IYC 2011 National Initiatives
May 15, 2012 - 11:46am — CCCE Drupal AdminMustafa SOZBILIR
Marie Sklodowska Curie 100 - The French-Polish Accent of the IYC2011
April 13, 2012 - 2:50pm — CCCE Drupal AdminPoland and France decided to celebrate jointly the centenary of the Marie Sklodowska Curie’s Nobel prize in Chemistry (MSC100) within the frame of the IYC2011. In the two countries the IYC led to more than 500 officially listed activities, including numerous actions devoted to Marie Sklodowska Curie, organized by both Polish and French Academies of Sciences, the respective chemical societies together with other national research institutions, numerous universities, the Warsaw and Paris MSC Museums, as well as other scientific institutions in a wide national and international co-operation. The initiatives celebrating the achievements of chemistry and its ambitions for humankind spanned everything from major international scientific congresses, specific national actions up to individual efforts of the youngest schoolchildren. The celebration of the centenary of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to Marie Skłodowska-Curie was officially opened at the Sorbonne in Paris on January 29, 2011 and closed at the Royal Castle in Warsaw on November 25, 2011 under the honorary patronages of the Presidents of the French and Polish Republics. The IYC2011 icon, Marie Skłodowska-Curie, personifies not only the achievements of a woman-scientist, but also the humanitarian aspects of science applications, the social role of education, as well as international cultural links. In all these contexts, the Polish and French celebrations of the IYC2011 highlighted or intensified the initiatives which already have been there, starting from the historical links between the two countries, crowned with the personal involvement of Madame Curie in the organization of the first radiological laboratories and the Radium Institutes both in Paris and Warsaw. A special phenomenon in both countries is a multitude of schools named after Marie Skłodowska-Curie, which cultivate the teaching tradition represented by Marie Skłodowska and her family since the 19th century. The same tradition is continued by leading Polish and French universities and research institutions. Some striking examples of the MSC100 celebration actions developed in Poland and France in 2011 will be presented in the text, together with a particular emphasis on international links and the interdisciplinary character of the research work of Marie Curie.
http://www.chemistry2011.org/participate/activities/show?id=268
Marie Sklodowska Curie – the French-Polish accent of the IYC2011
Barbara Petelenz [a], Janusz Lipkowski [b], Robert Guillaumont [c] and Jean-Pierre Vairon [d]
Abstract
Poland and France decided to celebrate jointly the centenary of the Marie Sklodowska Curie’s Nobel prize in Chemistry (MSC100) within the frame of the IYC2011. In the two countries the IYC led to more than 500 officially listed activities, including numerous actions devoted to Marie Sklodowska Curie, organized by both Polish and French Academies of Sciences, the respective chemical societies together with other national research institutions, numerous universities, the Warsaw and Paris MSC Museums, as well as other scientific institutions in a wide national and international co-operation. The initiatives celebrating the achievements of chemistry and its ambitions for humankind spanned everything from major international scientific congresses, specific national actions up to individual efforts of the youngest schoolchildren. The celebration of the centenary of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to Marie Skłodowska-Curie was officially opened at the Sorbonne in Paris on January 29, 2011 and closed at the Royal Castle in Warsaw on November 25, 2011 under the honorary patronages of the Presidents of the French and Polish Republics. The IYC2011 icon, Marie Skłodowska-Curie, personifies not only the achievements of a woman-scientist, but also the humanitarian aspects of science applications, the social role of education, as well as international cultural links. In all these contexts, the Polish and French celebrations of the IYC2011 highlighted or intensified the initiatives which already have been there, starting from the historical links between the two countries, crowned with the personal involvement of Madame Curie in the organization of the first radiological laboratories and the Radium Institutes both in Paris and Warsaw. A special phenomenon in both countries is a multitude of schools named after Marie Skłodowska-Curie, which cultivate the teaching tradition represented by Marie Skłodowska and her family since the 19th century. The same tradition is continued by leading Polish and French universities and research institutions. Some striking examples of the MSC100 celebration actions developed in Poland and France in 2011 will be presented in the text, together with a particular emphasis on international links and the interdisciplinary character of the research work of Marie Curie.
Introduction
Poland and France decided to celebrate jointly the centenary of the Marie Sklodowska Curie’s Nobel prize in Chemistry (MSC100), making it a special accent of the International Year of Chemistry (IYC2011). The MSC100 opening ceremony took place at the Sorbonne on January 29, 2011, and the closing ceremony was arranged at the Royal Castle in Warsaw on November 25, 2011. The MSC100 celebrations - under the honorary patronages of the Presidents of the French and Polish Republics [1] - were organized by the National Committee for Chemistry of the French Academy of Sciences [2] and the French Society of Chemistry [3], together with the Committee for Chemistry of the Polish Academy of Sciences [4] and the Polish Chemical Society [5]. The opening [6] and closing ceremonies gathered a multitude of famous people, including the grand-children of Madame Curie – Doctors Hélène Langevin-Joliot and Pierre Joliot – as well as several Nobel Prize winners [7]. The number of French and Polish events organized during the year 2011 was impressive [8]. Some of them will be highlighted below.
“I was born in Warsaw into a family of professors. I married Pierre Curie...” [9]
The Freta street in Warsaw; on the left-hand side – the house where Marie Skłodowska-Curie was born in 1867 [10]
The house where Marie Skłodowska-Curie lived with her daughters Irene and Eve in Sceaux, France, from 1907 to 1912, after the tragic death of Pierre Curie (1859-1906).10
Launching of the IYC2011 on January 27-28, 2011 was preceded by publication of a special issue of Chemistry International, the IUPAC news magazine, dedicated to Marie Skłodowska-Curie[11]. It was edited by a team of French and Polish scientists representing disciplines which emerged and ramified in relation to the discoveries made by Marie Skłodowska-Curie. The biographical note was written by Madame Curie’s granddaughter, Hélène Langevin-Joliot.
Generally, the year 2011 abounded in publications dedicated to Marie Skłodowska-Curie [12]. The special issues of scientific and general public journals referred mainly to her work [13], whereas a historical magazine focused on Poland and France at the times of Marie Skłodowska-Curie [14]. Among the important biographical documents which appeared in France and in Poland in relation to MSC100 were the new editions of the autobiographical books [15] and the choice of letters exchanged between Marie Curie and her daughters, Irène and Ève [16].
January 2011. A special issue of Chemistry International (IUPAC) commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry of Marie Skłodowska-Curie (in English)
February 2011. A special issue of the magazine La Recherche dedicated to the scientific heritage of Marie Skłodowska-Curie (in French)
June 2011. A special issue of the historical monthly dedicated to Poland and France at the times of Marie Skłodowska-Curie (in Polish)
Since the very beginning, the IYC2011 and MSC100 celebrations were accompanied with numerous exhibitions documenting the Polish and French contexts of Marie Skłodowska-Curie’s biography [17]: her youth spent under political coercion in partitioned Poland [18], her university studies at the Sorbonne, her Polish and French family links, her research work and her war effort in France, and on the top of this – the unique contribution of Marie and Pierre Curie to the development of science and the role of Marie-Skłodowska-Curie’s discoveries in beneficial applications of radioactivity.
Permanent exhibitions dedicated to Marie Skłodowska-Curie, located at the Curie Museum in Paris and at the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Museum and the former Radium Institute in Warsaw [19], have been available to the public for many years. The MSC100 celebrations brought a lot of new exhibitions, touring in some cases, prepared either in bilateral Polish-French cooperation [20] or as local initiatives. For instance, the City of Warsaw arranged a tourist track ‘in the footsteps of Marie Skłodowska-Curie’ and an educational path located at the front of the former Radium Institute in Warsaw. The academic community of Cracow, Poland, showed several displays of artworks [21] and rare original documents [22] preserved in private collections and university archives. Similar and numerous initiatives (tourist tracks, exhibitions, theatre performances, movies, conferences, etc.) were engaged as well in Paris as in all regions of France, aiming at a wide opening towards the young people and the general public. They are available on the French web site dedicated to the celebration of Marie Skłodowska-Curie’s Nobel prize (see Ref. 6). An MSC celebration stamp was edited in France in January 2011. Another stamp commemorating Marie Skłodowska-Curie’s Nobel Prize for Chemistry – edited simultaneously in Poland and Sweden – was launched at the MSC100 closing ceremony in Warsaw.
