Division of Sciences 2002-03

BIOLOGY

Charles Chester

Awarded Teagle Foundation interdisciplinary partnership grant with Dr. Mel Brandon to link BIO 110 Environmental Biology and PHL 233 Environmental Ethics

Attended:

• Council on Undergraduate Research annual meeting, Connecticut College, New London, Connecticut

Member:

• Council on Undergraduate Research 

Co-trip leader, Hillsborough Community College Florida Keys Trip, May 2002

Visiting researcher, Keys Marine Lab:  studied the feeding biology of Florida Bay sponges

Student research supervision:  One student participated in an undergraduate research internship at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab

New course preparation:  BIO 499 The Ecology of the Florida Keys -- took eight students to the Florida Keys in May 2002 to study the ecology of the region

New course preparation:  BIO 355 Ecology -- designed as a course in conceptual and critical thinking.  Students were required to formalize hypotheses; collect data; and analyze, report, and discuss the data collected.  In addition, groups of students designed, implemented, and reported on a short group research project.

Significant course revision:  BIO 254 Vertebrate Zoology (lecture):  new textbook;  new focus;  new PowerPoint presentations, outlines, and assignments

SHC liaison officer, Marine Environmental Sciences Consortium at Dauphin Island Sea Lab

For all courses, used web pages with syllabi and outlines for course material;  also used ERes to distribute course materials

Works in progress:

• Continued collaboration with colleague at Florida International University on research project studying the feeding biology of  Florida Bay sponges;  we are in the process of analyzing data and writing a manuscript

Donald Culberson

Publications:

• Manci EA, Culberson DE, Yang Y-M.  "Causes of Death in Sickle Cell Disease:  An Autopsy Study."  British Journal of Hematology.  In Press (refereed) 

• Submitted paper entitled "Perivascular Fibrosis in Sickle Cell Disease" to the refereed journal Archives of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine

Attended:

• Council on Undergraduate Research annual meeting, Connecticut College, New London, Connecticut

• SHC Summer 2002 Core Development Seminar

Student research supervision:  One student worked in my laboratory during the summer, preparing materials for my summer microbiology laboratory and learning research techniques;  she assisted me in "trouble shooting" several new pieces of equipment including a new thermocycler for polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and also performed several of the new exercises being considered for BIO 362 Cell and Molecular Biology Laboratory

Devised and proposed a new non-majors biology course, BIO 115 Biology of Sex, which was approved by the Curriculum Committee

Began using new "high-tech" equipment (made possible by grants and gifts) in courses 

Serve as SHC faculty representative to the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Program

Works in progress:

• Continued collaboration with research laboratories at the University of South Alabama;  in conjunction with these activities, was re-appointed Adjunct Assistant Professor in USA's Department of Cell Biology and Neuroscience

David Dean

Improved student engagement in BIO 131 Human Anatomy and Physiology I and BIO 462 General Physiology by expanding the use of case studies and by incorporating mini group discussions at the half-way point in my lectures

Adult literacy tutor with the Goodwill/Easter Seals Adult Literacy Program

Volunteer with Southern Care Hospice (visitation of hospice patients)

CHEMISTRY, PHYSICS, AND DUAL DEGREE ENGINEERING

Shawn Allin

Publications:

• Review:  Applied Polymer Science: 21st Century, Craver, C.D.; Carraher, C.E., Jr. (Editors) Elsevier Science Ltd.; Amsterdam, Netherlands, 2000, in Journal of Chemical Education 2002 79 (8), 942.

