New Insights on Chemistry and Technology: A Reflection

Important Lessons

Before participating in this course, I had minimal experience with the more technological aspects of chemistry. Through some of my other classes and research experiences, I had gained some knowledge with equipment or computational techniques, but not until this course was I so exposed to the progress that has been made in using computers to forward our knowledge of chemistry. I was aware of many of the advances made in chemical research in regards to chemistry itself, but I had no idea of the technological advances - for example, that 3D printers and AI/machine learning were completely changing the way chemistry can be researched and applied. I think it is absolutely incredible that as technology moves forward so quickly, some research that would normally take years of reading literature research and testing hypothesis can be streamlined through tandem work between computational and experimental chemists, in which computational researchers can narrow down hypotheses so experimental chemists can go into the lab with more knowledge and hopefully support what was found computationally. Not only does this tandem work save money, but it also supports the field of green chemistry in which researchers try to be less wasteful and safer for themselves and the environment.

Programming was never something that in my schooling prior to college or even in our general education requirements now that was emphasized specifically. My generation grew up with technology, so it was expected that we all had a basic understanding of how to use technology such as computers, smartphones, and programs - but knowing how to code was not an expectation, but a niche activity for those who enjoyed such activity or wanted a lucrative job. However, it is becoming more and more necessary for everyone to know how to code at least a little bit. It is incredible to know that now that President Obama has started and intiative so all students must gain exposure in coding sometime while in grades K-12 because it is an important skill to gain. This course has really shown me that coding is important and that it is a skill that can help me be more independent in my future - if I have an idea for a program that can help my research and I know how to code, I will not have to rely on someone else to develop for me, which is incredibly empowering.

I am still largely learning the different disciplines within my field and where distinctions fall, but I for the most part believed that computational and experimental chemists did collaborate, but were rarely the same people, prior to this class. Now I know that even those who work primarily in labs or in product testing still must be able to utilize databases and computer programs at the very least, which I learned mostly from my interview with a development chemist. I expected that I would get very little information from my interview with my chemist since they worked in development, but I was happily surprised to receive a lot of information from them, including how computers can help solve for needed reactions that would take very long for chemists to figure out without the help of a program. My interviewee also mentioned the use of spectrophotometers, which basic version I had used before in a lab setting, but it was quite interesting to hear how precise and advanced spectrophotometers could be with the help of computer software.

Figure 1. Computational models of molecules and proteins from PubChem database, including analysis of accuracy
(Kim, 2013).

Future Actions

This course has caused me to think critically about how aspects of technology impact chemistry and what I need to do to keep up with the changes in my field. I am considering taking a programming course sometime before I graduate - I had always been interested to learn but now I see that it is very crucial for me to acquire these skills. I would like to continue to learn how to utilize databases in part because, for chemistry, they are absolutely necessary tools with how much information is being acquired through research now. I also am currently considering becoming a research professor, so learning in this course how spreadsheets could be manipulated to make a personalized gradebook with code was something I did not know but could be useful in my future career. I hope to and will pursue more chances to work with computational researchers and equipment that require the use of computer software in the next few years so I can have a strong understanding of the complexities of such work and be able to troubleshoot issues better if I ever utilize such skills more regularly. On my own, I can look at journal articles such as those from the Journal of Cheminformatics to acquire new information about this growing field.

Resources:

Kim, S., Bolton, E. E., Bryant, S. H.  (2013). PubChem3D: conformer ensemble accuracy. Journal of Cheminformatics, 5(1).  10.1186/1758-2946-5-1.