A Graphics Workstation in the Undergraduate Chemistry Curriculum

本项目获得的计算机为Silicon Graphics 4D/25G图形工作站，内存12mb，两块380mb硬盘。计算机的图形和计算能力被用来支持两门生物化学课程，一门计算化学课程和高级论文项目。工作站填补了化学本科生所学知识与现代化学研究之间的空白。生物化学中关于分子结构的信息的快速增长，使得人们需要一种更有效的方法来表示大分子的三维结构，而不是现有的方法。图形工作站提供了这样一种方法。使用可用的软件包，学生被介绍到大分子结构的复杂性在整个一年的生物化学课程。由于本科生在计算化学方面缺乏指导，产生了额外的需求。工作站的获得使分子计算理论与实践的课程得以发展。为了有效地教授这样一门课程，化学系需要一台功能更强大的计算机。硅图形工作站不仅提供了必要的处理能力，而且还提供了图形功能的优势，以协助演示和解释样本计算的结果。毕业论文项目也大量使用了图形工作站。受影响的学生项目包括定点诱变研究、酶抑制剂设计和结构与诱变性之间关系的数学模型。该机构捐款的数额略高于国家科学基金基金。

The computer acquired through this project was a Silicon Graphics 4D/25G graphics workstation with 12 MB of memory and two 380 MB hard disk drives. The graphics and calculational capabilities of the computer are being used to support two biochemistry courses, a course in computational chemistry, and the senior thesis program. The workstation filled a gap that existed between what the chemistry undergraduates were taught and modern chemical research. The rapid growth of information regarding molecular structure in biochemistry has given rise to the need for a more effective method of representing large molecules in three dimensions than was available at the institution. The graphics workstation provided such a method. Using available software packages, students are introduced to the intricacies of macromolecular structure throughout the one year biochemistry course. An additional need arose from the lack of instruction that undergraduates received in computational chemistry. The acquisition of the workstation permitted the development of a course designed to teach the theory and practice of molecular calculations. To teach such a course effectively, the Chemistry Department required a more powerful computer than was available. The Silicon Graphics workstation provided not only the necessary processing power, but also the advantage of graphics capabilities to assist in the presentation and interpretation of results from sample calculations. The senior thesis program also made extensive use of the graphics workstation. Student projects that were affected included site- directed mutagenesis studies, enzyme inhibitor design and mathematical modelling of the relationship between structure and mutagenicity. The institution contributed in an amount slightly in excessof the NSF funds.