“... I did my scientific work in France”
Many speakers of the MSC100 celebrations emphasized the traditional cultural links between Poland and France. Nowadays, this tradition is carried on by the Scientific Centre of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Paris [23] and by the French Institutes in Poland [24]. Marie Skłodowska-Curie, who spent her whole professional life in Paris, contributed a great deal to reinforce these links by her involvement in organization of Radium Institutes in Paris and in Warsaw [25]. The merits of the Polish-born scientist received the highest appreciation of her adopted homeland, France: since 1995 the relics of Marie and Pierre Curie lay in the Pantheon in Paris. A visit to the tomb of Marie Skłodowska-Curie was a must for all people who were coming to Paris for the MSC100 celebrations.
Curie model
Several MSC100 lecturers spoke about the role played by Marie Skłodowska-Curie in the development of radiation oncology [26]. Most of them emphasised the attitude launched by Madame Curie, according to which the fundamental research in radiation physics and chemistry is a key prerequisite to the innovative patient’s care. This approach, known as the Curie model, was the main subject of several international congresses held in 2011 [27].
Considerable energy
A long-term consequence of Marie Skłodowska-Curie’s research [28] was the development of nuclear power industry, in which respect France is a world’s leader. Since 2009, the French experts share their experience with Polish specialists who aim at installation of nuclear power plants (NPP) in Poland. During MSC100 several international seminars on nuclear energy [29], [30] as well as educational actions addressed to the wide public [31] were organized in the French-Polish cooperation.
1911 Nobel Prize for Chemistry
The MSC100 celebrations were inspired by the centenary of the Nobel Prize for Chemistry awarded to Marie Skłodowska-Curie in recognition of the importance of her discovery of polonium and radium. A symbolic highlight of this anniversary was the 54th Congress of the Polish Chemical Society, held just at the Marie Curie-Skłodowska University in Lublin [32]. The impact of Madame Curie’s research on the development of chemistry was a subject of several plenary lectures given during the MSC100 opening and closing ceremonies [33]. Contribution of Madame Curie to the development of physics was emphasised too [34].
Lessons of Marie Curie
The MSC100 celebrations abounded in educational initiatives addressed at schoolchildren and university students. The most solemn one was the January 29, 2011 afternoon session at the Sorbonne, where the young people could address their questions to the top-notch scientists invited to the celebrations. But the educational ‘work at foundations’ belonging to the Polish positivist tradition represented by Marie Skłodowska-Curie [35] has been carried out by a multitude of schools, universities and research institutions in France and Poland for many years preceding MSC100. In 2011 these activities were intensified. A great attraction of MSC100 were the numerous competitions and science festivals addressed at young people in both countries. [36]
Science festival in Cracow, May 2011
Role model
The example of Marie Skłodowska-Curie is particularly attractive to other women-scientists. The presence of women in the modern scientific community was pointed out at the international session “Women in Science”, held at the Royal Castle in Warsaw on 25 November 2011. The honorary chairperson of the session was Prof. Ada Yonath, the winner of the 2009 Nobel Prize for Chemistry. The first lecture on the session was given by Prof. Nicole Moreau, the president of the IUPAC.
Disclaimer
The size of this review did not allow us to present the full list of Polish-French activities related to MSC100. All possible omissions are unintentional.
References
[a] Poland, The Henryk Niewodniczański Institute of Nuclear Physics, Polish Academy of Sciences
e-mail: Barbara.Petelenz@ifj.edu.pl
[b] Poland, Institute of Physical Chemistry and Committee for Chemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences
e-mail: janusz.lipkowski@ichf.edu.pl
[c] France, French Academy of Sciences, National Committee for Chemistry
e-mail: robert.guillaumont0663@orange.fr
[d] France, University P. & M. Curie, National Committee for Chemistry
e-mail: jean-pierre.vairon@upmc.fr
[1] Mr Nicolas Sarkozy and Mr Bronisław Komorowski, respectively
[2] Académie des Sciences – Institut de France, Comité National de la Chimie
[3] Société Chimique de France, http://www.societechimiquedefrance.fr/
[5] http://en.ptchem.pl/ (2012-05-04)
[6] Video records in French, Polish and English are available at http://www.dailymotion.com/playlist/x1mdgr_Palais_de_la_decouverte_confe...
[7] Ada Yonath, Nobel Prize for Chemistry 2009; Yuan Tseh Lee, Nobel Prize for Chemistry 1986; Jean Marie Lehn, Nobel Prize for Chemistry 1987; Claude Cohen- Tannoudji, Nobel Prize for Physics 1997.
[8] http://msc100.eu/Les-projets (2012-05-04) http://www.komchem.pan.pl/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=6... (2012-05-04)
http://sklodowska.um.warszawa.pl/en/page/schedule-ceremonies (2012-04-20)
[9] The quotation comes from the most concise CV written by M. Skłodowska-Curie
[10] The pictures come from the archives of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Museum in Warsaw,
http://muzeum-msc.pl/, and from the blog of Le Monde, http://sceaux.blog.lemonde.fr/2012/05/16/la-maison-de-marie-curie-un-tem...
[11] Chemistry International 33/1 (2011)
[12] See e.g. H. Langevin-Joliot – Fates of a special family (in Polish). Orbital (ISSN 1231-2002) 6 (2011) 309.
[13] See e.g.
Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry 400/6 (2011) 1543-1545, DOI: 10.1007/s00216-011-4938-y
La Recherche, 42/Hors-Serie, Feb 2011, 4-79
[14] Mówią Wieki Nr 6 (617) 2011; a special number published under the honorary patronage of the French Embassy in Poland and the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education.
[15] Maria Skłodowska Curie. ‘Autobiographical notes’ and ‘Pierre Curie’. 2nd edition, versions in English, French and Polish. GAL 2009, in co-operation of the Polish Chemical Society and the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Museum in Warsaw.
M. Skłodowska-Curie – ‘Autobiographical notes’ and ‘Pierre Curie’. Galant Edition, Warszawa 2011.
[16] ‘Marie Curie et ses filles: lettres’ (in French), edited by H. Langevin-Joliot and M. Bordry, Pygmalion (Flammarion) 2011;
‘Maria Curie i córki. Listy’ (in Polish). Publicat (Wydawnictwo Dolnośląskie) 2011.
[17] See, e.g.
E. Curie, ‘Madame Curie: A Biography’, simultaneously published in France, Britain, Italy, Spain, the United States and other countries, first edition 1937;
F. Giroud, ‘Une femme honorable. Marie Curie – une vie’, Fayard 1982;
S. Quinn, ‘Marie Curie: A Life’, Simon & Schuster 1995;
B. Goldsmith, ‘Marie Curie, Portrait intime d’une femme d’exception’, Gallimard, 2006.
[18] For historical details see e.g.
Norman Davies. ‘The Heart of Europe: Short History of Poland’. Oxford University Press 1984.
[19] Now: the oldest part of the Centre of Oncology – Institute Memorial to Marie Skłodowska-Curie, Poland
[20] The main multilingual exhibition dedicated to Marie Skłodowska-Curie was shown for the first time during the IYC launching at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris on January 27-28, 2011.
[21] Stamps, coins, banknotes and medals from private collections of Prof. Jerzy Bartke from the Institute of Nuclear Physics in Cracow, Poland. The first of several exhibitions was organized in March 2011 at the Jagiellonian Library in Cracow. The MSC stamps collection of Prof. Daniel Rabinovitch from UNC Charlotte, USA, was presented at the closing ceremony, Warsaw, November 2011
[22] March 2011, Institute of Physics, Jagiellonian University (UJ); May-June 2011, Museum of the UJ; December 2011-February 2012, University of Science and Technology AGH
[23] The Centre, which now belongs to the Polish Academy of Sciences, was established in 1893; http://www.academie-polonaise.org (2012-04-18).
In the evening of January 28, 2011, the Director of the Station, Prof. Jerzy Pielaszek, a chemist who was deeply engaged in the organization of the MSC binational event, gave a welcome party for the eminent French and Polish participants of the MSC100 and IYC2011 opening celebrations.
