Chemistry Toy 1: An Approach to Quantify and Improve the Power of

Activity Cite This: J. Chem. Educ. XXXX, XXX, XXX−XXX

pubs.acs.org/jchemeduc

Chemistry Toy 1: An Approach to Quantify and Improve the Power of Scientific Observation Matthew F. Terra and Shaun D. Black* Department Of Chemistry and Biochemistry, The University of Texas at Tyler, Tyler, Texas 75799, United States

Downloaded via UNIV OF SOUTH DAKOTA on March 28, 2019 at 06:58:29 (UTC). See https://pubs.acs.org/sharingguidelines for options on how to legitimately share published articles.

S Supporting Information *

ABSTRACT: Observation is at the heart of the Scientific Method, but students receive very little direct help in science curricula to assess or build this important power. We have addressed this problem with the development of a “Chemistry Toy”. ChemToy1 is a dynamic, colorful, and interesting chemical apparatus that students take home with them to engage in chemical observation over a 1 day to 4 week period. The Toy undergoes many different kinds of chemical and physical changes during this time in terms of dynamics−kinetics, a rainbow of colors, surface tension, fluorescence, and states of matter. Students are first attracted by the fun of it, but they are soon drawn to explore a deeper world of chemical observation, which includes about 50 fundamental observations. Somewhat different results are obtained when the Toy is handled in various ways; thus, a degree of serendipity enters into the results that any particular student might obtain. Instructors can determine the fraction of total possible observations achieved by each student as a means to measure observational power. Science majors achieve only 36.1 ± 14.3% of possible observations on first encounter. Use of the Toy later in the semester or in another semester helps build stronger observational skills. Although Chemistry majors may benefit the most from ChemToy1, instructors and students of other disciplines may find it useful as well. In summary, instructors now have a robust tool that can be used to help students quantify and improve observational power. KEYWORDS: General Public, First-Year Undergraduate/General, Second-Year Undergraduate, Demonstrations, Interdisciplinary/Multidisciplinary, Hands-On Learning/Manipulatives, Misconceptions/Discrepant Events, Problem Solving/Decision Making, Aqueous Solution Chemistry, Student-Centered Learning

■

INTRODUCTION The Scientific Method is the means we use to obtain empirical knowledge of the world and the universe. Observations are made, questions are asked that lead to a testable hypothesis, experiments are performed to test the hypothesis through further observation, conclusions are reached in which the hypothesis is tested and shown to be valid or invalid, and the process is repeated iteratively until a well-supported hypothesis or theory can be formulated that has not yet been proven wrong. Observation begins the process, and observation is the central reality of the Scientific Method. Philosophers and social scientists have discussed the reality and great importance of observation in the Scientific Method. For example, M. H. Marx commented that, “The enterprise of science involves observation, discovery, confirmation, interpretation, and theory building. All of these activities are essential. Without observation and discovery, there can be nothing to confirm and nothing upon which to construct theories.”1 Clearly, true observation is at the heart of the Scientific Method. Science curricula, while completely dependent upon the Scientific Method, offer little or no formal assessment of observation or training to improve the power of observation. This is rather strange given the central importance of the Scientific Method for all the knowledge presented throughout © XXXX American Chemical Society and Division of Chemical Education, Inc.

each curriculum. Perhaps more didactic emphasis on the power of observation would be a potent means to advance the rate and quality of scientific progress. The present work concerns the development of a new educational tool, a “Chemistry Toy”, to assess the power of scientific observation. ChemToy1 is based in part on the wellknown Blue Bottle Demonstration2−5 in which agitation of a colorless solution causes the production of a blue color which returns to colorless spontaneously within a few seconds; the process is quasireversible and can be repeated many times. Redox chemistry is employed in which D-glucose or L-ascorbate in an alkaline solution reduces methylene blue to colorless leucomethylene blue; molecular oxygen promotes reoxidation back to methylene blue.6 The Blue Bottle has become one of the most popular and famous demonstrations in all of chemistry. Chemists have long recognized the value of fun and amazement in chemistry education, as witnessed by the popularity of chemistry “magic shows”7,8 and chemical toys.9,10 ChemToy1 makes use of the value of fun and mystery to engage undergraduate students in a challenge to find all of Received: July 27, 2018 Revised: January 17, 2019

A

DOI: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.8b00480 J. Chem. Educ. XXXX, XXX, XXX−XXX

Journal of Chemical Education

Activity

change occurs during this period, but many changes will continue to happen in the days and weeks to come. Students are then free to engage in observation of ChemToy1 and write their fundamental observations on an observation sheet provided. After the proscribed period, students turn ChemToy1 and their completed observation sheets into their instructor for scoring. Instructors should retain a ChemToy1 for their own information and for reference during scoring (see the sign-up-form, instruction, and observation-form examples in the Supporting Information). Lastly, instructors are welcome to give ChemToy1 another name that might be in better harmony with their philosophy and learning objectives, for example, “Chemistry Adventure” or “Observation Challenge”.

the fundamental changes present during the period of observation or throughout the life of the Toy. This Chemical Toy engages students through its dynamic and curious initial behavior in which five tubes change color in sequence and can do so repeatedly. ChemToy1 then leads students into a deeper world of chemical observation with a myriad of colors, changes of state, detergent action, kinetics, and fluorescence. Ultimately, instructors can calculate the percentage of possible fundamental observations for each student, and this score is proportional to the present power of observation of each respective student. A preliminary report of this investigation has been presented.11

■

EXPERIMENTAL SECTION

■

Construction of ChemToy1

HAZARDS Sodium hydroxide is the principal hazard in this experiment; it is corrosive as a solid or in aqueous solution in a concentration-dependent manner. To minimize this hazard, the suggested stock concentration of this strong base (1 M) is significantly lower than that used in previous, related publications. Also, we have taken great care that the sodium hydroxide solutions are in low volumes (2 mL) and are tightly sealed and, thus, inaccessible to students who experience ChemToy1. Under normal circumstances, no direct exposure should be possible, especially if tubes are glued closed; in our experience, we have had no leaks with hundreds of unglued ChemToy1.

ChemToy1 is made with five transparent polystyrene 13 × 100 test tubes (VWR Scientific/Avantor 60818-849), five polypropylene 13 × 100 stoppers (VWR Scientific/Avantor 60818039), and a piece of foam with five small holes. The foam tube holder is produced by cutting a foam test-tube rack (Cole Parmer Scientific YO-06739-42) into sections with a guillotinestyle paper cutter. Solutions are prepared and added to each tube, stoppers are inserted firmly, tubes are placed into the respective punch-outs in the tube holder, and tubes are aligned. If needed, a drop of cyanoacrylate glue can be added to the plugs when inserted during Toy preparation to prevent later student tampering. A complete Chemistry Toy should be placed into the hands of a student within ∼30 min of construction to ensure optimum initial experience. Solutions for each tube are aqueous and contain 2.0% (0.11 M) D-fructose (Sigma-Aldrich, 0.20 mL of a 20% stock solution) and 0.00025% methylene blue (Sigma-Aldrich, 5.0 μL of a 0.10% stock solution) but vary in the concentration of NaOH (Sigma-Aldrich; 1.0 M stock solution; Tube 1, 0.50 M; Tube 2, 0.40 M; Tube 3, 0.30 M; Tube 4, 0.20 M; Tube 5, 0.10 M); the total volume per tube is 2.0 mL. If many ChemToy1 are to be made, use of repeating pipets or multichannel pipetors speeds production. ChemToy1 can be produced at a reasonable price per student; at the present time, this was calculated to be $2.14 per Toy. Hardware is the most expensive part of the Toy, accounting for over 90% of the total cost. In particular, the foam test-tube racks used to make the tube holders for the Toy are just under 50% of the cost per Toy; if foam were purchased from a local foam supplier, the cost could be minimized to nearly $1 per Toy.

