Chem 89
Research Project
Fall 2015
Each student will complete a project on a research topic of his/her choice, such as a specific
compound or a general science issue. Students will prepare an overview of the research topic of
interest, including background information, current/ongoing research, and possibly future work in
this area. Students will use the various types of literature we discuss, search strategies, etc., to
complete this project. Possible topics are provided; other topics must be approved by Valerie and
Linda.
The project will consist of two parts:
1. Presentation – This will be given during the last week of class (Tuesday and Thursday Dec. 1 and
3), and during final exam week (Tuesday and Thursday Dec. 8 and 10). Each student will give a
15 minute presentation on his/her research topic.
 Students will be evaluated based on the quality of the slides (preparation, organization, and
appropriate content) and the quality of the presentation (i.e. delivery of the talk).
 All slides will be submitted to Valerie and Linda on Monday, Nov. 30.
 To prepare for this full presentation, there will be a preview session in which each student
will present a 3-4 slide “snapshot” of his/her talk; tentative date is November 17.
(This gives students a chance to practice speaking in front of this particular group of
students and instructors; we (students and instructors) can offer feedback regarding design
of slides (font size, color, etc) and content, etc.
2. Written research project – This will be due on Monday, November 30. It will include:
a. Report: a detailed overview of the research project. This will contain more information than
each slide, but it should mirror the information that a student presents. In other words, this
could be the “script” or “notecards” that you would use to give the presentation (although by
the end of the semester you will know this material so well that you will not need
notecards!)
b. References: a listing of the citations used directly in the Report section (and the presentation).
c. Annotated bibliography: full, appropriate citations of all articles/information found
throughout the semester on this project, and a brief summary of the relevant information
contained in that article/patent/handbook, etc.
d. Search tools: a description of the tools and paths used to research your topic, explaining how
they were used, and evaluating their effectiveness.
 Students will be evaluated based on quality of the overview, quality of writing, effective use
of research tools, etc….
To be sure you are making progress throughout the semester, there are the following interim
deadlines:
Draft outline due 10/12
Updated outline and draft slides due 10/26
Updated outline, updated slides, draft report due 11/16
Guidelines for the oral presentation:
Content
• Include appropriate background information to explain the importance of the topic.
 Also include current research on the topic.
 Provide the information you discovered in a logical, organized way.
Length
• The talk should be close to 15 minutes in length, with a few minutes for questions, so a total of
approximately 20 minutes. On average, presenters spend approximately one minute per slide
(excluding title and outline) so 15-20 slides would be a good target, although the exact length
can be determined with practice!
Format
• You can use PowerPoint or another presentation software program. All files must be submitted
to Valerie and Linda, so if you are software other than PowerPoint, please check with us to
make sure we can open the files. This is especially important if you will be using Valerie’s
computer to present!
Slides
• Be consistent with background, font, and general format of the slides. Especially avoid
switching between white and black backgrounds.
• Be careful with “fancy” backgrounds: make sure the audience can clearly read the words and
see the pictures on the entire slide.
• Use minimal text! Short phrases and bullet points are better than sentences. You do not want
your audience reading paragraphs while you are talking to them. And your audience does
NOT want to hear you read paragraphs from your slides.
References
• For references, follow the guidelines for references listed in the Journal of the American
Chemical Society (JACS) and The ACS Style Guide.
(An example is shown under the report guidelines.)
• Include the reference on the slide on which the cited information is shown (at the bottom in
smaller font) and as a complete list at the end of the talk.
General tips
• Check the colors, font size, and general appearance early in your preparation. Don’t get
everything almost finalized and then find out the audience cannot see your text.
• An outline/overview slide is helpful to give your audience an idea of where the talk is going. It
is also helpful to the presenter to be sure his/her talk is organized.
• Practice pronunciations. See Valerie or Linda for help, then be consistent throughout your talk!
• Practice! Practice! Practice!
Guidelines for the written report:
Format
All margins (top, bottom, left, right) should be 1 in. All text should be 1.5 spaced, 12 point font.
Please use a formal font such as Times, Arial, etc. If you use a word processing program other
than Microsoft Word, please check with Valerie and Linda to make sure we can open the files.
Length
The Report should be approximately 2-4 pages. The References will probably be about 1 page
or less. The Search Tools should not exceed 2 pages. The Annotated Bibliography has no limit,
and should be several pages.
Report
 Although this will be your “script” for the presentation, it should be a stand-alone document
that is well-organized, using good sentence and paragraph structure, appropriate tone and
formality, and appropriate citations.
 Include appropriate background information and current research, in a logical, organized way.
 For figures and tables, follow the guidelines in JACS.
 The information in the Report must be referenced using the ACS style, i.e. by superscripting
the reference number after the statement. An example follows:
Hemoglobin D Punjab in combination with Hemoglobin S often produces a moderate to
marked form of sickle cell disease.1
(1 in the preceding example refers to the first source listed in References.)
References
 Number references in the order the citations appear in the Report.
 For references, follow the guidelines for references listed in JACS and The ACS Style Guide.
 When applicable, include the name of the search tool used to find a reference (Infotrac, Science
Citation Index, SciFinder, Google, etc.) in square brackets after the reference. An example
follows:
1. Fletcher, T. R.; Rosenfield, R. N. J. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1985, 107, 2203-2212. [Science
Citation Index]
Annotated Bibliography
 This is a list of ALL references used researching the information for the presentation and
report. Some of these might not end up in the final report/presentation!