[25] Radium Institute in Paris: http://en.parisinfo.com/museum-monuments/661/musee-curie-institut-du-radium
Radium Institute in Warsaw: http://www.curie.org.pl/pl/frames_pl.html
[26] Professors A. Aurengo, C. Huriet, and M. Krawczyk, at the Sorbonne on January 29, 2011. See Ref. 6
[27] 14th International Congress of Radiation Research, Warsaw, Poland, August 28 - September 1, 2011 http://www.icrr2011.org/ (2012-04-23);
International Conference on Medical Physics and Engineering on ‘Physics and Engineering for health and Wellness of Society’, Poznań, September 21-24, 2011 http://www.fizmed2011.amu.edu.pl/info.html
(2012-04-23)
[28] Pierre Curie who measured heat emitted by radium samples described its amounts as ‘considerable’ (cf. P.Curie & A. Laborde, Comptes Rendus 1903).
Marie and Pierre Curie were the first ones to deduce that radioactive atoms must be very rich in energy.
[30] 1st International Nuclear Energy Congress, Warsaw, May 23-24, 2011 http://nuclear.ucbzse.edu.pl/2011/en
and the Seminar on GEN IV reactors (organized by the AREVA company and the Warsaw University of Technology), Warsaw, May 25, 2011
[31] 15th Scientific Picnic, Warsaw, May 28, 2011; http://www.se.pl/piknik-naukowy,31963/ (2012-04-24)
[32] 54th congress of PTChem & SITPChem at UMCS, Lublin, Poland 18-22.09.2011
[33] Professors P. Radvanyi, R. Guillaumont, and M. Kleiber, at the Sorbonne on January 29, 2011. See Ref. 6
[34] Professor A.K. Wróblewski at the MSC100 closing ceremony in Warsaw on November 25, 2011 and at many other places in Poland and abroad during 2011.
[35] Lessons of Marie Curie. French original: ‘Leçons de Marie Curie. Recueuillies par Isabelle Chavannes en 1907’. Editions EDP Sciences, Les Ulis 2003; Polish edition: ‘Lekcje Marii Skłodowskiej-Curie’, WSiP, Warszawa 2004.
[36] See e.g.
http://festiwalnauki2011.ur.krakow.pl/program-sobota-14-05.html (2012-04-24)
Global Stamp Competition: Chemistry as a Cultural Enterprise
April 13, 2012 - 2:42pm — CCCE Drupal AdminThe IUPAC Committee on Chemistry Education (CCE) organized the Global Stamp Competition for students and undergraduates that shows Chemistry as Cultural Enterprise. The project asked students to design a stamp that highlights the impact of chemistry on their country’s culture and everyday life; the goal being to foster better understanding and appreciation of chemistry as a human and cultural enterprise. Students were required to present their stamps with an explanation (in English) and complete their submission on a web platform. The competition was launched with our partners in Paris last January during the IYC 2011 opening ceremony at UNESCO Headquarters.
The competition was open to students in 3 age categories (12-14, 15-18 and undergraduates) from all subjects, not only chemistry. By the submission deadline of June 15, 2011, 247 designs have been submitted from 18 different countries! Students from 15-18 uploaded most and the competition was most popular in Asia Pacific. Designs were judged for their artistic value, how well they showed the relationship between chemistry and the national/regional culture, and the quality of the description. Winners and runners up have been awarded and presented in Chem Int (Nov 2011 issue) and a selection of the best designs were on display at the IYC closing ceremony in Brussels on Dec1, 2011.
http://www.iupac.org/project/project/2010-031-2-050
http://www.iupac.org/publications/ci/2011/3306/8_stamp_competition.html
Global Stamp Competition: Chemistry as a Cultural Enterprise
by Lida Schoen and Christiane Reiners
CCE organised the Global Stamp Competition for students and undergraduates to show Chemistry as Cultural Enterprise (CCE). The stamps are required to highlight the impact of chemistry on a country’s culture and everyday life.
We launched the competition with our partners in Paris last January during the IYC 2011 opening ceremony at UNESCO Headquarters.
Organisation and Results
The competition was open to students in 3 age categories (12-14, 15-18 and undergraduates) from all subjects, not only chemistry! Students uploaded their designs to a moderated publication platform, that allowed moderated peer review (not active anymore).
After the deadline for submissions (June 15, 2011), we counted 247 designs from 18 different countries! Students from 15-18 uploaded most. The competition was most popular in Asia Pacific.
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All entries: 24 |
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7The use of the peer review possibility (mainly -very- positive) started later and we suppose many students used social media to alert each other.
Nominees
The international jury consisted of Prof. Morton Hoffman (CCE NR USA, ACS), Dr. Rachel Mamlok-Naaman (CCE NR Israel), Dr. Lynn Hogue (ACS), Datuk Dr. Soon Ting Kueh (CCE NR Malaysia, IKM, FACS), Dr. Anthony Smith (EC2E2N), Dr. Harry Kelly (GlaxoSmithKline) and Prof. Daniel Rabinovich (USA, stamp expert).
Criteria
- The design should clearly show the relationship between chemistry and the national/regional culture, so no general history of chemistry, no famous chemists / Nobel laureates, unless born in the country, e.g. no Bohr from outside Denmark and no Periodical System unless from Russia.
- The quality of the description (max. 50 words), number of hits and number and quality of the peer reviews (quite a few of them in the national languages, also in non-Latin characters).
- No stereotypes like a nerd professor and no bad sides of chemistry (in general) like pollution and toxic substances, they already get enough attention in the media (very few entries).
- Many designs looked more like (beautiful) posters or water colours than like stamps. Our stamp expert suggested we had better choose designs, that are suitable as a (real) stamp.
The jury published a list with 56 nominees (650 hits), students apparently still looked on the publication platform. During 2 long and ‘difficult’ meetings we selected winners and runners-up.
Winners and runners-up
12-14: Vasilena Vasileva (14) from SOU Hristo Botev, Gorna Malina, Bulgaria
15-18: Muzhafar Hassan Ismail (17) from Mara Junior Science College Taiping, Malaysia
Undergraduates: Peter Yousef M. Rubio (18) from Santo Tomas University, Manila, Philippines
Runners-up (15-18) from Cyprus, Malaysia and USA.
Due to generous support of GlaxoSmithKline winners received $500 and runners-up $250.
Peer review on the winners sites
Vasilena Vasileva (Bulgaria), winner 12-14 age category: 10045 hits, 109 comments
Congratulations, Vasi! The best stamp published so far is yours!
Posted 16:29 on 10 Jun 2011 by Kirilka Stankova
Muzhafar Hassan Ismail (Malaysia), winner 15-18 age category: 2886 hits, 78 comments
.... For years this source of nature has contributed to the emergence of a more and more powerful nation on the planet. With the help of chemistry.
Posted 17:59 on 7 Jun 2011 by Erny Trota
Peter Yuosef M. Rubio (Philippines), winner undergraduates: 680 hits, 86 comments
Very nice. This is what the Philippines is known for. The message is clear, although as for the image quality, the overlaying of the pictures could be improved.
Posted 04:05 on 17 Jun 2011
Official Closing Ceremony in Brussels and follow-up
A selection of the best designs was on show in our Global Stamp Competition booth, which attracted during the breaks many delegates, including IUPAC president Prof. Nicole Moreau.
Vasilena Vasileva (Bulgaria) received her prize from Lida Schoen on November 8, 2011 in a ceremony in her school.
We got a unique chance to combine the prize giving ceremony with a YAC activity (another IYC 2011 idea and long running CCE project) in the winner’s class with her teachers (Science and English). English teacher Kirilka Stankova took the initiative to let her students participate in the IYC 2011 international competition. A good example of integrating subjects on secondary school level and thus popularising chemistry as meaningful content during English lessons! The YAC activity and the whole were covered by a local TV station.
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Practical work in Vasi’s class room |
All students, teachers and officials (Headmaster, Inspection, Ministry of Education, Mayor of Gorna Malina) at the Closing Ceremony at the school yard |
IKM Malaysia offered an additional prize to the winner and runner-up. The Society honoured the students with invitations for the Annual Meeting on December 9, 2011.
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The Honourable Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, YB Datuk Seri Panglima Dr Maximus Johnity Ongkili, attended Malam Kimia at the Sime Darby Convention Centre offering the prizes and certificates to competition prize winner and runner-up Muzhafar Hassan Ismail (left) and Luqman Safwan Che Fauzi (right), both in the 15-18 age category. Far right Datuk Dr. Soon Ting-Kueh, president of IKM. |
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Peter Yousef Rubio's winning design (undergraduate category) was presented during the Coconut Week Celebration of the Philippine Coconut Authority-Department of Agriculture on August 25-28, 2011 in the SM Megatrade Hall in Manila in the Philippines. He will get an invitation as guest of honour for the conference dinner during the next Annual Conference of the Philippine Chemical Society.