■

RESULTS

Initial Properties of ChemToy1 (from Construction to ∼12 h)

A fresh, resting ChemToy1 is shown below in Figure 1; it has been constructed to be attractive, readily observed, easy-to-

Distribution of ChemToy1 to Students

After preparation of the required number of ChemToy1, these should be distributed to students promptly with instructions to observe everything they can about the contents within the tubes; that is, they should not make observations about the tubes themselves, the plugs, or the foam. It is not necessary to tell students any details about the chemical composition of each tube for this to be a valuable observational experience; others have reported similar educational value.12 Observations may be qualitative, quantitative, or both and should be fundamental, that is, meaningful in their description of the state of the Toy (or specific tubes within it) or a marked change that has occurred since a previous observation. In addition, they should be cautioned not to damage the Toy, disassemble it, or attempt to open the tubes. Observation during first few days of ChemToy1 will be intense as much

Figure 1. Chemistry Toy 1 (ChemToy1) after production. Tube 1 is on the left; Tube 5 is on the right.

handle, safe, unbreakable, durable, and portable. The Toy can be dropped on hard flooring from a height of ten feet without damage, breakage of tubes, or loss of solutions. All solutions are colorless, but a slight hazy blue may be seen at the solution−air interface. When a fresh Toy is shaken briefly, all solutions turn blue; then, Tube 1 returns to colorless followed by Tubes 2−5 in sequence, as shown in Figure 2. The kinetic behavior of a new ChemToy1 is very attractive to students, who readily enjoy the fun of it. This behavior can be observed again and again; B



Activity

Later Properties of ChemToy1 (up to ∼900 h)

After about 12 h of life, ChemToy1 begins to change in a number of ways. It will take longer and longer for solutions to decolorize from blue to clear after shaking. This effect is shown in Figure 4 for Tube 2 (0.4 M NaOH) as an example. The

Figure 2. Kinetic behavior (clearing times) of a fresh ChemToy1 after brief shaking at room temperature. Tube 1 is on the left; Tube 5 is on the right. Only the lower portion of the Chemistry Toy is shown in each panel of the figure.

Figure 4. Time required to decolorize Tube 2 (0.4 M NaOH) after shaking ChemToy1 versus age of the Toy. The line drawn through points is a best-fit exponential (y = 10.908e0.0313x) with a goodness of fit, R2, of 0.982.

students are also apt to show the Toy to their friends and family. Students should make their first fundamental observations at this point. These observations can be both qualitative (e.g., colorless to blue on shaking, blue to colorless spontaneously, Tube 1 clears first then Tube 2 in sequence, the differences in clearing time follow a pattern, and liquid in tubes forms bubbles that persist) and quantitative (e.g., Tube 5 clears in 48 s and a quantitative relationship appears to hold among the clearing times). A plot of clearing time versus tube number is shown in Figure 3. The points are a z good fit to an

increase in clearing time appears to follow an exponential function; the first-order rate constant calculated from this plot is 0.031 h−1. Eventually, tubes will not change color at all when shaken. Clearing times will no longer proceed in the order of Tubes 1−5 but will change to 1−3−2−4−5 by about 15 h, 3−1−2− 4−5 by about 45 h, 3−1−4−2−5 by about 80 h, and 3−4−1− 2−5 by about 100 h. This switching effect is illustrated below in Figure 5. On the basis of student handling and the age of the

Figure 3. Time required to decolorize solutions in tubes of a fresh, shaken ChemToy1. The line drawn through the points is a best-fit exponential (y = 0.4279e0.9534x) with a goodness of fit, R2, of 0.994. Tube 1, 0.5 M NaOH; Tube 2, 0.4 M NaOH; Tube 3, 0.3 M NaOH; Tube 4, 0.2 M NaOH; Tube 5, 0.1 M NaOH.

Figure 5. Time required to decolorize shaken tubes in ChemToy1 over time. Tube 1, 0.5 M NaOH; Tube 2, 0.4 M NaOH; Tube 3, 0.3 M NaOH; Tube 4, 0.2 M NaOH; Tube 5, 0.1 M NaOH.

exponential curve (R2 = 0.994). Students may find it difficult to make this advanced quantitative observation, but it is an observable property of ChemToy1. Highly observant students will notice the strange blue haze on top of solutions; they may also infer from this that an interaction is occurring between the oxygen in the air above the solutions and a component (reducing agent) in the liquid phase. They may also notice that the solution−air interface shows a pronounced meniscus, pointing to a liquid with high surface tension (in this case, water). All of the above observations can be made in a ChemToy1 within 1 h of production.

