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Upcoming Meetings

Tuesday February 25th

Lon J. Mathias

Professor, University of Southern Mississippi

Title: Blended Learning and Polymer Education

Max Christie

Development Associate with Praxair

Title: Fuel Cells: an Industrial Gas Perspective

Education Night

Dr. Frank Giuliano

Associate Professor, Westfield State College

Officers and Staff:

EDITORIAL

Fellow ACS Members, a warm welcome to 2003!

As I write this, a soft light snow is falling - so beautiful, so peaceful. May this New Year bring you peace, beauty, and joy.

The upbeat spirit of our last dinner meeting is still with me - the terrific mix of academic and industrial chemists, active and retired members, spouses, undergrads, grad students and post docs, and students from the Art Conservation program at Buffalo State was electric. I've found these meetings to be not only educational, broadening my experience and knowledge base, but fun, seeing familiar faces and meeting new members as well. The friendliness of Buffalo really shines at our dinner meetings!

If you haven't been to one of our meetings in a while, please join us! And, please sign up early (we had to cancel the December meeting because the caterer wouldn't go forward with only nine reservations). January's meeting needed to be postponed for situations beyond everyone's control. We look forward with bright anticipation to our next meeting in February, when we welcome Lon J. Mathias, who established the Polymer Science Learning Center at the University of Southern Mississippi! April's theme - fuel cells - promises to be a lively one, by Praxair's own Max Christie.

If you have an idea or suggestion for a great dinner meeting, or if you'd like to volunteer as a speaker, let us know.  

Interdisciplinary topics that would appeal to a general audience tend to be wonderfully popular, and our fall schedule is wide open.

If you'd like to be more involved in the ACS but don't know where to start, there are plenty of opportunities, from our well-established programs, including The Chemistry Olympiad, our Education Committee, the Schoelkoeff Medal Dinner, National Chemistry Week, Senior Chemists, and our dinner meeting program, to programs/committees that have yet to be established - Membership, Younger Chemists, Government Relations Representative, and Public Relations. If you're interested, please contact me or the chairs of the standing committees. And a heartfelt thanks to all those volunteers who made 2002 a successful year!

Looking forward to seeing you soon,
Patricia DePra,Chair
pdepra@earthlink.net
(716) 835-1612

   A hearty thanks to Patty Shelley, secretary of the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department at Canisius College. Patty constructs, publishes, and mails our Double Bond each month, and also arranges the logistics of our dinner meetings. Hers is the cheery voice that takes your dinner meeting reservations. Thanks Patty, for a job well done - we appreciate you!

The American Chemical Society Scholars Program

The goal of this scholarship program is to aid in building an awareness of the value and rewards associated with careers in science and to assist students in acquiring skills and credentials needed for success in these areas. The scholarship is designed to encourage African-American, Hispanic, and Native American students to pursue undergraduate college degrees in the chemical sciences. The deadline for receipt of all application materials is February 15, 2003. More information, including application materials, may be found online at http://chemistry.org/scholars.

Those Who Can ... Teach!!

This publication is a 52-page, full-color self-study instructional guide for faculty to use in preparing for classroom instruction. The guide includes: (1) Introduction to Classroom Instruction, (2) Fundamentals of Learning, (3) Methods of Delivering Instruction, and (4) Administration, Evaluation, and Feedback. Each module contains a case study that presents a problem or situation. The guide is cross-disciplinary and easily incorporated into any field of instruction.

Prices:
1-24 copies $15.00/copy
25-499 copies $12.00/copy

American Chemical Society, Phone: 1-800-227-5558 or order Online at www.chemistry.org, click on "Online Store" on "Quick Find" menu.

Matching Gift Fund Program

On August 6, 2002, a milestone was reached in the Society’s Matching Gift Fund (MGF) Program. Gifts and pledges received in 2002 to support eligible Society Programs totaled $880,000. When added to the MGF totals from prior years, this figure brought the amount raised since inception to $5.0 million, which was the limit of the original appropriation authorized by the Board of Directors in December 1994.

Twelve Society Programs - including National Chemistry Week, Project SEED, and the U.S. Chemistry Olympiad - and five endowments have benefited from the success of this fund-raising mechanism. Designed to serve as an incentive to external donors, the MGF Program provided a dollar-for-dollar match from the Society to all nongovernmental contributions of $2,500 or more to designated Society Programs. Donors and program recipients have been uniformly enthusiastic about the Matching Gift Fund Program.

