THATCHER Eastern Arizona Colleges Chemistry Department welcomed 74 high school students and their teachers to the 25th annual Student Chemistry Adventure. Twenty-one unique teams from high schools across Arizona enjoyed a day filled with chemistry.

Teams composed of three to four students competed against each other while rotating through three separate chemistry activities. The Industrial Laboratory competition was led by Jing Lin, senior chemist at Freeport-McMoRan, and Duane DeSpain, EAC biology instructor, with assistance from five additional FMI scientists.

The Knowledge and Speed competitions, where students had 55 minutes to complete several short chemistry projects, concluded the activities. At the end of the tournaments, each participant was presented with a copper puck souvenir courtesy of FMI.

After a lunch provided by Sodexo Food Service, students and teachers congregated in the Math/Science Building, where an array of other colorful, loud, bright and exciting chemical demonstrations were given.

Dr. Phil McBride, EAC dean of instruction, recognized the participants and expressed thanks to the high school chemistry teachers for their efforts in providing quality instruction to their students.

The Atoms Family of Safford High School, composed of Danny John, Summer Dahlquist-Tookey, Dalton Henrie and Statton Baldwin, received first-place medals and a team plaque.

Second-place medals and a team plaque went to the Morenci Cu Cats composed of Ernest Arvizo, Matthew Porter, Skyler Howard and Andrew Stavast.

Third-place medals and a team plaque went to NaCl from Thatcher High School, composed of Katie Baldwin, Maya Baldwin and Marc Terry.

McBride, DeSpain and Joel Shelton, another of EACs chemistry instructors, expressed a special thanks to high school teachers Joni Giacomino (Douglas), Becky Bell (Duncan), Dana Olson (Fort Thomas), Kristy Roberts (Morenci), Heidi Vosbein (Mt. Graham), Carol Hawkins (Pima), Brian J. Bruessel (Safford) and Ty White (Willcox) for their teaching expertise and dedication to their students.

For further information about educational and career opportunities in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) fields or for information about exciting science camps being offered this summer for students entering grades 6-12, including a three-day, two-night extended camp at Tonto Creek, contact McBride at Eastern Arizona College at 928-428-8404.

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EAC's 24th annual Student Chemistry Adventure brings chemistry to life - Eastern Arizona Courier

When he was head of the Egyptian armed forces in 2013, Abdel Fattah el-Sisi orchestrated a coup that overthrew his countrys first democratically elected government. After he succeeded in ripping President Mohamed Morsi and his allies out of power, Sisi promptly launched a merciless spree of violence and intimidation against the Muslim Brotherhood (the Islamist organization of which Morsi was a member) and any other group the new regime regarded as a threat. This campaign culminated in the Rabaa massacre in August 2013 a sustained military assault on pro-Morsi protesters who had set up a camp in eastern Cairo and demonstrated there for a month and a half.

According to Human Rights Watch, heavily armed Egyptian forces including helicopters, armored personnel carriers, bulldozers and snipers arrived in Rabaa al-Adawiya Square at 6:30 a.m. Aug. 14, 2013. They almost immediately opened fire on the protesters. Men, women and children were gunned down indiscriminately HRW reports that army troops and police were inside and alongside APCs firing their weaponry on large crowds of protesters. Dozens of witnesses also said they saw snipers fire from helicopters over Rabaa Square. It didnt matter if protesters were throwing rocks or frantically trying to escape the square everyone was a target. Snipers even shot people who were running toward a nearby hospital (which was later seized by security forces who ordered doctors to abandon their patients, many of whom had gunshot wounds and other serious injuries). Some of the protesters were captured, tortured and executed. The onslaught lasted for 12 hours and left more than 800 people dead.

Sisi is one of the top officials responsible for the Rabaa massacre he was Egypts defense minister at the time, and he was intimately involved in the planning of the dispersals that took place in July and August.

But never mind all that: President Trump thinks Sisi is a fantastic guy with whom he has good chemistry. In fact, not only is he a fantastic guy, but hes also done a fantastic job in a very difficult situation. Granted, its easy to see where Trump is coming from being a brutal general-turned-autocrat must be exhausting. There are so many demonstrators to kill and journalists to arrest. There are so many elections to undermine, political rivals to purge and supporters to install in Parliament. And there are so many traditions to uphold: Sisi has proven that hes committed to the longstanding Egyptian practices of arbitrary detention (in notoriously hideous prisons), artificial trials, torture, suppression of free speech, religious persecution and denial of civil liberties. He also treats democracy as more of a nuisance than a source of legitimacy again, he ousted Egypts first democratically elected president at gunpoint (this point really cant be made often enough), suspended the Constitution and received 97 percent of the vote in a sham election held three years ago.

Trump couldnt care less about the corpses in Rabaa or the dissidents trapped in the bowels of the Egyptian prison system. Hes more interested in frolicking across the great vistas of common ground he shares with his new pal: We agree on so many things, he recently said with Sisi sitting next to him at the White House. (One wonders what things he had in mind.) He also dispelled any doubt that we are very much behind President el-Sisi and made sure to dirty up the rest of us with this oily pledge of support: I just want to say to you, Mr. President, that you have a great friend and ally in the United States and in me.

This goes beyond the typical self-interested willingness to shake hands with a despot who puts bullets in protesters heads, imprisons inconvenient activists and strangles any semblance of civil society in his country. While its true that the U.S. often adopts an attitude of moral neutrality (or worse) toward authoritarian regimes, why does Trump think this entails an invite to the White House and such a gross display of adulation? The $1.3 billion we send Egypt every year is bad enough do we really need to broadcast our shame? Its not as if Sisi will suddenly drop his opposition to the Islamic State in the Sinai or his hatred of jihadism if Trump snubs him these arent positions he needs to be cajoled into with flattery and handshakes in the Oval Office.

When pundits recoiled from the fantastic chemistry on display at Sisis White House reception, Glenn Greenwald saw an opportunity to do two of his favorite things: attack U.S. foreign policy and taunt mainstream propagandists like Paul Krugman. When Krugman tweeted a Politico article about Trumps meeting with Sisi, saying, Another morning in Trumps America, Greenwalds venom glands started secreting: Anyone who depicts any of this as something new or aberrational for the U.S. is either ignorant or dishonest. He then detailed the longstanding American support for dictators in Egypt (Hillary Clinton once called Hosni Mubarak and his wife friends of my family) and explained that the Obama administration had resumed arms deliveries to Sisi even as his human rights abuses intensified. According to Greenwald, Krugman was only upset because Trump refuses to prettify American behavior: What Trump is violating is not any Washington principles or ethics but Washington propaganda tactics.

While Greenwald was right about the cruel hypocrisy of our actions in Egypt, his other comments betrayed a simplistic, fragmentary view of U.S. foreign policy.

Does he really think Trumps approach to Egypt is interchangeable with Obamas? Does he think perceptions make no difference in international affairs? Does he think members of eviscerated Egyptian opposition groups dont notice when the president of the United States warmly embraces the man who has been murdering and torturing them? Did other tyrants feel threatened or reassured when they heard Trumps obsequious praise for a fellow strongman? Were international norms of human rights strengthened or diminished when Trumps disgraceful meeting with Sisi was announced? Although the Muslim Brotherhoods popularity varies throughout the Islamic world, how do Muslims feel about Trumps fawning support for a man whos committed to destroying the religious opposition in his country?

By the way, Obamas refusal to meet with Sisi and his imposition of a two-year arms embargo on Egypt should tell you something. Yes, the embargo was lifted before he left office. Yes, he still supported the same repressive regime as Trump. And yes, his administration refused to call Sisis theft of power a coup because that would have made it illegal for the U.S. to continue providing aid. But at least Obama was conflicted about maintaining our relationship with Egypt. Trump is different. He admires the ruthless exercise of illegitimate power. Thats why he applauds Vladimir Putin for his very strong control over his country. Its why he compliments Saddam Hussein for killing terrorists so good (never mind the fact that Iraq was one of the worlds largest state sponsors of terror). Its why he thinks we would be so much better off if Qaddafi were in charge (of Libya) right now. Its why he marveled at Kim Jong-uns amazing, incredible ability to maintain his power: You have to give him credit.

Of course, none of this is surprising. After the Rabaa massacre, Trump wasnt horrified he was impressed with how Sisi took control of Egypt. And he really took control of it. He sure did.

Contact Matt Johnson at (785) 295-1282 or @mattjj89 on Twitter.

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Matt Johnson: 'Good chemistry' with a very bad guy - Topeka Capital Journal

Allie Daniels was in fourth-grade when she discovered her passion for chemistry, and now, armed with a St. Ambrose education, she is encouraging other girls to pursue their science dreams.

"Continue to discover new things daily. Look at the world around you and ask why. Look for answers. Once you set goals for yourself, there is nothing that can hold you back," Allie said.

"Women are an integral part of science. Whether it be research, teaching or being a doctor or astronaut, the possibilities are endless," she added, and based on experience, she knows.

On May 13, Allie will graduate cum laude with a St. Ambrose Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry, with minors in biology, forensic science and justice. This fall she will join a prestigious five-year program at the University of Tennessee in pursuit of a doctoral degree in Analytical Chemistry.

It wasn't until Allie was in fourth grade that she learned about chemistry. "I vividly remember experiments like the classic erupting volcano and counting the number of water drops I could get to stay on a penny before the surface tension caused the water to run off the penny," she said.

"Experiments like these had me in awe. I began to do my own experiments at home."

Her interest and passion grew when she attended the SAU Chemistry for Kids summer camp in 2005.

"I spent those four days in Lewis Hall learning all about what chemistry really is," Allie recalled. "I remember making batteries out of a banana, doing paper chromatography to figure out who wrote a secret message, doing tests to discover what the identity of a powder was, and, on the last day, using all the skills I had learned to solve a real mystery. From that week on, I was in love with chemistry."