stock solutions and chemicals, the change in the order of clearing time versus the age of the Toy may vary somewhat. This is part of the serendipity of ChemToy1, something that the instructor can account for by keeping a Toy for reference purposes during scoring. Resting tubes will begin to change color from colorless to yellow at about 10 h, as shown in Figure 6a. The yellow color will be far more pronounced in Tubes 1−4, but even Tube 5 will show hints of a yellow color. The intensity of the yellow color increases with ChemToy1 age. In addition, bubbles will form and persist when tubes are shaken after about 17 h of C



Activity

this under normal room lighting. Thus, the study of fluorescence in ChemToy1 is more appropriately part of its in-class use, where the instructor has both the knowledge and instrumentation to help students discover this fundamental observation. One of the most remarkable properties of ChemToy1 is the myriad of colors that occur after the resting tubes have turned yellow, at about 200 h of incubation and beyond. Students have called the first of these color changes the “peacock stage”, as shown in Figure 8. Colors will continue to change until only Figure 6. Various manifestations of ChemToy1 after extended incubation times. (a) Resting yellow color common to all tubes after about 10 h of incubation time. (b) Bubbles (foam) present in all shaken tubes at about 17 h of incubation time. (c) Precipitate, which may be present in any tube but is not always seen. (d) Fluorescence after excitation at 365 nm (UV-A) of notably Tubes 2−4 after extensive incubation times (not always seen). Tube 2 is shown.

incubation, as shown in Figure 6b; this is an indication of the production of amphiphilic molecules (detergents) that cause sudsing. Bubbles persist for about 15 s when first observed, then persist less (for about 10 s) at 40 h of incubation, and then persist longer and longer (for about 50 s) at about 300 h of incubation. This complex behavior is shown in Figure 7.

Figure 8. Colorful “peacock stage” of ChemToy1 after about 200 h of incubation. Tubes numbers are as labeled.

Tube 5 has a blue color at about 900 h; all other tubes are colorless at this stage and nothing happens upon shaking. A collage of the myriad of colors and hues that have been seen with ChemToy1 is shown in Figure 9. Effects of Heat, Light, and Tube Composition on the Behavior of ChemToy1

As we have noted above, both heat and light have an effect on the outcome of ChemToy1; heat appears to have the larger effect. At 115 °C, we were able to produce orange color at about 60 h, whereas this color is normally seen at room Figure 7. Complex detergent action in ChemToy1 after various incubation times. Each measurement is based on Tube 1 (0.5 M NaOH).

Eventually, detergent action disappears. Precipitates may also form in the tubes as shown in Figure 6c, especially if higher concentrations of sugar or methylene blue are used or if tubes are at cold temperatures; precipitates may also have been present at earlier times. Furthermore, vapor or condensed vapor may be seen near the tops of tubes depending upon the heating and cooling that the Toy has undergone during handling by students. This suggests that three states of matter (solid, liquid, and gas) can be observed in ChemToy1. Lastly, tubes may fluoresce pastel blue under 365 nm light (UV-A), especially Tubes 2−4, as shown in Figure 6d; no fluorescence is observed with excitation at 254 nm (UV-B). This suggests that the fluorescent compounds formed have extended conjugation. However, fluorescence is not always seen with ChemToy1 and represents one of the possible dimensions of serendipity. If present, fluorescence may not appear until after long incubation times, and students may not be able to detect

Figure 9. Collage of the various colors and hues seen throughout the life of ChemToy1. D



Activity

We have studied ChemToy1 with undergraduate Chemistry, Biology, and Engineering majors. The results are shown in Table 2. The average Percent Correct Observations for the

temperature at over 200 h. Thus, the Toy runs about 4 times faster at the higher temperature; however, if temperature were of primary importance in the reactions, it should have had a much more dramatic effect. The effect of light was of less importance than heat. ChemToy1 incubated in the dark proceeds very similarly to that in normal room light. On the other hand, if exposed to bright sunlight, the Toy produces more purple compounds and fewer yellow ones, and clearing times lengthen faster. The general state of the Toy is hastened by about 1.5 times. Tube composition is also important. Glass and polystyrene yield very similar results, but polypropylene tubes adsorb many of the dyes produced in the reactions and, thereby, change and decrease the scope of observations possible. Thus, polypropylene tubes are not recommended for use with ChemToy1. On the other hand, should an instructor desire students to experience chemical adsorption, use of polypropylene tubes could be valuable.