• Review:  Instruments and Experiments in the History of Chemistry, Holmes. F.L.; Levere, T.H. (Editors) MIT Press; Cambridge, MA, 2000, in Hyle: International Journal for Philosophy of Chemistry 2003 9 122

• Review:  Magick, Mayhem, and Mavericks: The Spirited History of Physical Chemistry, Cobb, C. Prometheus Books; Amherst, NY, 2002, in Foundations of Chemistry;  In Press

Lectures/presentations given:

• Phone consultation with Ms. Kristine Sorensen, a reporter with the Dallas-Fort Worth NBC affiliate regarding the flammability of synthetic fingernails

• Phone consultation with Ms. Mary Harris, a reporter with the Los Angeles NBC affiliate regarding the flammability of synthetic fingernails

• Phone consultation with Mr. Steve Noviello, a reporter with the High Point, North Carolina, NBC affiliate regarding the flammability of synthetic fingernails

Awarded:

• 2003 Pittsburgh Conference Memorial National College Grant ($8,040): Molecular Modeling in Chemistry Laboratories at Spring Hill College: A Systemic Reform

• SHC Teagle Grant: Instrumentation and Software for a Comprehensive Restructuring and Modernization of the Spring Hill College Physical Chemistry Laboratories

Attended:

• American Chemical Society national meeting, New Orleans, Louisiana, March 2003

• Presented research conducted in collaboration with SHC student Rigo Nunez:  "Predicting molecular hyperpolarizabilities:  Is semiquantitative the best we can do?"

• Mobile Local Section of the American Chemical Society meeting, December 2002

• Mobile Local Section of the American Chemical Society meeting, February 2003:  "Professional Ethics" by Peter R. Lantos, The Target Group, Inc.

• Host

• Mobile Local Section of the American Chemical Society meeting, March 2003:  "Testing Biocides Against Marine Organisms" by Mark Mann, Mobile Paint Manufacturing

• Mobile Local Section of the American Chemical Society meeting, April 2003:  "Astrochemistry: The Evolution of Organic Molecules in Interstellar Clouds" by Yorke E. Rhodes, New York University

• Wiese Distinguished Lecture Series of the University of South Alabama, May 2003: "The Future of Life" by Edward O. Wilson, Harvard University

• SHC "Jesuit Mission in Higher Education" reflection lunches

• SHC faculty development workshops

Member:

• American Chemical Society

• Mobile Local Section of the American Chemical Society: Executive Committee member (secretary)

• American Physical Society

• Council on Undergraduate Research

• American Association for the Advancement of Science

• Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society

• National Science Teachers Association

• Project Kaleidoscope, Faculty for the 21st Century

• South Mobile Industrial Association Community Panel

Traveled to Beaumont, Texas, to facilitate collaborative research with Dr. Stephen P. Fearnley on the intramolecular cyclization of aryl silanes

Maintained personal subscriptions to Journal of Physical Chemistry A, Chemical Reviews, Journal of Chemical Education, Hyle: International Journal for Philosophy of Chemistry, Science, Physics in Perspective, CUR Quarterly, American Scientist, Chemical Heritage, Discover, Physics Today, and Journal of College Science Teaching

Student research supervision:  Advised one student who was conducting research in the field of computational chemistry;  his results were presented at the American Chemical Society annual meeting in New Orleans in March 2003

Facilitator for SHC Science Division lecture:  "A Unique Model of the Functional Anatomy of the Forelimb Bones of Maniraptoran Dinosaurs Based on Bambiraptor feinbergi" given by William R. Garstka of the University of Alabama in Huntsville

Three new laboratory preparations for the General Chemistry laboratory courses:  Percent Water in a Hydrate; Analysis of the Group III Cations (Al³⁺, Fe²⁺, Fe³⁺, Cr³⁺, Mn²⁺, Ni²⁺, Zn²⁺, and Co²⁺);  and Colligative Properties and Freezing Point Depression

Developed Physical Chemistry labs to be taught in the 2003-04 academic year; involved submitting proposals for an SHC Teagle Curriculum Development grant and a 2003 Pittsburgh Conference Memorial National College Grant that were funded;  Teagle Grant was used to purchase a variety of measurement probes for automated data collection; Pittsburgh Conference Grant was used to develop infrastructure support for the department's computer lab through the purchase of Wavefunction's Spartan molecular modeling software  

Incorporated ERes into courses:  provided anytime access to copies of sample exams and sample exams with answers; in CHM 100 Chemistry in the Modern World, posted chapter summaries, lists of "applicable and crucial questions" from the text, and PowerPoint slides 

Works in progress:

• Working on manuscripts in several areas:

• Investigations into thermal effects on molecular hyperpolarizabilities

• Determination of molecular hyperpolarizabilities via solvatochromism

• Computational methods for determining copolymer reactivity ratios

• Intramolecular cyclization of aryl silanes

• Preparation of a proposal to upgrade the department's Varian CW-NMR to Fourier Transform mode; will be submitted to the National Science Foundation's CCLI program in Fall 2003

• Continued preparation for a proposal to the American Chemical Society's Petroleum Research Fund on the development of computational methods for determination of copolymer reactivity ratios; literature search has been completed

Lesli Bordas

Lectures/presentations given:

• SHC National Chemistry Week presentation to students:  "Synthetic Organic Chemistry and You"

Attended:

• American Chemical Society's Mentoring Workshop (designed to encourage and support under-represented women and minorities in the sciences), Washington, DC

• Using science to solve crime

• Advanced criminology 

Awarded:

• Grant from the National American Chemical Societies Minority Affairs Committee for involvement in mentoring under-represented minorities and women in the sciences

Member:

• American Chemical Society:  Coordinator of student affiliate chapter

• Minority Affairs Committee, southeast regional chapter of the American Chemical Society

• Association of Women in Science

Student research supervision:  One student worked on synthetic organic and peptide chemistry and presented a departmental seminar on her work;  another student did library and chemical research and presented a literature report

Incorporated polymer chemistry into lectures

Incorporated ERes and PowerPoint into courses

Works in progress:

• Writing a Petroleum Research Fund Starter Grant 

• Continuing to develop materials and resources for the biochemistry and chemistry laboratories

John Kane [Division Chair]

Attended:

• Chautauqua short course on the space program, Cape Canaveral, Florida

Member:

• American Association of Physics Teachers

Subscribe to two professional journals of the American Association of Physics Teachers

New course preparation:  PHY 114 Contemporary Physics (for non-science majors) -- developed notes, demonstrations, and laboratory experiences 

MATHEMATICS

Charles Cheney

Lectures/presentations given:

• University of South Alabama Odyssey program:  Talk on Oswald Spengler 

• Dr. Mark Starr's Intermediate Logic class:  "Godel's Incompleteness Theorem"

• Dr. Alex Landi's Master of Liberal Arts Modernity class:  Galileo and the conflict between religion and science

• SHC Core Development summer seminar

• Presented case for mathematics in the core curriculum

Attended:

• SHC fall opening meeting that discussed the core curriculum

• Group discussion leader

• SHC spring seminar on active learning

Major course revision:  MTH 301 Introduction to Abstract Mathematics -- increased writing component since this course is designated as the main Writing Across the Curriculum course for mathematics majors

Participated in Advanced Placement Calculus exam reading at Colorado State University;  served as table leader for sixth consecutive year

Worked with the Division of Teacher Education to develop ways for teacher education students to meet the mathematics requirements of the new "No Child Left Behind" federal mandates;  this involved (1) developing a mathematics major for those secondary education majors who want to be certified to teach mathematics and (2) adding a new course, MTH 192 Mathematics for Elementary Teachers II, so elementary education majors will have enough hours in mathematics

Works in progress:

• Finding a publication venue for my paper on Oswald Spengler

• Continuing to strengthen the writing component in MTH 301 Introduction to Abstract Mathematics

Daniel Cyphert

Attended:

• Selected as participant in a National Science Foundation Chautauqua Short Course:  "Abandoning Dead Ends: Presenting the Heart of Mathematics to All Students"

Reviewer, Mathematical Association of America publications:  Mathematics Magazine and The College Mathematics Journal

Substantial reading of journals of the Mathematical Association of America

Department liaison to the Mathematical Association of America

Works in progress:

• Article for Ocean Navigator Publications

• Paper for Mathematics Magazine

Jeanette Monroe

Attended:

• Fall and Spring SHC faculty development workshops

Developed new course, MTH 192 Mathematics for Elementary Teachers II, to accommodate new "No Child Left Behind" mathematics requirements for early childhood and elementary education majors