Intro Materials Science

Materials – both naturally occurring and human-made – are the solid "stuff" of everyday life.  Technological advances are often limited by materials challenges and are often driven by the development of new materials.  A fundamental principle of materials science is that the properties of a solid are related to its atomic and molecular structure, as well as to its organization on larger length scales than are traditionally considered in chemistry.  We will explore the connections within the "materials science tetrahedron" of structure, properties, processing, and performance

Physical Chemistry

The thermodynamic principles and the concepts of energy, entropy, and equilibrium introduced in CHEM 161/165 will be expanded. Statistical mechanics, which connects molecular properties to thermodynamics, will be introduced. We will spend significant time constructing, analyzing, and interpreting microscopic models of matter and will use these models to understand our macroscopic world.

Physical Chemistry

The thermodynamic principles and the concepts of energy, entropy, and equilibrium introduced in CHEM 161/165 will be expanded. Statistical mechanics, which connects molecular properties to thermodynamics, will be introduced. We will spend significant time constructing, analyzing, and interpreting microscopic models of matter and will use these models to understand our macroscopic world.

Physical Chemistry

The thermodynamic principles and the concepts of energy, entropy, and equilibrium introduced in CHEM 161/165 will be expanded. Statistical mechanics, which connects molecular properties to thermodynamics, will be introduced. We will spend significant time constructing, analyzing, and interpreting microscopic models of matter and will use these models to understand our macroscopic world.

Biochemical Principles

(Offered as CHEM 330 and BIOL 330) What are the molecular underpinnings of processes central to life? We will explore the chemical and structural properties of biological molecules and learn the logic used by the cell to build complex structures from a few basic raw materials. Some of these complex structures have evolved to catalyze chemical reactions with an enormous degree of selectivity and specificity, and we seek to discover these enzymatic strategies.

Biochemical Principles

(Offered as CHEM 330 and BIOL 330) What are the molecular underpinnings of processes central to life? We will explore the chemical and structural properties of biological molecules and learn the logic used by the cell to build complex structures from a few basic raw materials. Some of these complex structures have evolved to catalyze chemical reactions with an enormous degree of selectivity and specificity, and we seek to discover these enzymatic strategies.

Biochemical Principles

(Offered as CHEM 330 and BIOL 330) What are the molecular underpinnings of processes central to life? We will explore the chemical and structural properties of biological molecules and learn the logic used by the cell to build complex structures from a few basic raw materials. Some of these complex structures have evolved to catalyze chemical reactions with an enormous degree of selectivity and specificity, and we seek to discover these enzymatic strategies.

Being Human in STEM

(Offered as BIOL-150, CHEM-250) This is an interactive course that combines academic inquiry and community engagement to investigate identity, inequality and representation within Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) fields--at Amherst and beyond. We begin the course by grounding our understanding of the STEM experience at Amherst in national and global contexts. We will survey the interdisciplinary literature on the ways in which identity - race, gender, class, ability, sexuality- and geographic context shape STEM persistence and belonging.

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