Petrosko Sarah Hurst, Coleman Benjamin D, Drout Riki J, Schultz Jonathan D, Mirkin Chad A
Department of Chemistry and International Institute for Nanotechnology, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States.
J Chem Educ. 2021 Oct 12;98(10):3090-3099. doi: 10.1021/acs.jchemed.1c00441. Epub 2021 Sep 8.
Nanoscience and technology research offer exciting avenues to modernize undergraduate-level General Chemistry curricula. In particular, spherical nucleic acid (SNA) nanoconjugates, which behave as "programmable atom equivalents" (PAEs) in the context of colloidal crystals, are one system that one can use to reinforce foundational concepts in chemistry including matter and atoms, the Periodic Table, Lewis dot structures and the octet rule, valency and valence-shell electron-pair repulsion (VSEPR) theory, and Pauling's rules, ultimately leading to enriching discussions centered on materials chemistry and biochemistry with key implications in medicine, optics, catalysis, and other areas. These lessons connect historical and modern concepts in chemistry, relate course content to current professional and popular science topics, inspire critical and creative thinking, and spur some students to continue their science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education and attain careers in STEM fields. Ultimately, and perhaps most importantly, these lessons may expand the pool of young students interested in chemistry by making connections to a broader group of contemporary concepts and technologies that impact their lives and enhance their view of the field. Herein, a way of teaching aspects of General Chemistry in the context of modern nanoscience concepts is introduced to instructors and curricula developers at research institutions, primarily undergraduate institutions, and community colleges worldwide.
纳米科学与技术研究为本科层次的普通化学课程现代化提供了令人兴奋的途径。特别是球形核酸（SNA）纳米共轭物，在胶体晶体的背景下其表现为“可编程原子当量”（PAE），是一种可用于强化化学基础概念的体系，这些概念包括物质与原子、元素周期表、路易斯点结构与八隅体规则、化合价与价层电子对互斥（VSEPR）理论以及鲍林规则，最终促成围绕材料化学和生物化学展开丰富的讨论，这些讨论在医学、光学、催化及其他领域具有关键意义。这些课程将化学中的历史概念与现代概念相联系，把课程内容与当前的专业和科普主题相关联，激发批判性和创造性思维，并促使一些学生继续接受科学、技术、工程和数学（STEM）教育，进而在STEM领域谋得职业。最终，或许也是最重要的一点，这些课程可能会通过与更广泛的当代概念和技术建立联系来扩大对化学感兴趣的年轻学生群体，这些概念和技术会影响他们的生活并提升他们对该领域的认知。在此，向全球研究机构（主要是本科院校和社区学院）的教师和课程开发者介绍一种在现代纳米科学概念背景下教授普通化学各方面内容的方法。