Table 2. Comparative Student Performance with ChemToy1 by Science Majors over a 3 Week Period

17 4 8 5 3 4 5 7

Correct Observations,b %

Chemistry Biology Engineering

8 9 2

2.5 3.7 1.0

35.3 ± 10.7 36.8 ± 17.6 26.5 ± 5.3

total group of 19 students is 36.1 ± 14.3% with a range of 17.9−63.6%. That is, the average student is deep in the failing range for a standard 90−80−70−60−50% grading scheme; Chemistry, Biology, and Engineering majors individually score no better. Biology majors had a higher class rank, but did not perform better than the group average. The highest scoring student reached only the low “D” range. Engineers scored the lowest but were only freshman, and this likely accounts for the significantly lower average score. Regardless of how these data are examined, it is quite clear that students generally do not have a high power of observation, and this likely hampers them in their ability to perform well in STEM courses and, later, to contribute strongly to the advancement of science.

Table 1. Distribution of the Number of Fundamental Observationsa with ChemToy1 at Various Times Number of Observations

Ranka

Undergraduate class rank: 1 = first year, 2 = second year, 3 = third year, 4 = fourth year. Values shown are averages of the ranks of students in each group. bReported as average ± standard deviation.

The total number of fundamental observations possible with ChemToy1 will depend upon the amount of time students spend with it and how each Toy is handled. Table 1 shows the

1 4 20 40 80 100 200 900

n

a

Undergraduate-Student Performance with ChemToy1

ChemToy1 Age (h)

Major

■

DISCUSSION

Chemistry Toy 1 (ChemToy1) has been developed to measure and strengthen the power of scientific observation. Its interesting look, bright color, and dynamic nature attract students and engender fun, which opens a vista of learning in them. Once the initial character of ChemToy1 has passed, a larger world of chemical observations draws them into greater curiosity and further enjoyment. The total number of fundamental observations possible is 53, which represents a wide scope of chemical phenomena. These include a rainbow of colors, the states of matter (solid, liquid, and gas), kinetics, detergent action, and fluorescence. We note that D-fructose can generate this wide variety of observations; D-glucose and sucrose yield far more limited results (unpublished data). A prime motivation for our development of ChemToy1 was the awareness that observation is of central importance in the Scientific Method but that undergraduate science curricula offer little or no help to students to assess or improve their powers of observation. This power is of great importance to the reality and future of science, so it appeared prudent for us to address this problem. ChemToy1, our first approach, is a powerful educational tool that can quantify the power of observation and then help to improve it. The fun character of the Toy is very important in this connection. Fun is a great initiator of learning, but it is often missing in chemistry courses. Use of ChemToy1 not only has the potential to build the power of observation but also can bring back fun into the curriculum. Enhanced observational skills will benefit students personally and, ultimately, science in general. ChemToy1 also presents other dimensions of utility. First, it is a hands-on, student-centered means of learning. Accordingly, it will increase engagement in courses that employ it, improve problem-solving skills,13 and provide special help to kinesthetic students.14,15 Second, it is time-flexible. ChemToy1 can be

a

The total number of unique, fundamental observations with ChemToy1 is 53 as discerned by the authors; see the Supporting Information for a complete list and description of each fundamental observation.

numbers of unique, fundamental observations that can be made at each age of the Toy up to its functional lifetime of approximately 900 h (∼5 weeks). A complete list of all fundamental observations is given in the Supporting Information. Accordingly, ChemToy1 can be used as a 1 h exercise with 17 possible observations. It can also be used over a weekend with 34 unique observations possible. If used for about 2 weeks (our usual period), nearly all 53 observations are possible. Thus, ChemToy1 can be used flexibly to help students assess their power of observation on the basis of the available time. When used as an instructional assessment tool, one ChemToy1 should be retained by the instructor for observation; when the pertinent observation period has passed, students should hand their Toy in with a completed observation form (see the example in the Supporting Information). On the basis of the instructor’s Toy, the total number of possible fundamental observations will be known. Each student’s responses can then be scored, and their “Percent Correct Observations” calculated. We find that this quantity is proportional to each student’s power of observation. That is, the percentage represents their ability to perceive plainly observable scientific phenomena. E



