Instructor: Mark D. Timken, Ph.D.
Office: 235 Kirkbride Hall (in the Room 233 suite)
Office Hours: to be announced
Office Phone: (610) 499-4518
Email: timken@science.widener.edu
Class Meetings: 1:00-1:50 PM, Monday, Wednesday and Friday in Room 209 Kirkbride Hall
Text: "On Food and Cooking", H. McGee (1984), supplemented by numerous handouts.

An introductory science course directed at meeting the needs and interests of students enrolled in the School of Hospitality Management.  A foundation for understanding chemical reactions, particularly those pertinent to foods, will be developed by first examining the fundamental nature of molecules.  Special emphasis will be placed on the properties and structures of the most important types of food molecules: water, carbohydrates, fats, and proteins.  This course, designed for nonscience majors, cannot be used to fulfill requirements for any major or minor in science.  Students may not receive credit for both SCI 107 and CHEM 100. 3 semester hours (no lab)

I. The States of Matter (Gases, Liquids, and Solids; Physical Changes of State; Some Properties of Gases)

II. Chemical Fundamentals (Atoms; Molecules; Simple Ionic Substances; Chemical Formulas)

III. Chemical Bonding (Covalent Bonding; Ionic Bonding; Electronegativity; Polarity; Hydrogen Bonding)

IV. Representing Molecules (Various Ways to Represent Molecules; Predicting Molecular Properties)

V. Chemical Reactions and Chemical Equations

VI. Heat and Cooking (Heat Transfer Mechanisms; Cooking Materials; Pressure and Cooking)

VII. Water (Structure and Properties; Hydrogen Bonding; Aqueous Solutions)

VIII. Acids and Bases

IX. Carbohydrates (Sugars, Polysaccharides, Sugars in Foods, Starch-Based Sauces)

X. Fats and Oils (Triglyceride Structure/Properties; Saturation; Hydrogenation; Emulsified Sauces)

XI. Proteins (Amino Acids, Peptide Bond, Polypeptides, (In)Complete Proteins, Protein Gels)

XI. Selected Topics (as time allows): (for example: Eggs; Milk; Sugar and Confectionery)

There are five exams: 4 hourly exams and 1 final exam. Your grade will be calculated based solely upon your four best exams; that is, your lowest exam grade will be dropped. You may, if you wish, drop the final exam. Since you can drop an exam, there are NO MAKE-UP exams; a missed exam will be counted as your lowest grade and will be dropped.

Hourly Exam 1: Wednesday, Feb. 10, in class (room 209)
Hourly Exam 2: Wednesday, March 3, in class (room 209)
Hourly Exam 3: Friday, April 9, in class (room 209)
Hourly Exam 4: Monday, May 3, in class (room 209)
Final Exam: a COMPREHENSIVE exam will be scheduled during Finals week; date and time to be announced.

Please refer to the Widener Student Handbook for University academic policies on attendance and fraud. The Science Division strictly enforces the University's policy on cheating and other forms of academic fraud.

To Mark Timken's Web Page.
To the Widener Chemistry Web Page.
To the Widener Science Division Web Page.