Mariam El-Agamy, School Principal Lycée La Liberté d’Alexandrie, Egypt, sent a picture of all nominees from the school in Alexandria with their certificates.
Customised stamps
Cyprus issued a customised stamp with the runners-up design.
The Netherlands did the same with the Dutch winning (nominated) students’ design (Hofstad Lyceum, the Hague) by Dutch National Postal Services.
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Cypriot customised stamps of runner-ups Stavrou Maria, Spyrou Chrisia and Stylianou Chrysovalento |
Dutch winning designers: Dragana Caldrmoski en Poeja Lachman with their certificates |
Dutch customised stamps of the winning Dutch design |
Summary and recommendations
Students of all ages like global competitions. After the closing date we got many questions about new competitions, where to find and when!
The main challenge for the organisers, apart from getting funding (IUPAC CCE and GlaxoSmithKline), was to let students know. Publicising on different sites (IYC 2011, IUPAC, the Science Across the World and FactWorld sites) didn’t have effect. Apparently students and teachers don’t pay attention to these media. Next we tried to get interviews and publications in Journals of Chemical Societies and (Chemistry) Teachers Associations with more effect. But best worked personal global contacts (IUPAC and SAW). Quite a few teachers and professors turned the competition into a class room activity, that after submission of the different designs also generated a lot of peer review.
Acknowledgements
The challenge before we could turn the IYC 2011 idea into announcing the competition was the funding for traveling to the opening and closing ceremonies of the International Year of Chemistry. In Paris we launched the competition and in Brussels we showed the results (CCE project).
Jeff Howson, manager of the Making The News (MTN), a British educational site, offered us to use the publication platform version without any costs, since MTN2 was launched in 2011.
And for prizes for the winners GlaxoSmithKline (via the European Chemistry and Chemical Engineering Education Network: EC2E2N) helped us.
The continuing celebration of IYC 2011: What the IUPAC Polymer Division is doing to keep things going
April 13, 2012 - 2:15pm — CCCE Drupal AdminThe IUPAC polymer division regards the International Year of Chemistry as a starting point for ongoing engagement with the public to better communicate the important role of polymer chemistry in serving society. Prior to that we had started a division education website to distribute the contents of an educational CD focused on polymers. This website became our principal tool for IYC activities including: a video and essay contest aimed at high school and university students, an international funding call, a list of polymer division sponsored IYC events and conferences. In addition, it provides links to educational websites around the world, videos related to famous polymer scientists and polymer division award winners, and simple definitions of common polymer terms.
This presentation will discuss the results of the student competition and what we learned from it, the international funding call and how it is helping national funding agencies develop best practices for multinational research programs and the most successful aspects of the educational website. An assessment involving use tracking and surprises regarding what are the most accessed aspects of the website will be presented.
http://www.chemistry2011.org/participate/activities/show?id=1139
http://www.chemistry2011.org/participate/activities/show?id=100
Celebrating the Role of Polymers in Society during the International Year of Chemistry
As focal point of our celebration of the international year of chemistry, the Polymer Division of the IUPAC has held an International contest entitled “A World Without Polymers?” The contest was addressed to university and high-school students in each of the 60 countries of the national adhering and associate adhering organizations of the IUPAC. The contest invited submission of either a video or an essay on the theme of “A World Without Polymers?”, that is, how the world might be if, as absurd as it may sound, there were no polymers in either today’s or in the future world. The objective of this activity was to encourage a greater understanding by the public of the significance of polymers to everyone’s quality of life. The target audience was the general public, teachers and students where instead such appreciation is lacking and the widespread use of polymers is taken for granted.
The polymer division contacted polymer societies around the globe to help in publicizing this event and received numerous entries for both the essay and video competition. After selection by a panel of distinguished polymer chemists, 3 winning videos and 3 winning essays were selected. These are posted on the IUPAC Polymer Education website found at: http://www.iupac.org/polyedu/page30/page40/styled-13/index.html.
The winners in the video category are:
1. Y.C.S. Lann, First Place Video (Asia)
Yvonne Choo Shuen Lann is a Malaysian high school student who has just completed her Matriculation. She is now pursuing her first-year degree in Pure Chemistry at Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) as of September 2011.
2. A. Gomes and team, Second Place Video (Europe)
Andre was part of a group of 5 teenagers that just wanted to have some fun while studying polymers for Chemistry class, and ended up making their own video contribution for the IYC 2011.
3. C. Newby & M. Kunkel, Third Place Video (North America)
This video was written and edited by Melissa Kunkel, a junior at Cornell University majoring in Materials Science and Engineering. Carol Newby is a graduate student and she helped film the movie and did some of the voiceovers.
The winners in the essay category are:
1. C. Stenman, “A World Without Polymers” (Europe)
Charlotte is a high school student in Sweden and contributed one of several entries from her English class.
2. E.O. Peter, “A World Without Polymers” (Africa)
Emmanuel Ochoche Peter was born at Adoka, in Otukpo LGA of Benue State Nigeria. In 2009 he proceeded for his Master‘s Degree in Analytical Chemistry at the Bayero University Kano (BUK), Kano State Nigeria.
3. Bérengère Escuyer et al., “It was a really great morning” (Europe)
Bérengère and her team have graduated high school and are in the midst of further chemistry studies, largely planning for careers in industry.
Each winning entry earned a 12 month subscription to Chemistry International and a copy of the IUPAC Polymer Division Purple Book. The 1st place winners in each category were invited to attend the World Chemical Congress in San Juan, Puerto Rico on Tuesday, August 2, 2011. A formal ceremony was held at the Symposium for Younger Polymer Chemists and the 6 winning individuals and groups were announced.
We were fortunate to have Yvonne Lann take part in the ceremony. Also in attendance were her family and members of the Malaysian delegation. During the ceremony officiated by Christopher Ober, then President of the IUPAC Polymer Division, Yvonne made a few comments on the creation of her video and held a showing of her video which was enjoyed by all in attendance. The ceremony was recorded and can be found along with her video at: http://www.iupac.org/polyedu/page42/styled-14/styled-15/index.html.
As a sign of how social media is changing interactions, Yvonne met the winner of the Physical and Biophysical Division (I) Student Chemistry Cartoon Competition, Jessica Hough, on Facebook and the two winners spent time together at the World Chemical Congress attending talks on energy and sustainability.
All of this activity was managed through the Division’s Polymer Education Website. This website was created in 2004 as a means of sharing the contents of an educational CD describing polymer chemistry. The site is now designed to provide a means to communicating with teachers, students and the public about polymer chemistry and its benefit to society. The site has now grown to include information and definitions related to polymer chemistry, links to other educational websites, educational videos that relate to polymer chemistry, and advanced courses in polymer chemistry offered by partner organizations. For the IYC two additional sections of the website were developed. The first was related to the polymer division’s international funding call. For IYC, a funding call was introduced in partnership with the Committee on Chemical Research Funding (CCRF) to fund and study best practices in multi-country (3 or more) collaborations related to polymer chemistry. This successful competition provides research funds for 7 programs at a total amount of ~ $7M over a 3 year period. In addition a page related to IYC activities and the video/essay contest was developed. The number of visits to the website was tracked and it was found that the IYC activities were a significant attraction to the website and increased overall traffic to the site.
Our experience with the video/essay competition and the success of these efforts have encouraged us to continue our activities beyond IYC. Our division plans to hold a video/essay competition again this upcoming year. We are also working with CCRF to take the experience we gained with the international funding call and to identify new funding topics.
Front 3 (l to r): Mrs. Lann, Yvonne Lann, Zuriati Zakaria; back (l to r): Jung-Il Jin, Dennis Smith, Mr. Lann, Christopher Ober, Robert Stepto, Majda Zigon and Ting-Kueh Soon.
Visualizing and Understanding the Science of Climate Change
April 13, 2012 - 12:38pm — CCCE Drupal AdminUnderstanding and responding to global climate change is one of the defining challenges of the 21st century. Barraged by contradictory messages, many don’t have the right tools to see and understand the complex connections between human activity and our changing climate.
