Redox active metal-sulfide clusters and computer-assisted instructional lessons on transition metal chemistry

The chemical education research was focused on the design and implementation of a series of interactive videodisc chemistry lessons. These lessons were designed to give first year chemistry students an appreciation of some of the structural and electronic issues of coordination chemistry. This software uses IBM personal computers, Pioneer and Sony videodisc players, both touch and non-touch screens, and a local area network. The programming was done in Microsoft QuickBASIC. The videodisc was used in these lessons as a means for the students to observe real reactions of some transition metal complexes. The videodisc was also used to present a unique teaching approach to complementary colors and d orbital splitting of octahedral complexes.;The metal sulfide clusters were cubanes of the formula (RCp);The synthetic inorganic chemistry research involved the synthesis and characterization of a series of charge transfer salts using metal sulfide clusters and TCNQ. The goal of the research was to design a group of salts to be the organometallic analogs of (TTF)(TCNQ) and demonstrate metallic conductivity.