When Allie looks back on the camp, she speaks of the significance of one professor and how he made her decision to attend SAU an easy one.

"I remember Dr. (Andrew) Axup was wearing his signature rainbow lab coat as he showed us what a chemical reaction' consisted of on that first day: bubbles, heat and fizzing. I was thoroughly amazed. Little did I know, the same professor who had introduced me to real life chemistry that week would be the first professor I ever had in college."

She feels blessed to have attended St. Ambrose.

"Professors in the chemistry department have done all in their power to make sure I am successful in graduate school. Whether it was answering my countless questions and helping me think through problems, or staying until 7 p.m. so I could be in the lab, my professors have always gone above and beyond to make my experience at Ambrose the best it could be," she said.

Allie knows a large part of the next five years will revolve around research, something some find daunting.

Not Allie.

"The chemistry program at SAU has continuously challenged me to think critically and solve problems. I have had the opportunity to do research through the Introduction to Chemical Research class, the Undergraduate Summer Research Institute at SAU, and my senior research project through the chemistry and honors programs. Research is at the heart of chemistry, and my time at Ambrose has made me love lab work," Allie said.

"I was also able to be a tutor and a Supplemental Instruction leader at Ambrose, which really prepared me to teach and gave me a love for teaching chemistry."

In addition, Allie was a member of the Honors Program, Mock Trial, Bridge Bible Fellowship, Campus Ministry, Phi Eta Sigma, Dance Marathon, as well as various intramural sports. Before graduation, she served as secretary for the Chemistry Club and the College Republicans.

Her endless passion for chemistry is evident in her words.

"I've learned that with research, things don't always go as planned. The most challenging aspect for me was staying positive when I often became frustrated with results I was, or wasn't, getting," she said.

"But to me, there is nothing more rewarding than working extremely hard at solving a problem that has been holding you back and rising above that. It's like Edison and the light bulb. You can fail thousands of times, but it only takes that one success to take you to heights you didn't think you could reach."

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Grad Stories '17: A Chemical Reaction - St. Ambrose University

Midway through his newly published book, Neil Garg poses a serious scientific question to his reader.

Whats a chemical in coffee that adults like so much?

The question is scrawled in chunky cartoon letters inside the childrens coloring book he created. An answer awaits on the opposite page: caffeine, a stimulant, its molecular structure rendered in black and white.

Garg, a professor of chemistry and biochemistry, said he was inspired to write and self-publish The Organic Coloring Book with the help of his two young daughters. Garg released the kid-friendly book April 22, hoping it would inspire children to love organic chemistry as much as he does.

When his younger daughter Kaylie was 4 years old, she began questioning her parents incessantly about the chemicals served in her food, Garg said.

Kaylie had a fear of chemicals, said Garg, who is also a faculty-in-residence at De Neve Gardenia and Holly. She was really skeptical.

So, Garg and his wife began teaching Kaylie that everything around her was filled with chemicals. These important substances, such as cyanidins and beta-carotene, made her blueberries blue and her carrots orange, Garg would tell his daughter. Eventually, he said, chemical naming became a game around his house. Kaylies older sister, Elaina, also joined in on the fun.

The game of chemistry soon reacted with his teaching career to produce the coloring book idea.

The word organic has a lot of definitions these days, Garg said. For example, organic can mean minimal use of pesticides. (But) to an organic chemist, the definition is very different: molecules made up of carbon and hydrogen atoms.

Kaylie and Elaina helped Garg select the molecules for the book. Then he asked a graphic artist to create a little character that would follow the reader on every page of the learning journey: Cheesy, a cartoon mouse.

Emma Baker-Tripp and Joyann Barber, graduate students in Gargs research lab, pitched in by constructing and optimizing the chemical structures used for the book. They made sure every molecules atoms and bonds were visible using the computer programs Spartan and CYLview, said Baker-Tripp, a graduate student in chemistry.

When the book was finally ready to publish, Garg gave away more than 100 free copies to the UCLA Krieger Center and Warren Avenue Elementary School. The children in his daughters fourth-grade class helped distribute some of these copies to their kindergartener friends, he added.

This past weekend, the family gave away more copies at a school event called the Warner Science Slam.

Everybodys been super positive about it, Garg said. Kids love to color; theyll color anything.

Earlier this week, Garg accepted the Royal Society of Chemistry Higher Education Teaching Award for his accomplishments in popularizing organic chemistry and innovating chemical education, according to the societys website. Garg has received multiple awards throughout his teaching career, including recognition for his program Biology and Chemistry Online Notes, an online organic chemistry learning system now used in curricula across multiple states.

[Related: Reel Life: Neil Garg]

Garg said he now hopes local museums or the UCLA Store hear about his coloring book and will be open to distributing it. Some of his students are interested in penning a second volume, he added.

I think theres been a need in general to have research programs give back to the community, Garg said.

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Professor Neil Garg publishes kid-friendly organic chemistry book - Daily Bruin