This IUPAC/UNESCO project was created as an International Year of Chemistry legacy to highlight connections between chemistry and sustainability. It brings together scientists and educators from the IUPAC Committee on Chemistry Education, The King’s Centre for Visualization in Science (KCVS, Canada), The Royal Society of Chemistry (UK), American Chemical Society (USA), UNESCO, and the Federation of African Societies of Chemistry to develop a set of 9 critically reviewed, interactive modules, web-based materials for global dissemination to help students visualize and understand the underlying science of climate change.
Target audiences are (a) teachers at the secondary and first year tertiary levels, (b) students at those same levels, and (c) chemistry professionals. Visualizations emphasize the fundamental science of climate processes, and make overt connections to chemistry curriculum. The first 8 modules were launched during the International Year of Chemistry, and the final lesson focusing on where we go from here will go live by July 2012.
During the virtual conference we invite discussion about the sustainability legacy of IYC, the explainingclimatechange.com resource, and welcome ideas for promoting broad dissemination to educators, students, and the public, and integrating climate science into chemistry curriculum.
ConfChem Article abstract
Visualizing and Understanding the Science of Climate Change
Peter Mahaffy, Brian Martin & Anna Schwalfenberg,*
The King’s Centre for Visualization in Science, The King’s University College, Edmonton, AB Canada T6B 2H3
Contact: peter.mahaffy@kingsu.ca; brian.martin@kingsu.ca
*The complete list of IUPAC/UNESCO project participants and contributors to the development of visualizations is given at the end of this paper.
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Understanding and responding to global climate change is one of the defining challenges of the 21st century. Barraged by contradictory messages, many don’t have the right tools to see and understand the complex connections between human activity and our changing climate.
This IUPAC/UNESCO project was created as an International Year of Chemistry legacy to highlight connections between chemistry and sustainability. It brings together scientists and educators from the IUPAC Committee on Chemistry Education, The King’s Centre for Visualization in Science (KCVS, Canada), The Royal Society of Chemistry (UK), American Chemical Society (USA), UNESCO, and the Federation of African Societies of Chemistry to develop a set of 9 critically reviewed, interactive modules, web-based materials for global dissemination to help students visualize and understand the underlying science of climate change.
Target audiences are (a) teachers at the secondary and first year tertiary levels, (b) students at those same levels, and (c) chemistry professionals. Visualizations emphasize the fundamental science of climate processes, and make overt connections to chemistry curriculum. The first 8 modules were launched during the International Year of Chemistry, and the final lesson focusing on where we go from here will go live by July 2012.
The Lessons
Each lesson contains interactive visualizations that allow students to investigate actual climate data or develop a conceptual understanding of the scientific principles and processes underlying climate change. Throughout the lessons students are asked to critically engage with the material through worked examples and assessment items.
Note: Each of the Images Links to the Actual Lesson
To prime the discussion of climate change science Lesson 1 -Introduction to Earth’s Climate clarifies the concept of climate (as opposed to weather), examines the factors that make earth’s climate unique and introduces the idea of differences in climate occurring over time.
Lesson 2 - Is Climate Change Happening? delves further into earth’s historical climate record, showing how data collected from ice core samples is analyzed to provide an understanding of ancient temperatures and greenhouse gas concentrations. Attention is drawn to the correlation between greenhouse gas concentrations and global average temperature.
In Lesson 3 - Heating it Up: The Chemistry of the Greenhouse Effect, the atmospheric chemistry of greenhouse gases is explained. The conceptual foundation necessary to understand collisional heating is established through a molecular level discussion of temperature, properties of gases and their interaction with electromagnetic radiation.
Earth’s radiation balance is examined in Lesson 4 - Climate: A Balancing Act, placing the absorption of infrared radiation by greenhouse gases in the context of other factors that affect incoming and outgoing radiation, including aerosols and earth’s albedo.
Taking a step back to look at the bigger picture Lesson 5 – Global Issues: The Impact of Climate Change consists of five engaging case studies that showcase the current and future effects of climate change on polar regions, coral reefs, vector borne disease, extreme weather and biodiversity
Lesson 6 – Greenhouse Gases: A Closer Look introduces the major greenhouse gases present in our atmosphere: water vapour, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and CFCs. Natural and anthropogenic sources of the gases are examined and their global warming potentials are explained.
In Lesson 7 –Climate Feedback Loops the concepts of positive and negative feedback loops are introduced and used to explain the various feedback loops that are an integral part of earth’s climate system. Feedback cycles that affect atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide, water vapour and methane are discussed.
Lesson 8 – Climate Change and the Oceans investigates the role of the world’s oceans in regulating climate and the effect that increasing carbon dioxide concentrations are having on ocean pH and the resultant implications for carbon speciation in the ocean ecosystem (see example below).
Lesson 9 – What Now? Mitigation of Climate Change will go live in July 2012. It will consist of an overview of potential strategies for adaptation and mitigation of climate change and will facilitate a discussion of how we should respond, individually and collectively, to the challenges posed by climate change.
Example of Interactive Visualization
A significant portion of human-generated carbon dioxide is finding its way into the world’s oceans where it affects the balance of carbon species in the ocean as outlined in the following equilibria: 
This alteration of ocean chemistry is subtle, but has significant ramifications for ocean biodiversity. As CO2 is absorbed into the ocean increased production of carbonic acid (H2CO3) is accompanied by an increase in acidity and decrease in pH of the oceans. In turn, this causes a shift in the speciation of carbon, leading to lower carbonate (CO32-) ion concentrations. Marine organisms such as corals and molluscs require carbonate to form their shells, and the aquatic food chain is sensitive to carbon speciation. The decrease in ocean pH and changes in carbon speciation have important implications for the ability of certain sea creatures to form solid shells.
However, by simply looking at the set of equilibrium involved in regulating ocean pH the net result of changing atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations on the levels of the other carbon species in the oceans is not readily apparent. An interactive visualization, shown in figure 3, was developed in order to clarify the relationship between atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration, ocean acidification and carbon speciation. Students are able to manipulate atmospheric carbon dioxide levels by moving a slider located at the bottom left of the visualization and observe the resulting effects on ocean pH and carbon speciation.
Figure 1. An interactive visualization that allows exploration of the relationship between atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration, ocean pH and carbon speciation in the oceans.
This visualization is incorporated into Lesson 8 – Climate Change and the Oceans. Other interactive simulations and data manipulation tools are integrated throughout the lessons on www.explainingclimatechange.com.
Current and Future Use
Promotion of the resources will take place following the completion of Lesson 9. Despite little advertising, there are already about 1500 unique visits per month from over 70 countries.
During the virtual conference we invite discussion about the sustainability legacy of IYC, the explainingclimatechange.com resource, and welcome ideas for promoting broad dissemination to educators, students, and the public, and integrating climate science into chemistry curriculum.
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IUPAC/UNESCO Project Team Members IUPAC Project # 2008-043-1-050
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Peter Mahaffy (Project Chair, IUPAC CCE) Mei-Hung Chiu (IUPAC CCE) Alison Eldridge (RSC) Temechegn Engida (FASC) Julia Hasler (UNESCO) Mary Kirchhoff (ACS) Brian Martin (KCVS) Colin Osborne (RSC) Natalia Tarasova (IUPAC CCE) Lorna Thomson (RSC)
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Brian Martin (co-director) Peter Mahaffy (co-director) Denyse Dawe Benjamin Dodds-Scott David Dykstra Darren Eymundson Katrina Genuis James Gilker Naomi Mahaffy Matt Price Anna Schwalfenberg Amanda Thompson Kristen Tjostheim Darrell VandenBrink Amanda Vanderhoek |
IYC2011 and Beyond - UNESCO's Contribution
April 13, 2012 - 11:39am — CCCE Drupal AdminThe United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) was designated as the lead UN agency for the International Year of Chemistry 2011. UNESCO, together with our partner, the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC), organized activities to highlight the vital importance of Chemistry in our every-day lives, to encourage youth and the general public to appreciate the role of Chemistry in meeting international challenges, such as climate change, water management and sustainable development, and lastly, to celebrate the contribution of women to chemistry, especially in the context of the 100th Anniversary of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to Marie Sklodowska Curie.
This paper will highlight the key events of IYC2011 that were organised at UNESCO Headquarters and around the world and how they have contributed to the follow-up of IYC2011. In view of the decreasing interest among the youth in chemistry and the basic sciences in general, it was imperative to make the teaching and learning of chemistry not only more attractive and exciting, but also fun. An amalgamation of scientific activities with hands-on experiments, activities linking chemistry to music and art, and striking media elements were incorporated into the planned events of this yearlong celebration. At the end of 2011, 97 countries worldwide had registered about 1400 activities on the IYC website – proving that it was a truly international endeavour.