Activity

this gap. Another barrier is distraction. Students have many distractions in their lives, which include their phone, ubiquitous advertisements, and a fast pace of life. When these are brought to scientific observation, they detract from the student’s ability to see clearly and thoroughly, no doubt limiting their powers of observation. Sleep is also a problem. Students are generally chronically sleep-deprived, and this robs them of sharpness, attentiveness, and focus. Accordingly, they are not good observers. This suggests that less dependence on electronic devices and more sleep may potentiate our ability to become better observers. Louis Pasteur said, “In the fields of observation, chance favors only the prepared mind.”16 Perhaps the need to overcome these barriers should become part of the instructions for ChemToy1. Culture abounds with advice on how to gain the Art of Observation. If we distill these suggestions down to the essentials, we find the need to slow down and observe things around us, pay attention to detail, not get distracted, write down our observations, and quantify what we observe. ChemToy1 embodies each of these, and the fun of ChemToy1 unlocks observation and learning. Perhaps ChemToy1 will take us into the “Art and Science of Observation”.

used as a 1 h, in-class exercise, or it can be used for longer periods, such as a weekend, 1 week, 2 weeks, or 4 weeks. We consider the 2 week period to be the optimum, as it is not too long and nearly all possible observations occur during this time. On the other hand, over 4 weeks essentially all fundamental observations may be experienced. During any of these periods, observation by students may be independent or instructor-guided; in the latter case, the instructor can help students find certain classes of observations that students may be unfamiliar with. Third, ChemToy1 can be used as either an individual exercise or with a group. We have used it both ways and find value in each, although the personal experience seems to be the most beneficial. Fourth, it can be used with science majors but also with those in other fields that require observation as an important component, such as Mathematics, Nursing, Psychology, Education, English, History, Art, Music, and possibly others. In these latter cases, it would be necessary to enlist the assistance of the campus chemistry department to prepare the Chemistry Toys for them. This might also afford the possibility to build interdisciplinary bridges. Fifth, ChemToy1 can be used as a special topic. For example, firstorder kinetic processes could be studied (see Figures 3 and 4) or detergent action and surface tension could be investigated (see Figures 6b and 7). An interesting question to ask about the power of observation is, “What limit exists?”. Certainly, if we asked this question about human physical power, almost everyone would agree that it is ultimately limited by the physique of the individual. However, in the case of observation, it is not clear that an upper limit exists. Students have commented, “I don’t believe there is a limit on the ability to further strengthen my power of observation; I believe that all exposure and practice will continuously improve my abilities,” and, “The only limit is the experience required to improve observation skills.” Could a person continue to improve their power of observation throughout their life? The students we studied in the present work did not score well as to their powers of observation (an average of 36.1 ± 14.3%), indicating that their powers of observation, though improved through the use of ChemToy1, were not strong. Use of the Toy later on in the same course perhaps for a longer duration or in other courses could afford students opportunities to build further observational skills. In a General Chemistry I course taught by one of the authors, students participate in weekly “Chemical Experiences” of 5−10 min at the end of a lecture; these are hands-on exercises in crucial areas of chemistry, such as the properties of hydrogen, displacement reactions, solar energy, and others. Another value of each experience is the ability to build scientific observational skills and strength. When these students engaged in ChemToy1, they scored 47.4 ± 13.5% (n = 45), showing that consistent work on observation nets improvement in their powers of observation (vs 36.1 ± 14.3%); a two-tailed unpaired t-test was highly significant, with p = 0.0019. On the other hand, the score is still weak, suggesting that much more work is necessary to become good observers. One student commented, “I believe that, at times, experiments can have many processes occurring at once. I will need to further develop my ability to simultaneously analyze and observe different components of an experiment. I think/ hope this will come with more practice.” Barriers do exist to becoming better observers. We suggest that one such barrier is the lack of useful tools to quantify and improve observation; certainly, ChemToy1 may partially fill

■

ASSOCIATED CONTENT

S Supporting Information *

The Supporting Information is available on the ACS Publications website at DOI: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.8b00480. ChemToy1 volunteer sign-up form (PDF, DOCX) ChemToy1 student instructions (PDF, DOCX) ChemToy1 observation form (PDF, DOCX) ChemToy1 fundamental observations (PDF, DOCX) Video of ChemToy1 at ∼2 min incubation (AVI)

■

AUTHOR INFORMATION

Corresponding Author

*E-mail: [email protected]. ORCID

Shaun D. Black: 0000-0002-7506-424X Notes

The authors declare no competing financial interest.

