Nulcear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) Spectroscopy is the most important structural tool available to chemists. However, exorbitant spectrometer costs and long data-acquisition times preclude student use of modern FT-NMR instruments. An innovative, alternative teaching strategy developed by chemists at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) solves the dilemma. The use of FT-NMR data and spectra, stored on videodiscs and CD-ROM discs, provide students easy, inexpensive access to powerful modern NMR techniques. Computing equipment is crucial to this project which will dramatically change the NMR instruction of 200 juniors and seniors in chemistry courses at UCLA. This ILI award from the Chemistry Shared Instrumentation Program will help the Department of Chemistry at UCLA to aquire the computing instrumentation needed to enhance undergraduate laboratory instruction and aid in chemistry curriculum development.
