An analogy is sort of like a....

I'm a big fans of analogies in teaching. I think they can be useful at simplifying complex concepts. They help by putting the general ideas of a concept into more familiar forms. This is gives the student something to grasp and contemplate. The ultimate goal is that the simplified version incubates and eventually provides a foundation for the understanding of the complex concept.

The danger is that the student never gets past the analogy, and the full understanding never develops. So, analogies must be used carefully and judiciously.

With that said, I like to use analogies using kindergarteners (figuratively, not literally).

For example (my apologies to any non-chemists; this is going to get nerdy), I use kindergarteners to explain the stability provided by resonance.

The following carbanion is very unstable and highly reactive because the charge is localized on one carbon.
Whereas, this next molecule, while still quite reactive, is more stable and less reactive because the negative charge is delocalized through the pi system.

The first structure is analogous to being locked in a small room with 20 hyper adn overly energetic kindergarteners. That would be a high stress and uncomfortable situation for everyone involved. What the kindergarteners need is room to run. The second structure is analogous to being in a gymnasium with the same 20 kindergarteners. When the kindergarteners have room to run around, things are a lot less stressful. In other words, kindergarteners are nonbonded electrons.

No time to brew

I am having one of the busiest semesters of my teaching career. As we approach the end of the semester, things only get busier.

The race analogy is overused and cliché, but....

Teaching is like running a race.

Back in my high school days, I was on the field and track team. I know, it's supposed to be "track and field," but my forte was in jumping events, and I have a greater love for the field events.[1] While jumping was what interested me most, I was also a pretty decent long distance runner. The only problem is that I hated[2] running long distances. I could do it, but I didn't like it. Through incremental apathy I eventually worked my way down from running the mile to the 400 meter "dash."

The 400 meters is an interesting race. It is essentially a sprint. There is no time to coast. Once around the track as fast as you can go. The first 300 meters is tolerable, but the last 100 meters is torture. There is something about rounding that corner, seeing the finish line and feeling the lactic acid[3] in your legs screaming to be oxidized back to pyruvate. It is something that only feels good when you've reached the 402 meter mark.

That's how teaching college feels to me. It starts at a sprint and does not slow down. For most of the semester, the pace is tolerable. But, the last 3 weeks are frenzied with activity and laced with lactate burn. The end is in sight, but to reach it will require some pain.

What I really mean to say is: I want to brew some beer but time and energy are lacking. Maybe I'll just have to carve out a chunk of time to brew and screw the rest.[4]


[1] I still hold my high school's high jump record. Of course, that was about 25 pounds ago.
[2] and hate
[3] actually, lactate.
[4] that is one of the weirdest sentences I have ever written "brew and screw?" What the hell is that?