free range

I've got so much on my mind this morning, I'm going to start out with a stream of conscienceness and then perhaps organize it later -- or not.  Just returned from the American Chemical Society Western Regional Meeting, which was AWESOME!  It was great to get together with a handful of other dedicated chemistry enthusiasts and talk the talk we love.  There was a great exchange of ideas and I'm really glad I carved out some time to participate.

On the drive up there, I had a moment of panic that perhaps I had forgotten to post a blog in September.  This semester is FLYING by.  I saw the coolest formation of birds flying (south for the winter I suppose) and while sitting on campus the other day, I literally watched leaves FALL to the ground and realized that summer is officially over.  Looking forward to the spooky parties and pumpkin carving.  I heard Nebraska had snow this weekend, that really blows my mind.

The theme for National Chemistry Week 2013 is "Energy: Now and Forever!" which is kind of ironic at the moment with the government shut-down.  Who's going to do the research and create the policy legislation that will enforce restrictions on "dirty energy" and catalyze the shift to renewables if the government isn't in charge?  I went to an entire session at the ACS meeting on Biodiesel and the analytical methods currently being used to characterize their properties.  I guess we'll have to rely on market forces.


I heard of National Plug In day, and I swear it was on that day or sometime before or after it that we saw an electric Smart car parked in the garage at CSUN.  It's crazy because I'm teaching thermodynamics right now and I usually ramble on about calories in = calories out and Weight Watchers.  Sometimes I talk about various sources of energy: coal, natural gas, geothermal, nuclear, hydroelectric, etc.  It's really hard to get through to people about energy if they don't consider the First Law of Thermodynamics.

Driving through California's Central Valley is like taking a trip to outer space if you're normally trapped in an urban environment like Glendale or Northridge or LA or the Bay Area.  There's tons of space (FREE RANGE) and it's amazing to think of the amount of food produced there.  I do try to teach my students that plants are our transducers for converting solar energy into carbohydrates, but it's hard to convey.  There were also talks at the meeting and research being presented at the poster session about advances in solar energy conversion, but we need much more work in that area to begin to compete with land plants.  Why is everyone so focused on algae?  Because our land is toxic?

I also went to a session planned by the Women Chemists Committee, which was a breath of fresh air.  Like reading a women's magazine where they interview "Women at any age" about what type of moisturizer they use and whether or not they wear Spanx, this panel had representatives from all types of chemical industry and acadame as well as a variety of "years of experience."  It was a roomful of SUPERWOMEN and I felt reassured by being in their presence.  The can-do spirit of these women combated my own fear and doubt.

Another great theme of my experience at this meeting was conversations about chemistry education, one of my big passions.  The implementation of high expectations and plenty of student support seemed to be a general recommendation.  The importance of "out-of-classroom" experiences such as field trips and research experiences also were supported by data to show that they correlated positively with retention of under-represented minorities in STEM majors.  I am motivated to plan "brown bag" lunches and "tea parties" for the chemistry club.  Another cool idea is a "battle of the chem clubs" on knowledge or skills or demo shows.  I wonder who we could challenge?

And another CicLAvia is going on today.  After the excitement of the ACS meeting I'm skipping this one in favor of catching up on home/work tasks.  Heard a rumor that CicLAvia might become a monthly event.  Soooooooo hoping this is true.  OK so 3 in 2013, 4 in 2014 (including 1 in the San Fernando Valley!), and 5 or 6 in 2015.  That's not monthly, but it's better than annually.  Better get back to grading midterms and washing the laundry.  Wife-bot 2.1.5 out.