Summer 2002
7/11/02
For the second consecutive year, the Student Affiliate (SA) of the American Chemical Society from the University of Idaho received a Commendable citation. The award was presented to Kirsten Johnson (r) and Bart Plocher(l) at the National ACS meeting in Orlando Florida on April 7, 2002. Bart and Kirsten also presented a poster at Sci-Mix, on Monday April 8, the society wide interdivisional poster session and mixer which highlights the national meeting, they participated in the session "Successful Student Affiliates Chapters". The poster was entitled "Kids + Chemistry = Fun", and co-authors were students Sharon LaMont, Robin Rogers Jackson, Sarah Weisner, faculty advisor Tom Bitterwolf, and Local Section liaison Nick Natale.
"The SA re-doubled their efforts, and expanded their outreach and service activities this academic year, so look for them to complete the hat-trick next year", predicted Nick Natale.
7/8/02
Below is a recent UI press release regarding our Dr. Nick Natale's laudable activities. The UI link can be found here: http://www.its.uidaho.edu/today/details.asp?id=1738&sctn=news, otherwise a copy follows:
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MOLES SHED LIGHT ON
SCIENCE
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| July 2,
2002 "People of Darkness" is the Navajo translation for mole; the Hosteen mole is considered guardian of the underground, according to one Native American creation myth. MOSCOW -- Just as ancient Zuni mole amulets were thought to enhance hunting, diagnosing disease, or warding off garden marauders, University of Idaho chemistry students have adopted the mole as a mascot for their projects. A mole also is the chemist's unit of measurement and is the abbreviation for molecule. The students' "Periodic Table of the Moles" consists of Native American mole sculptures arranged in a matrix by chemical composition. It has drawn national attention about innovative learning and has given at least one student opportunities to make several national presentations. Education sophomore Feather Broncheau, a Nez Perce tribal member from Kamiah, presented a lecture on the project to the 57th Northwest Regional Meeting of the American Chemical Society in Spokane June 21. As a member of the student affiliate group of the American Chemical Society, she also presented a poster on the outreach program at the 223rd National ACS meeting in Orlando, Florida April 8-9 to more than 14,000 chemists attending. That same week, a project overview was presented at the 44th Annual Meeting of the Idaho Academy of Science at BYU-Idaho in Rexburg. Broncheau is believed to be the first UI Native American undergraduate to make a presentation at a National ACS meeting. Her travel was sponsored by a UI program to Help Orient Indian Students and Teachers (HOIST) in math and science, directed by Isabel Bond. The mole mascot, with the same name as the chemist’s concept for measuring molecules, provides a graphic symbol for thematic posters, T-shirts, contests and the periodic table. The purpose of the metaphor and its broader outreach efforts is to attract greater interests of Native American students in science. While statistics show minorities comprise 23 percent of the American population, only 6 percent are represented in the Science and Engineering labor force, of which less than 1 percent is Native American. The "Periodic table of the Moles" thematic outreach program, co-authored by chemistry professor Nick Natale, has received nominations for Chemluminary Awards at the Washington-Idaho Border Local Section, including "Most Innovative New Activity or Program in a Local Section", "Best Overall Local Section Minority Affairs Committee", and "ACS Student Affiliate Chapter Interaction." The award ceremony will be held at the National American Chemical Society Meeting in Boston Aug. 20. To view the mole periodic table go online to http://oxygen.chem.uidaho.edu/ifcheng/ncw_2001_a_mole_of_art.htm Contacts: Nicholas R. Natale, chemistry professor, (208) 885-6778, nrnatale@uidaho.edu, Isabel Bond, HOIST director, ibond@uidaho.edu; Feather Broncheau, chemistry student, babyrydawg@hotmail.com -30- NH-7/2/02SCIENCE  |
Feather Broncheau (l) and Dr. Nick Natale (r)