SS 220 Syllabus Professor James M. Lipuma

SS 220, "Chemical Engineering, Society, and Technology" is an introduction to the Humanities and Social Sciences for Chemical Engineers and fulfills the non-economics basic social science requirement. Problem-solving, decision-making and critical thinking will be stressed throughout the semester to assist the student in understanding the various fields that are discussed. In addition, the interplay between and among the aspects of society, technology, and the environment will be highlighted to relate them to Chemical Engineering and illustrate the interdisciplinary nature of the field. The main goals of the course are to expose students to the various disciplines of the Humanities and Social Science, as well as improve their ability to problem-solve, research, write, and public speak. In addition, students will be given the opportunity to work in groups and make professional oral presentation.

The course utilizes readings from "The Compleat Chemical engineer: A guide to Critical Thinking." Other readings are available on reserve in the library to assist the students with research. The instructor assumes no prior knowledge of course material.

Throughout the semester, there will be homework, papers, and oral reports that each student must complete in order to receive a grade in the class. These assignments include research papers, a midterm covering the first half of the class, a group written and oral assignment, as well as a project that will serve as the final. Other smaller in-class and homework assignments will be used to help explore and illustrate the topics being discussed.

All papers that are submitted for this class are to be college-level research papers. A college-level paper is type-written, has page numbers, contains references to research and includes a reference page at the end for works quoted or otherwise referenced in the document. Citations for the research used needs to be included with the paper and should follow the APA format for citations. This means parenthetical citations within the text with a references page at the end of the document. Only works that are actually quoted from or referenced to directly should be cited. This is not a bibliography but rather a "Reference Page." Please remember, simply lifting text from a dictionary or encyclopedia is something found mainly in high school papers. Though it may be necessary to quote from these types of sources, rarely are they the only works used for references.

It should be stressed that paper assignmentss are to be formal research papers. There should be no contractions, spelling errors, punctuation errors, or mistakes in grammar. Please be consistent within the paper with abbreviations and other acronyms. Double space the paper. Use a clear easy-to-read font that is not too large or small. Your margins should be uniform and should minimize large areas of white space within the paper.

Near the end of the semester, each student is required to submit a new copy of their "best paper" for this class. This paper should represent the best work in the mind of the student. These papers are reviewed by the administration to assess the course and in no way will change the grades received on the paper. Only formal research papers should be considered for the ‘best paper’ and a new unmarked copy of the chosen ‘best paper’ should be submitted.

Attendance will be taken randomly throughout the semester. A greater emphasis is placed on participation rather than simple attendance; however, you cannot participate if you are not in class. Absences and late work are excused only by arrangements with the instructor.

Students are required to keep a portfolio (available in bookstore). All the work for the class is to be kept in a binder. This includes tests, quizzes, papers, and other work from the class. A table of contents should also be included and all work should be arranged from most recent to least recent within the portfolio. The portfolio will be collected at the end of the semester and reviewed by the department administration. Students wishing to have their portfolios returned should contact the department at the end of the following semester to make arrangements for pick-up of the work.

Oral Presentation = 15% Papers = 20% Participation/Homework = 10%

Midterm Exams = 20% Final = 35%

CONTACTING THE PROFESSOR

Office: Cullimore 435

Phone: 973.642-4743

Fax: 973.642-4689

E-Mail: jlipuma@webspan.net