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Using E-mail to Discuss Chemistry 

Spreadsheets as Tools
Sending Results by E-mail

I know there may be folks out there who have not had the need to use a spreadsheet.  If you have trouble getting your spreadsheet project started, please ask for assistance. 

Spreadsheets as Tools

Spreadsheets are designed to carry out a series of repetitive calculations.  Some teachers use them to keep grade records.  (I use mine to keep a record of how this group is progressing through  various projects.) 

Spreadsheets can also be useful tools for your teaching.  As the assignments show you can use them to graph a variety of things.  They can also be used to do calculations.  An example that may or may not be useful follows.

Would you like to give every student a different quantity for homework calculations but don't want to calculate all of the different answers?  Set up a spreadsheet with a series of input data and have the program give you the answers.  The following table was constructed that way.  I used the ideal gas law to calculate the number of moles in 3 diffferent samples of a gas using random values of P, V, and T.  I could have calculated 30 or 100 diferent values equally easily. 

P(atm)    V(mL)  T(Celcius) moles
0.1       234       26      0.000953225
0.233     456       37      0.004174625
0.435     567       48      0.009359074

(Notice that significant figutes are a problem when using a spreadsheet.  So are trailing zeros, most spreadsheets do not show them.  I typed in 0.100 but 0.1 was what was displayed.) 

Sending Results by E-mail

Once you have completed your project, send me your input and output as described below.  Share the following too:

• questions about the results 
• unexpected observations
• ways you might use the graphs in your classes

Because we cannot share graphs by e-mail, please send me the results of your spreadsheet calculations as follows. 

• Label each column of data and results on your spreadsheet.
• Select the block of information on the spreadsheet that contains 
• labels
• input data
• and results.
• Save this block as a text file (sometimes called an ASCI or a DOS file).  If you have an option choose "Tab delimited".
• Paste the file as a block in your e-mail to me or attach it to the e-mail message.