2017 Chemistry Olympiad a Huge Success!
By Mako Masuno The National Chemistry Olympiad was held, 4/22/2017 at Sacramento City College. A special thanks to the supporting parents, administrators and teachers, and a special thanks to Varnell Crankfield, who each year, tirelessly supports the lab portion of the exam. Please congratulate Fouab Alameddine (Folsom), Anish Adoni (Folsom), Zach Bergevin (Davis), Pranav Kodali (Mira Loma), James Yoon (Oak Ridge), Ethan Liu (Tracy),...
ACS Sacramento Section Special Awards at Regional STEM Fair
By Cindy Castronovo Although Sacramento Section ACS members have participated as judges for many years at the Regional Science Fairs, this year our section offered cash prizes for three projects which demonstrated exemplary use of the scientific method in a subject relating to chemistry. Here are the winners! First Place ($75) – Vishalakshi Arun – “Comparative Analysis of Current Sunscreens to Develop a More Efficient...
ACS at CalEPA Earth Day/Take Your Child to Work Day
By Cindy Castronovo Many children (and their parents) learned about healthy chemicals in their food (vitamins and minerals) by playing a matching game. Prizes included Earth Day moles, as well as copies of Celebrating Chemistry – Chemistry Helps Feed the World! Special thanks to CalEPA ACS members Mariela Paz Carpio-Obeso, Suzanne Davis and Allysen Calalang for their...
React! The New Organic Chemistry Game/Study Tool
By Daniel Rosenthal Organic chemistry is a leading reason students avoid STEM careers – from medicine to bioengineering to chemistry. Nationally, an estimated 30,000 would-be doctors do not get accepted to medical school, many because of organic chemistry. In fact, at UC Berkeley, organic chemistry has twice the fail rate compared to other courses. In their organic chemistry classes, UC Berkeley undergraduates Prerak Juthani and...
68th Annual ACS-BBQ at University of the Pacific
By Andy Franz On April 22, 2017, the Department of Chemistry at the University of the Pacific held its 68th Annual ACS-BBQ for approximately 110 alumni and friends in attendance. The Sacramento Section of the ACS generously supported the event, which featured Nirmal Saini, chief of the Center for Analytical Chemistry at the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA). His talk was titled “The Role Science Plays at the CDFA”....