Chemistry 350 - Principles of Organic Chemistry I
Fall Semester 2010, Winona State University

Credits: 4 semester hours. Prerequisites: Chemistry 212 and 213.

Lectures: Meet in Pasteur 329 every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 10:00-10:50 AM.
Labs: Meet in SLC 386. Section 03 - Tuesday 9:30-1:20; Section 02 - Tuesday 2:00-5:50; Section 01 - Thursday 5:00-8:20.

Instructor: Tom Nalli (Pasteur 350, 457-2476, tnalli@winona.edu)
Office Hours: Monday 11-12, 4-5, Wednesday 11-1, 3-4, Thursday 3-5, Friday 11-12, 1-2
Optional Instructor Led Learning Sessions: Wednesday 4-5

Required/Recommended Materials*

- Organic Chemistry, 3rd ed. by Janice Gorzynski Smith; McGraw-Hill (required) 

- Student Study Guide/Solutions Manual to Accompany Organic Chemistry, 3rd ed, by Janice Gorzynski Smith and Erin R. Smith. (A copy of this manual is available for checkout at the reserve desk in the library.) (recommended)

- Techniques in Organic Chemistry, 2nd ed. by Mohrig, Hammond, and Schatz. Freeman, New York, 2006. ISBN 9780716769352 (required)

- Sapling Learning Student Account. Go to www.saplinglearning.com and sign up for a student account ($24.99). We will be using this site for on-line homework assignments and graded quizzes. (required)

- Molecular Model Kit: Models help with the visualization of the three-dimensional nature of organic molecules, an essential part of this course. Thus, access to a molecular model kit is required for all students in the course. (required)

- Internet Access and Notebook Computer: This course requires all students to have Internet access. It is expected that students will monitor the course web page daily for important announcements. It is also expected that students will be able to access the on-line course content on D2L and at Sapling Learning even when not on campus. (required)

- Laboratory notebook: Each three-member lab team needs one of the 100-Page Top Bound Carbonless Laboratory Notebooks that are available at the bookstore. (required)

*A note on textbook editions; you may be able to get through this course satisfactorily by using an earlier edition of one of the required textbooks. (For example, using the 2nd edition of Smith's Organic Chemistry instead of the 3rd edition.) However, it will definitely take more work on your part to find specific reading assignments given during labs and lectures and in some places the coverage is significantly different between different editions....so use previous editions at your own risk.

Homework:
Organic chemistry is a very difficult subject for most people. You will need to work hard in order to get an acceptable grade in the course. It is essential that you dilligently and independently practice the application of concepts. This practice can take two forms: (1) working the chapter-end questions in the Smith textbook (2) going through the assigned Sapling Learning chapter units. Your work on these homework assignments will not be used for determining your grade in the course. However, to do well on the graded quizzes and exams you will need to keep up to date with these assignments.

Learning Outcomes:
A student successfully completing the Chem 350/351 sequence will:

• Understand organic nomenclature as evidenced by the ability to name a given structure according to IUPAC rules and the ability to draw the structure of a compound given its name.
• Understand how structure influences physical properties as evidenced by the ability to predict trends in the physical properties, including boiling point, melting point, and water solubility, of a set of compounds.
• Understand in detail how structure influences reactivity and reaction mechanism as evidenced by the ability to predict the main product (and its stereochemistry) of a given chemical reaction.
• Have enough knowledge of reagents used for functional group transformations and carbon-carbon bond forming reactions to be able to propose reaction sequences that can be used for the synthesis of a given compound from simple organic building blocks.
• Be able to deduce the structure and purity of an organic compound based on its NMR, IR, and/or mass spectrum.
• Be able to carry out standard organic laboratory procedures including reflux, chromatography, extraction, recrystallization, distillation, and spectroscopy as needed to prepare and purify a compound.

Grading:
Quizzes will be given at least once per week throughout the semester. Many quizzes will be non-lecture-time on-line quizzes administered either through the course D2L site or through Sapling Learning. Your average on the quizzes counts 15% toward the final grade for the course. The lowest quiz grade is dropped.  

Four midterm exams will be given, each counting 10% toward your final grade in the course. The final exam is comprehensive and counts 20%. Thus, exam grades count a total of 60% toward the course grade. Your score in the laboratory section of the course will contribute another 25% to the final grade. 

In summary, the point scheme to be used in determination of the final grade is Laboratory 25%, Quizzes 15%, Midterm Exams 10% each, Final Exam 20%..

Minimum Scores:
to pass course (D) - 50% | for a C grade - 60% | for a B grade - 75% | for an A grade - 90%

Tentative Exam Dates and Coverage: