important topics & enrollment
At the E3 conference last tuesday, I was struck by the importance of catalysts -- all of this high-powered research in renewable energy and green chemistry relies heavily on the continued research and development in organometallic chemistry, specifically w/r/t use of homogenous catalysts to carry out environmentally friendly transformations (green chem) and otherwise impossible (C-H activation) or unfavorable transformations. This makes me think that it is not a good idea to ditch the "Synthesis" class, which focuses on this kind of chemistry.
What I do think we need to think about is 1) how do we clue students in early on into this kind of chemistry and 2) make sure they have the opportunity to take classes that will prepare them for a variety of career tracks, especially since they are not likely to stay in the same job for their entire career.