■

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry of the University of Texas at Tyler. We wish to thank Irtiza Alam, Travis Hand, Susan Lowry, and John Snow for their help at early stages of this investigation. We are grateful to Jason Smee and Carol E. Black for critically reading and commenting on the manuscript. We also wish to thank the many students who worked with and had fun observing ChemToy1.

■

REFERENCES

(1) Marx, M. H. Observation, Discovery, Confirmation, and Theory Building. In Contemporary Scientific Psychology; Gilgen, A. R., Ed.; Elsevier Science & Technology: Amsterdam, Netherlands, 2013; pp 13−42. (2) Dutton, F. B. Methylene Blue - Reduction and Oxidation. J. Chem. Educ. 1960, 37 (12), A799. (3) Campbell, J. A. Kinetics − Early and Often. J. Chem. Educ. 1963, 40, 578−583. F



Activity

(4) Cook, A. G.; Tolliver, R. M.; Williams, J. E. The Blue Bottle Experiment Revisited: How Blue? How Sweet? J. Chem. Educ. 1994, 71 (2), 160−161. (5) Wellman, W. E.; Noble, M. E. Greening the Blue Bottle. J. Chem. Educ. 2003, 80 (5), 537−540. (6) Anderson, L.; Wittkopp, S. M.; Painter, C. J.; Liegel, J. J.; Schreiner, R.; Bell, J. A.; Shakhashiri, B. Z. What Is Happening When the Blue Bottle Bleaches: An Investigation of the Methylene BlueCatalyzed Air Oxidation of Glucose. J. Chem. Educ. 2012, 89, 1425− 1431. (7) DuPont “Wonderful World of Chemistry”. The Website of the 1964/1965 World’s Fair. http://www.nywf64.com/dupont01.shtml (accessed Jan 2019). (8) Bailey, P. S.; Bailey, C. A.; Andersen, J.; Koski, P. G.; Rechsteiner, C. Producing a Chemistry Magic Show. J. Chem. Educ. 1975, 52 (8), 524−525. (9) Jacobsen, E. K. JCE Resources for Chemistry and Toys. J. Chem. Educ. 2005, 82 (10), 1443−1444. (10) Sarquis, J. L.; Sarquis, A. M. Toys in the Classroom. J. Chem. Educ. 2005, 82 (10), 1450−1453. (11) Black, S. D.; Terra, M. F. Chemistry Toy 1: Improving the Power of Chemical Observation. Presented at the American Chemical Society National Meeting Chemistry and Materials for Energy, Dallas, TX, March 16−20, 2014; Abstract 578. https://tpa.acs.org/abstract/ 247tNM-281525/chemistry-toy-1-improving-the-power-of-chemicalobservation (accessed Jan 2019). (12) Limpanuparb, T.; Areekul, C.; Montriwat, P.; Rajchakit, U. Blue Bottle Experiment: Learning Chemistry without Knowing the Chemicals. J. Chem. Educ. 2017, 94, 730−737. (13) Diawati, C.; Liliasari; Setiabudi, A.; Buchari. Using ProjectBased Learning To Design, Build, and Test Student-Made Photometer by Measuring the Unknown Concentration of Colored Substances. J. Chem. Educ. 2018, 95, 468−475. (14) Keefe, J. W. Learning Style: Theory and Practice; National Association of Secondary School Principals: Reston, VA, 1987. (15) Triyanto; Handayani, R. D. Comparing Learning Motivation and Learning Style between Natural Science and Social Science Students in Higher Education. Internat. J. Innovat. Learn. 2018, 23, 304−317. (16) Pearce, R. M. Chance and the Prepared Mind. Science 1912, 35 (912), 941−956.

G


Chemistry Toy 1: An Approach to Quantify and Improve the Power of

Recommend Documents