Some of the events that will be discussed are Women Sharing a Chemical Moment in Time (18 January 2011), The Launch Ceremony (27-28 January), The launch of the UNESCO-L’Oreal Prize “In the footsteps of Marie Curie” (28 February – 4 March) and the Malta V Conference (5-8 December). There were numerous other events which contributed to IYC and had an immense impact for the community and/or country. All these are crucial for the follow-up of IYC2011 which will help us to address the future challenges in Chemistry by taking into account the UN Millennium Development Goals and the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (2005-2014). UNESCO is committed to being a part of the solution for the future of Chemistry, together with IUPAC, and chemistry education is at the forefront of upcoming endeavours.
IYC2011 and Beyond – UNESCO’s Contribution
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) was designated as the lead UN agency for the International Year of Chemistry 2011. UNESCO, together with its partner, the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC), organized activities to highlight the vital importance of Chemistry in our every-day lives, to encourage youth and the general public to appreciate the role of Chemistry in meeting international challenges, such as climate change, water management and sustainable development, and lastly, to celebrate the contribution of women to chemistry, especially in the context of the 100th Anniversary of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to Marie Sklodowska Curie.
Three cornerstone events marked the year: The Launch Ceremony in Paris, France, the World Chemistry Leadership Meeting in San Juan, Puerto Rico and finally the Closing Ceremony in Brussels, Belgium. Apart from these cornerstone events, there were numerous other events which contributed to IYC and had an immense impact for the community and/or country. IUPAC and UNESCO realised at the outset that for IYC to be a success and to have a global reach, each country had to be involved and create their own events, ensuring national ownership and participation. Through this process many successful events were organized globally all of which made a contribution to achieving the goals of IYC.
This paper will highlight the key events of IYC2011 that were organised at UNESCO Headquarters and around the world and how they have contributed and/or will contribute to the follow-up of IYC2011. In view of the decreasing interest among the youth in chemistry and the basic sciences in general, it was imperative to make the teaching and learning of chemistry not only more attractive and exciting, but also fun. An amalgamation of scientific activities with hands-on experiments, activities linking chemistry to music and art, and striking media elements were incorporated into the planned events of this yearlong celebration. At the end of 2011, ninety-seven countries worldwide had registered about 1400 activities on the IYC website – proving that it was a truly international endeavour. Some of the events that will be discussed are Women Sharing a Chemical Moment in Time (18 January 2011), the Launch Ceremony (27-28 January), the launch of the UNESCO-L’Oreal Prize “In the footsteps of Marie Curie” (28 February – 4 March) and the Malta V Conference (5-8 December).
The year 2011 began with the successful Launch Ceremony at UNESCO Headquarters on 27-28 January 2011 with around 900 participants on each day. The meeting was opened by Ms. Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO and Prof Nicole Moreau, President of IUPAC and keynote presentations were made by 4 Nobel Prize Laureates (Prof Jean-Marie Lehn, Prof Ada Yonath, Prof Yuan Lee and Dr Rajendra K. Pachauri) as well as interventions by other high-level dignitaries representing governments, along with representatives from the private sector and academia. Throughout the Launch, different aspects of the role of responsible chemistry in fostering sustainable development, in responding to global challenges today and in tackling those of the future were discussed. The Launch Ceremony was a platform for the world to embrace the International Year of Chemistry and to actively participate by organising events in their countries.
Preceding the Launch Ceremony, on the 18 January 2011, women chemists gathered for a breakfast session to celebrate “Women Sharing a Chemical Moment in Time”. This event was initiated by Mary Garson, Professor at the School of chemistry and Molecular Biosciences at the University of Queensland, Australia, to bring women chemists together worldwide for a breakfast meeting on a selected day in 2011 on the inauguration of the International Year of Chemistry. In addition to networking, the aim was to celebrate the pivotal role of Marie Curie in chemistry. It connected women chemists from New Zealand to Hawaii using modern communication tools like Skype/video conferencing and Twitter. Around 5000 women from 44 countries worldwide shared their passion for chemistry (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onp3vkPANqs).
The UNESCO-L’Oreal For Women in Science Awards has been operative for the past 14 years. This award recognises the contribution and achievement of outstanding women scientists and supports the career growth of young women researchers. Since 1998 there have been 72 Laureates from 30 countries recognized for their effort and accomplishment and over 1200 young women researchers from 100 countries, received fellowships. In 2011 a new award category – “In the Footsteps of Marie Curie”, was introduced. This special fellowship is awarded to a former International Fellow, 10 years after she initially received her fellowship (in mid-career), who has demonstrated determination and excellence in her research area/endeavour. This award is associated with one of the goals of IYC – recognising women in chemistry (and science) through the achievements of Marie Curie.
The Malta V Conference “Frontiers of Chemical Sciences: Research and Education in the Middle East” was the last official event of the 2011 International Year of Chemistry (IYC) at UNESCO Headquarters. The Malta Conferences use science as a lever for development and as a bridge to peace in the Middle East by bringing together scientists from countries in this region with eminent scientists from industrialized countries, to work together to address key issues essential for fostering sustainable development and solidarity. They provide a forum through which mutual understanding between people from different traditions, religions, races and political systems may be strengthened, and regional peace and security promoted. The focus themes for the workshops of the Conference were: Medicinal Chemistry and Natural Products; Environment: Air and Water Quality; Sustainability of Resources, Energy and Materials; Science Education at All Levels; and Nanotechnology and Material Science. The opening session featured addresses by the Director-General of UNESCO and by HRH Prince Hassan of Jordan. Other brief interventions were made by the President of the Malta Conferences Foundation, the President of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC), the Chair of the Board of Directors of the American Chemical Society, and the President of the Royal Society of Chemistry. Five eminent scientists, Nobel Prize winners: Claude Cohen-Tannoudji (France), Nobel Prize in Physics, 1997; Richard Ernst (Switzerland), Nobel Prize in Chemistry, 1991; Dudley Herschbach (USA), Nobel Prize in Chemistry, 1986; Walter Kohn (USA), Nobel Prize in Chemistry, 1998 and Jean-Marie Lehn (France), Nobel Prize in Chemistry, 1987, were among the speakers.
Another event at UNESCO Headquarters that received much attention was the opening of the world premiere of Elżbieta Sikora's opera "Madame Curie", which celebrated the Polish Presidency of the European Council and the International Year of Chemistry and occurred in November. It was organised by the Permanent Delegation of the Republic of Poland to UNESCO as well as the Natural Science Sector at UNESCO. This opera was presented within the framework of the International Year of Chemistry and highlighted the extraordinary achievements of Maria Sklodowska Curie on the 100th anniversary of her Nobel Prize in Chemistry award.
Some events were started during IYC2011 and are still ongoing. A typical example is the film “Chemistry: All about You”, a project of the European Petrochemical Association (EPCA), with UNESCO and IUPAC targeted at 16 – 20 year olds and which made a huge impact on youth. This film shows the importance of chemistry in our daily lives and explains how chemistry can sustainably contribute to safe drinking water, food production, development of textiles, health and health care, energy- and emission-friendly housing, transport, communication and education. At the same time it underlines the importance of women in chemistry on the occasion of the centennial of Nobel Prize in Chemistry to Marie Sklodowska Curie. The film is available in 14 languages and has been requested by many schools around the world. In continuing to promote the importance of chemistry after IYC2011, this film, together with the Global Water Experiment, is now part of the Chemistry Education series that EPCA runs together with the European Schoolnet in schools in Europe. These efforts are evidence that IYC served as an effective platform for many new ventures and projects in chemistry education.
The above events have all contributed to the goals of the International Year of Chemistry. Many distinguished chemists and scientists came together to celebrate the achievements of Chemistry and its contributions to the well-being of humankind. All the events that took place during IYC2011 are crucial for the follow-up which will help us to address the future challenges in Chemistry by taking into account the UN Millennium Development Goals and the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (2005-2014). UNESCO is committed to being a part of the solution for the future of Chemistry, together with IUPAC, and chemistry education is at the forefront of upcoming endeavours.
