The objective of this application is to produce Labman, a computer-based laboratory assistant and tutor. Labman will perform a wide variety of common laboratory computations, related to preparation of stock solutions, preparation and properties of buffers, analysis of assays, chemical kinetics, enzyme kinetics, pharmacokinetics, and ligand binding analysis. Labman will operate in two modes, operational and tutorial. In the operational mode, calculations will be specified and the desired answers produced. In the tutorial mode, and in association with a companion manual, the physicochemical basis of the computations, e.g., conservation laws for molecular groups, and charge, and the equations of chemical equilibrium will be displayed. Labman will be menu-driven.The user will need to know the common names for requested computations, but the mathematical formulas will be provided. A database of chemical properties will provide molecular weights, pK's, etc., which will become accessible by selecting the desired chemical name from an alphabetized list. The user may extend the database with specialized compounds unique to a laboratory.