At this time, the prospect of funding for 2003 to allow continuation of the Matching Gift Fund is uncertain. While all pledges made prior to August 6 will be matched through funds from the original appropriation, funds to match new gifts and pledges are among the many budget considerations that will be reviewed by the ACS Board of Directors in December. Despite its success, the MGF Program is subject to the same scrutiny applied to other Society initiatives; and its expense must be contained within the Society's annual budget targets mandated by the Board of Directors. In a recent "Comment" in Chemical & Engineering News (July 29, 2002) entitled "Time for Fiscal Restraint," the Society's current financial status and challenges are described in some detail along with the process that is being used to evaluate current programs and requests for new funding. In conjunction with the preparation of the 2003 Proposed Budget, projected MGF funding needs will be reviewed and a determination will be made as to whether a request to reauthorize the MGF Program is possible.

CAS And ACS Publications Divisions Will Make Early Twentieth Century Research Available Online

Chemical Abstracts records from the early twentieth century will be linked to the ACS Journals Archive, permitting researchers to identify articles of interest in ACS journals back to the first issue of CA in 1907, then link to the full-text articles from ACS. The combined power of these two massive resources will boost their value for researchers, who have eagerly sought the enhancement.

In effect, two complementary ACS projects have been brought together to provide scientists the benefit of advanced information retrieval with the availability of a vast electronic collection of original journal literature. For more information, call 614-447-3731 or send email to help@cas.org.

Chemistry Teachers and Professors

Do you cover a topic in detail that shows how chemistry plays a central role in something in our lives, and is not necessarily common knowledge among chemists? If so, consider adapting your lecture for a dinner meeting talk. We're always on the lookout for local talent and cool chemistry. If you're interested, call Patti DePra Springsteen at 835-1612.

ISSUE COPY DEADLINE: FIRST OF MONTH PRIOR TO PUBLICATION

The Western New York Section of the American Chemical Society and its editors assume no responsibility for the statements and opinions advanced by the contributors. Views expressed in the editorials are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official position of the Western New York Section of the American Chemical Society. All materials to appear in the next issue of the Double Bond must be received by the Editor, in care of the Chemistry Department, Canisius College, 2001 Main Street, Buffalo, New York 14208, by the FIRST day of the month. Notice for change of address should be sent to the editor.

The Double Bond is published monthly from September through June by the WNY Section of the ACS. USPS# 893 86000. Subscriptions: $3/yr. Member subscriptions are included in the annual dues. Advertising rates upon request. Permission to reprint is granted all ACS publications. Office of printer and publication: Canisius College, Buffalo, NY 14208. Postmaster: Send change of address to: P.O. Box 187, Grand Island, NY 14072. Periodical class postage rates at Grand Island, NY 14072-0187.

E-MAIL : dblbond@canisius.edu
WEB PAGE: www.canisius.edu/~dblbond

Visit the Career Resource Center at these ACS regional meetings for an array of professional development programs and services. Features may include an employment clearing house (RECH), career management workshops, one-on-one resume critiques.

Southwest Regional Meeting
November 3-6, Austin, TX
Southeast Regional Meeting
November 13-17, Charleston, SC

For more information, job seekers and employers may visit the ACS website www.chemistry.org/careers/calendar.html or call 1-800-227-5558 x6208.

ACS Expeditions, sponsored by Betchart Expeditions, is also a recent addition to our member benefits. ACS Expeditions offers great trips and learning experiences for the intelligent traveler. Our co-sponsorship with Betchart offers something very few travel programs can: trips to exotic places led by knowledgeable experts-naturalists, archeologists, or anthropologists-who can provide you with insights into your experiences.

The groups are small, so there is plenty of opportunity to ask questions and set your own pace for exploration. The locales are unique, not the standard tourist fare, for those who want to enjoy a once-in-a-lifetime experience rather than just a vacation. These trips are a treasure trove of memories and special moments. Betchart Expeditions has been leading vacationers to the less-traveled parts of the world for two decades.

For a detailed brochure and more information, contact ACS/Betchart Expeditions at 1-800-252-4910 or 1-408-252-4910.

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