16-20) |
Mar. 23 | M | 18 | Acid-Base Equilibria |
Mar. 25 | W | 19 | Ionic Equilibria |
Mar. 30 | M | 19 | Ionic Equilibria |
Apr. 1 | W | 19 | Ionic Equilibria |
Apr. 3 | F |   | Exam 2 (chaps. 17-19) CANCELLED (2:10 p.m.) |
Apr. 6 | M | 19, 20 | Ionic Equilibria; Thermodynamics |
Apr. 8 | W | 20 | Thermodynamics |
Apr. 13 | M | 20 | Thermodynamics |
Apr. 15 | W | 20 | Thermodynamics |
Apr. 20 | M | 21 | Electrochemistry |
Apr. 22 | W | 21 | Electrochemistry |
Apr. 27 | M | 21 | Electrochemistry |
Apr. 29 | W | 21 | Electrochemistry |
May 4 | M | 24 | Nuclear Reactions |
May 6 | W | 24 | Nuclear Reactions |
May 11 | M | 24 | Nuclear Reactions |
May 18 | M |   | Final Exam (chaps. 11, 13, 16-21, 24) (10:00 a.m.) |
To receive credit for this course, you must register for and attend four (4) sections. The sections are:
The required materials for this course are:
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. 10 and end on Friday, May 8. LGs will not be
held during the week of Presidents' day (2/17-2/21), nor during the week
immediately following exam 2 (no LGs Apr. 6-10).
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 2021.
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 spring 2019. 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:
LABORATORY | .......... | 100 points |
QUIZZES | .......... | 45 points |
HOMEWORK | .......... | 20 points |
LGs | .......... | 15 points |
(Fri., Feb. 28) EXAM 1 | .......... | 70 points |
(Fri., Apr. 3) EXAM 2 | .......... | 70 points |
(Mon., May 18) FINAL EXAM | .......... | 80 points |
TOTAL | .......... | 400 points |
370-400 | .......... | A |
350-369 | .......... | A- |
330-349 | .......... | B+ |
305-329 | .......... | B |
285-304 | .......... | B- |
265-284 | .......... | C+ |
240-264 | .......... | C |
220-239 | .......... | C- |
200-219 | .......... | D |
< 200 | .......... | F |
You must earn a grade of C or higher in order to proceed to the organic
chemistry course.