 Include full citation, following reference guidelines listed in JACS and The ACS Style Guide.
 When applicable, include the name of the search tool used to find a reference (Infotrac, Science
Citation Index, SciFinder, Google, etc.) in square brackets after the reference.
 Provide a brief description of the information contained, or at least the type of information
contained in each article/handbook, etc.
 This section should be in progress during the entire semester; the only part done during the last
week may be the final organization of this section.
Search Tools
 Discuss the search tools that you used for this project.
 Evaluate the various pathways that you followed to the primary literature and explain what was
useful, what was not, and why.
 The Search Tools should not exceed two pages.
Representative Ideas for Research Topics – Chemical Literature Fall 2013
Drug delivery agents (such as transdermal or controlled release)
Immunochemical reagents
Biologically active natural products (select one or a family)
Chemical pollution sensors (need to restrict to a given class of compounds)
Chemical munitions detoxification agents
Arsenic quantification methods
XRF analysis in plants
Evaluating plant responses under environmental stress
Quantifying trace quantities of a pesticide
Use of synthetic biology to detect and/or remediate pollutants
Quantifying various compounds through chemiluminescence
Recent advances in applications of LC/MS
Using NMR to determine protein structure
Select topics used in Fall 2012:
Osteoporosis and bone regeneration techniques
Catalytic converters
Gold nanoparticles
LSD and other hallucinogens
Spectrometric methods for determining water quality
Glycoprotein biomarkers
Anti-cancer effects of tea constituents
Select topics used in Fall 2011:
Lung surfactants
Kevlar
Synthetic hemoglobin
Bioceramics
Fentanyl and transdermal drug delivery
Gene therapy for cancer treatment
Other topics used in recent years:
Fluorinated anesthetics
Vitamin C
Body armor
Effects of sleep deprivation on memory
Biological impact of carbon nanotube exposure
Synthesis of graphene
Porphyrins as photodynamic therapy agents
Leptin
Nanobioelectronics
New generation tuberculosis drugs
Metal antibiotic complexes
Salinosporamide
Tetrodotoxin
Nanotechnology and drug delivery
Related Assignments:
Chem Lit – Homework #3
assigned 9/19; due 9/26
Research project – notebook exercise (record in your research journal)
Decide on a potential topic for your research project. Use a topic from the list; consider a topic from
another class that interests you; or browse through books, journals, catalogs, the various tertiary
sources we discussed, etc. for ideas. (Do NOT use a topic on which you are writing a research paper
in another class.)
This assignment will be used to start your “Research Journal” on Moodle.
Here’s what you need to do:
1. Write what you know about the topic at this point in time, and what you are interested in learning
about it.
This will be the first entry in your research journal, titled HW 3 Starting Point
2. Use at least two of the tertiary sources discussed in class so far, and start your research! In your
research journal, list the sources you used (even if you didn’t find useful information!), explain the
search strategy you applied, and record some of the new information you learned about the topic.
This is also a good time to start your annotated bibliography.
These will be the second and third (or more) entries in your research journal, titled HW Tertiary –
“name of resource”
If diving in a little deeper makes you change your mind about your topic, now is the time to explore
other topics! And repeat this assignment on your new topic.
There will be numerous journal entries based on specific homework assignments. To make it
possible to grade these assignments, PLEASE follow the specific directions regarding titles of
entries.
There will also be numerous journal entries not directly linked to homework assignments. As you
keep working on your research project, this is a convenient way to keep track of the information
you collect, with one entry for each source you use (each journal article, each patent, each
encyclopedia, etc.). This will also enable you to work on your annotated bibliography and search
tools throughout the semester. For these entries, you may label them in whatever way is useful to
you. I would suggest starting with a classification of 3°, 2°, 1°, to help you keep track of your
resources.
Chem Lit – Homework #5
assigned 9/26; due 10/3
Research project – notebook exercise (record in your research journal)
Before leaving class today: Identify at least 2 review articles on your topic using the search
strategies we discussed in class. Record the full reference (ACS style) in your research journal.
Each journal entry should be titled: HW 5 Review - “Something about title”
By Thursday 10/3: Retrieve both of the review articles. After examining each review article,
identify several themes or areas of research relating to your topic, or ideally focusing your topic.
Supplement each research journal entry with the following:
1. Information on how you found the article (database, search terms, truncation, Boolean)
2. How you retrieved the article (SMC holding, ILLiad)
3. Record the themes and areas of research related to your project topic
4. Summarize the information contained in the review article that relates to your project.
(This will support your annotated bibliography)
5. Identify one or more original research articles cited in the review that supports your
project. Provide the full ACS-style reference (for later retrieval)
Chem Lit – Homework #9
assigned 10/17; due 10/22
Research project – notebook exercise (record in your research journal)
Use SciFinder to search for articles on your research topic.
Before leaving class today: Identify at least 2 research articles on your topic using SciFinder.
Record the full reference (ACS style) in your research journal. Each journal entry should be titled:
HW 9 Article – “Something about title”
By next Tuesday 10/22: Retrieve both of the research articles. Supplement each research journal
entry with the following:
1. Information on how you found the article (search terms, truncation, Boolean)
2. How you retrieved the article (SMC holdings, ILLiad)
3. Summarize the information contained in the research article that relates to your project.
(This will support your annotated bibliography)