Instructor: Dr. R. C. Fort, Jr., 430 Aubert Hall. E-mail: rcfort@maine.edu. Office hours are 12:00 - 1:00 PM Tuesdays and 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM Fridays. Students also are welcome at any other time I am in the office; knock and enter. If I am already with someone else, please extend that person the courtesy of waiting until he or she is finished.

Text: "Organic Chemistry", 5th edition, by Francis Carey. A kit of molecular models also is required. The Study Guide that accompanies the text is available but not required.

Electronic Resources. Feel free to e-mail questions to me at the address above, although personal visits to my office are preferred. You also may post questions on the message board. A Web page for the course is maintained at http://chemistry.umeche.maine.edu/CHY252.html. It contains sample exams, study aids, and other useful but non-essential materials. An electronic message/bulletin board usable by all students also is linked to this page. (Last semester's page is at the same address, /CHY251.html).

Coverage: We will discuss the material of Chapters 9 - 12, and 14 - 20 in sequence. I try to discuss in class the things I consider most important. This does not mean you can ignore things in the text that I do not talk about, but you can give them lower priority. The Study Goals presented in class and available on the Web Page should give you a good indication of how to focus your studying.

Problems: Organic chemistry is problem solving. So are my examinations. Work as nearly all of the problems in the text as possible. As we begin each new topic, I will provide both in class and on the Web Page a list of problems representative of what I will expect you to be able to do on examinations. These are not collected or graded. I encourage you to come to my office with your difficulties in problem solving; however, I will not simply check the correctness of your solutions.

Attendance: I do not take attendance. I do, however, tend to be aware of who is coming to class regularly. I think it highly unlikely that anyone other than an exceptional student can achieve a passing grade by missing class regularly. Students rarely believe this statement, but prove its truth anew each semester. Since I do not require attendance, I do expect that when you are in class you will conduct yourself in an adult manner, paying attention to what is going on, and refraining from talking, eating, reading other materials, or any other disruptive behavior. Once a class session has begun, you may not leave the classroom for any reason without prior permission from me. The behaviors described in the preceding two sentences are rude and distracting, not merely to me, but more importantly, to your classmates who do want to benefit from the classroom experience. I have the authority to drop disruptive persons from the class, and I will exercise it if forced to do so.

Study Buddies: The last time I taught this course, I tried creating Study Groups. This did not work, at least in part because of the variety of schedules in the class. I still think that doing at least part of your studying in a small group, explaining things to each other, is very helpful. Hence, I suggest that those who agree with me use the electronic bulletin board to find an individual or two with whom to study. Post a message indicating the times you are available, and ask interested persons to email you. Room 428 Aubert is available from 4 - 6 PM every day for your use, but, of course, you can work anywhere that is convenient.

Examinations: Three preliminary exams and a final examination will be given. The examinations are scheduled at 6:30 PM on the following dates:

Missing an examination is simply unacceptable. Students who do so will receive a grade of zero for that exam.

Examinations consist of about 200 points in questions requiring short answers, calculations, molecular structures, chemical equations, and so on. In other words, they will look very much like the assigned problems. No multiple guess or true/false questions will be asked.

Grades: The course grade will be the weighted average of the examination grades, subject to the following scale:

I reserve the right to deviate slightly from this scale in response to individual circumstances.

R. C. Fort, Jr.

Professor