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An Introduction to the International Year of Chemistry - 2011
April 12, 2012 - 11:44am — CCCE Drupal AdminRecognizing that there is no material substance that does not involve chemistry, IUPAC responded to suggestions, initially from Russian and Korean chemists, that the Union should organize an International Year of Chemistry. Consultation occurred with UNESCO representatives and the UNESCO Executive Board and then with the UN General Assembly to approve the year 2011 as the International Year of Chemistry. IUPAC appointed a Management Committee which assumed responsibility for the organization and/or monitoring of three international Cornerstone Events, a highly successful website and the Global Water Experiment. Local leadership of IYC 2011 was assumed by national chemical societies, academies of science, academic institutions and industry such that thousands of successful activities were held under the IYC rubric and posted on the IYC Website. In this Virtual Colloquium, we will introduce the genesis of IYC 2011 and also outline the purposes and legacy of the International Year of Chemistry.
An Introduction to the International Year of Chemistry – 2011
John M. Malin, Chair IYC 2011 Management Committee and Bryan Henry, IUPAC President 2006-2007, University Professor Emeritus, University of Guelph
All known matter – gas, liquid and solid – is composed of the chemical elements or of compounds made from those elements. Humankind’s understanding of the material nature of our world is grounded in our knowledge of chemistry. Indeed all living processes are controlled by chemical reactions. After initial suggestions from Russia and Korea, the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) first discussed the possibility of an International Year of Chemistry in April 2006.
The IUPAC Executive Committee formally endorsed the idea of IYC in 2007. Because only the United Nations can declare an International Year, IUPAC contacted UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, with a proposal that it was time to celebrate the achievements of chemistry and its contributions to the well-being of humankind. Almost simultaneously IUPAC President Bryan Henry appointed a task group chaired by Prof. Peter Mahaffy to begin working with UNESCO staff and with the Ethiopian Ambassador to UNESCO to bring about a UN declaration. The UNESCO Executive Board in 2008 officially endorsed the concept of an International Year of Chemistry. In response to a motion by Ethiopian representatives, the United Nations General Assembly declared shortly afterwards that 2011 would be the International Year of Chemistry.
In addition, Henry appointed in 2007 a Management Committee, chaired by Dr. John Malin, to implement and oversee the management of IYC 2011 from IUPAC’s perspective. The IUPAC Executive and the committee concluded that the broad goals of IYC 2011 were: (1) to show how the science of chemistry helps in meeting the eight stated UN Millennium Goals, (2) to publicize the science of chemistry as both intellectually vital and essential in meeting the needs of humankind, and (3) to provide a worldwide voice for chemistry. Four specific IYC objectives ultimately were formulated: (a) to increase the public appreciation and understanding of chemistry in meeting world needs, (b) to encourage the interest of young people in chemistry, (c) to celebrate the role of women in chemistry – noting especially that 2011 was the 100th anniversary of the Nobel Prize awarded to Madame Sklowska-Curie and also the 100th anniversary of the founding of the International Association of Chemical Societies, predecessor to IUPAC, and (d) to show how chemical science and engineering contributes to meeting the UN Millennium Goals.
A number of subcommittees were charged with organization of the “cornerstone” events to be produced by IUPAC itself, particularly the Opening Ceremony in Paris in January 2011, the IUPAC Congress and General Assembly held in August 2011 in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and the Closing Event held in December 2011 under the patronage of the chemical and pharmaceutical industry. A cornerstone event that turned out to be especially important was the Global Experiment on Water, which grew to involve students and teachers around the world.
The Management Committee and the IUPAC Executive endorsed creation of an IYC 2011 Website, managed by Dr. Fabienne Meyers, which listed national contact points around the world, described how organizations or individuals could become active in IYC 2011, and publicized a list of some 2000 individual IYC projects and events being carried out. Using the website and through personal contacts made by IUPAC officers and other contributors, the organizing partners, IUPAC and UNESCO, encouraged participation in IYC by the chemical industry, regional federations, national chemical societies, NGOs, Universities, Educational and Research Organizations, and individuals. A Fundraising Committee was appointed, chaired by IUPAC Treasurer Prof. Sean Corish.
Some diverse IYC 2011 operations and events in support of chemical education around the world will be described in other contributions to this Virtual Colloquium. We are certain of four major results: First, IYC 2011 projected to chemical professionals, students, policy-makers and the public the awareness that chemistry makes significant contributions to our lives. Second, the Global Water Experiment showed students worldwide that by working together they themselves could contribute to science and study the environment in meaningful ways. Third, organizations in many countries leveraged their participation in IYC 2011 to enhance and publicize their own national activities. Fourth, IYC 2011 highlighted the many contributions women have made to chemistry
We note that human understanding of the fundamental nature of our world is grounded in chemistry. Molecular transformations are basic to production of foodstuffs, medicines, fuels and materials – essentially all manufactured and extracted products. Humankind will rely on this science to maintain a sustainable, wholesome environment for all the earth. IYC 2011 was a unique opportunity for everyone to celebrate these central contributions of chemistry.
Acknowledgement: The IUPAC Management Committee for IYC2011 sincerely thanks Global Partners DOW and EPCN and Global Sponsors BASF, CEFIC, EVONIK, L’Oreal and Solvay for their kind support.
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PAC recognizes the "Hand of the Youth" in Shaping Chemistry
April 10, 2012 - 12:37pm — CCCE Drupal AdminAmong many global responsibilities, IUPAC recognizes in particular the importance of encouraging, supporting, and fostering the career development of young scientists throughout the world. The Union feels strongly that such an encouragement is critical to the future of chemistry, and that this would support the worldwide role of chemistry for the benefit of Mankind.
In pursuit of this spirit, the Union established in 2000 the IUPAC Prize for Young Chemists and has been honouring since then outstanding young research chemists at the beginning of their careers by making annual awards. The prizes are given for the most outstanding Ph.D. theses in the area of the chemical sciences, as described in 1000-word essays. IUPAC awards up to five prizes annually, each comprising USD 1000 and travel expenses to the next IUPAC Congress. Each awardee is invited to present a poster on his/her research and to participate in a plenary award session. The prize winners are also invited to offer review papers on their research topics for consideration as publications in Pure and Applied Chemistry (PAC). In January 2011, this issue of PAC has been a very special one, with a preface by the President of IUPAC, and a collection of 17 articles from past winners of the Prize during its ten first years, 2000-2009. This appears as an excellent means of looking at what the prize has been for them. http://www.chemistry2011.org/participate/activities/show?id=469.
PAC recognizes the "Hand of the Youth" in Shaping Chemistry
Nicole Jeanne MOREAU
nj.moreau@free.fr
1. What is IUPAC?
It is very important to know that IUPAC is a worldwide, non-governmental Organisation. As such, it is recognized as totally objective, besides the national Chemical Societies or the regional Federations of Chemical societies.
Created in 1911 as the International Association of Chemical Societies –IACS-, to prevent proliferation of unilateral nomenclatures and comfort the academic and industrial wish to establish a common language, and transformed in 1919, after the war, in IUPAC, the Union is a member of ICSU, the International Council of Science. ICSU, created in 1931, and which mission is to coordinate interdisciplinary activities aimed to strengthen international science for the benefit of society, has to kind of members: the 121 Scientific Organisations, national and multidisciplinary, generally the Academies of Sciences of the countries, from Argentina to Zimbabwe; the 30 Unions, which are on the contrary international and mono-disciplinary. IUPAC is the only one representing Chemistry.
IUPAC enables chemists everywhere to communicate clearly and without misunderstanding. It promotes the norms, values, standards and ethics of science and encourages the free exchange of scientific information. Through this mission, it contributes to the worldwide application of the chemical science by helping to advance research, improve chemistry education and encourage the public appreciation of chemistry.
2. The IUPAC Prize for Young Chemists
Fully aware that the future of chemistry is in the hands of young scientists, IUPAC recognizes the importance of encouraging, supporting, and fostering the career development of young scientists throughout the world. The Union feels strongly that such an encouragement is critical to the future of chemistry, and that this would support the worldwide role of chemistry for the benefit of Mankind.
In pursuit of this spirit, the Union established in 2000 the IUPAC Prize for Young Chemists and has been honouring since then outstanding young research chemists at the beginning of their careers by making annual awards. The prizes are given for the most outstanding Ph.D. theses in the area of the chemical sciences, as described in 1000-word essays. IUPAC awards up to five prizes annually, each comprising USD 1000 and travel expenses to the next IUPAC Congress. Each awardee is invited to present a poster on his/her research and to participate in a plenary award session. The prize winners are also invited to offer review papers on their research topics for consideration as publications in Pure and Applied Chemistry (PAC).
3. A Special Issue for IYC
In December 2008, UN accepted the proposal of IUPAC to proclaim 2011 as the International Year of Chemistry, placing IUPAC and UNESCO at the helm of the event. The declared goals of IYC 2011 are to “increase public appreciation of chemistry in meeting world needs, to encourage an interest in chemistry among young people, and to generate enthusiasm for the creative future of chemistry”. By happy coincidence, 2011 is the 100th anniversary of the Nobel Prize awarded to Marie Curie, and is thus also an opportunity to celebrate the contributions of women to science, and recognize the ongoing challenge of ensuring equal opportunity for all in career development. Most importantly, Marie Curie is an inspirational role model, not only to women but to all young students, and it is altogether fitting that the coming generation of scientists should be closely identified with IYC 2011, since enthusiasm is a defining characteristic of youth.
Consequently, in January 2011, the issue of PAC, “Perspectives and Challenges for the International Year of Chemistry” (vol. 83, Issue 1) has been a very special one, with a preface by the President of IUPAC, and a collection of 17 articles from past winners of the Prize during its ten first years, 2000-2009. This appears as an excellent means of looking at what the prize has been for them. http://www.chemistry2011.org/participate/activities/show?id=469.
The contents of this issue was as follows (between brackets, year of the Prize and present country) :
iv Preface, Nicole Moreau
1 Redox properties of CdSe and CdSe–ZnS quantum dots in solution
Matteo Amelia, Tommaso Avellini, Simone Monaco, Stefania Impellizzeri, Ibrahim Yildiz, Françisco M. Raymo and Alberto Credi* (2000, Italy)
9 Synthetic biodegradable elastomers for drug delivery and tissue engineering
Christopher J. Bettinger* (2009, USA)
25 Reaction dynamics in the formidable gap
Roman Boulatov* (2003, USA)
43 Conjugated polyelectrolyte–lipid interactions: Opportunities in biosensing
An Thien Ngo, Pierre Karam and Gonzalo Cosa* (2003, Canada)
57 Toward carbon dioxide capture using nanoporous materials
Deanna M. D'Alessandro* (2007, USA) and Thomas McDonald
67 The role of NMR in the study of partially ordered materials: Perspectives and challenges
Valentina Domenici* (2006, Italy)
95 Graphene oxide as surfactant sheets
Laura J. Cote, Jaemyung Kim, Vincent C. Tung, Jiayan Luo, Franklin Kim and Jiaxing Huang* (2005, USA )
111 Biomimetic synthesis of inorganic materials and their applications
Yujing Li, Chin-Yi Chiu and Yu Huang* (2004, USA)
127 Recent design strategies for polymer solar cell materials
David Bilby, Bong Gi Kim and Jinsang Kim* (2002, USA)
141 Progress and design challenges for high‑spin molecules
Martin T. Lemaire* (2003, Canada)
151 Chemistry meets nutrition: Toward a systems biological description of human metabolism
Stefan Lorkowski* (2002, Germany)
167 Energy-related applications of functional porous metal–organic frameworks
Shengqian Ma* (2009, USA) and Le Meng
189 Charge-by-charge assemblies based on planar anion receptors
Hiromitsu Maeda* (2005, Japan) and Yohei Haketa
201 Energy, supramolecular chemistry, fullerenes, and the sky
Emilio M. Pérez* (2006, Spain)
213 Fluorescent ribonucleoside analogues as probes for investigating RNA structure and function
Seergazhi G. Srivatsan* (2004, India) and Anupam A. Sawant
233 Biofunctionalization of gold nanorods
Sung-Yeon Hwang and Andrea R. Tao* (2008, USA)
243 Integration of surface science, nanoscience, and catalysis
Cun Wen, Yi Liu and Franklin Tao* (2007, USA)
Hereunder the title of the PhD which deserved the attribution of the prize to the winners:
2000 Dr. Credi, "Molecular-Level Machines and Logic Gates;"
2009 Dr Bettinger, “Synthesis and Microfabrication of Elastomeric Biomaterials for Advanced Tissue Engineering Scaffolds”;
2003 Dr. Boulatov, "Synthesis and Reactivity of Metalloporphyrins in (A) Biomimetic Studies and (B) the Preparation of Novel Heterodinuclear Multiple Metal-Metal Bonds;”
2003 Dr. Cosa, "Mechanism of Degradation of Pharmaceutical Products and Analogues, and Development of a Novel Fluorescence Technique for DNA-damage Detection;"
2007 Dr. D'Alessandro, "Stereochemical Effects on Intervalence Charge Transfer"
2006 Dr. Domenici, "Structure, Orientational Order and Dynamics of Rod-Like and Banana-Shaped Liquid Crystals by Means of 2H NMR: New Developments"
2004 Dr. Huang, "Integrated Nanoscale Electronics and Optoelectronics: Exploring Nanoscale Science and Technology through Semiconductor Nanowires;"
2005 Dr Huang, “Conducting Polymer Nanofibers: Syntheses, Properties and Applications”;
2002 Dr. Kim, "Supramolecular Assemblies of Conjugated Sensory Polymers and the Optimization of Transport Properties;"
2003 Dr. Lemaire, "Synthesis and Coordination Chemistry of Chelating Verdazyl Radicals;"
2002 Dr. Lorkowski, "Differential Gene Expression in Human Macrophages During Foam Cell Formation;"
2009 Dr Ma, “Gas Adsorption Applications of Porous Metal-organic Frameworks”;
2005 Dr. Maeda, "Synthesis and Properties of Multiply N-Confused Porphyrins"
2006 Dr. Pérez, "Hydrogen-bonded Synthetic Molecular Machines"
2004 Dr. Srivatsan, "Modeling Prebiotic Catalysis with Adenylated Polymeric Templates: Kinetic Characterization of Assisted Phosphate Ester Cleavage and Oxygen Insertion Reactions."
2007 Dr. Tao, "Nanoscale Surface Chemistry of Organic Layers on Solid Surfaces Formed through Weak Noncovalent Interactions and Strong Chemical Bonds"
2008 Dr. Tao, "Nanocrystal Assembly for Bottom-Up Plasmonic Materials"
This Prize is the only international programme designed to provide public and financially remunerative recognition to chemists at such early stages of their careers. A look at the title of the theses which deserved the Prize clearly shows that most of the winners enlarged their domain of competence, and are now working on different topics that of their PhD. The lecture of the papers they published in PAC www.iupac.org/publications/pac/83/1/?pass=b025bd05 largely proves the quality of their work.
Sustainability and Globalization of Chemistry Education
April 10, 2012 - 11:26am — CCCE Drupal AdminThe commemoration of 2011 as the International Year of Chemistry (IYC) has been heralded as a remarkable success. Throughout 2011, the IUPAC successfully linked people together, from across the globe, in recognition and celebration of chemistry's achievements and contributions. In addition, specific activities highlighting the important role of chemistry in today's world were directed at the media, policy makers, general public, school teachers, students, and industries that provided numerous opportunities for people on different continents to appreciate chemistry locally, nationally, and internationally. Although the IYC has ended, we should consider the end of 2011 as the beginning of sustainable collaborations both locally and globally for chemistry education. Therefore, there are three challenging issues that we have to ponder in order to sustain the accomplishments of the IYC. They are: (1) How can we build upon the lessons learned from the IYC? (2) What strategies can we develop to keep the momentum started from the IYC moving locally and internationally? and (3) As a member of the IUPAC, what roles and priorities should the CCE adopt in order to continue to contribute to chemistry education? Possible answers for these questions might be (1) to disseminate findings of chemical education research, and their implications for classroom practice, (2) to take advantage of chemists' and chemistry educators' involvement and expertise as well as other divisions and committees of IUPAC to generate a resource database for public use, (3) to continue developing worldwide experiments and activities to bring people together through sharing similar experiences and achieving similar goals, and (4) to build international standards for chemistry education that are applicable for developing and developed countries. Maintaining the focus on "Chemistry-Our Life, Our Future" will help people everywhere to value chemistry as a human enterprise that supports not only our present way of life but also holds the promise for improving our collective future. Improving chemistry education is at the center of this focus.
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