“MasterChemist”: A Novel Strategy for Reviewing Stoichiometry and Introducing Molecular Gastronomy to Chemistry Students

Abstract

This article presents and discusses the results of an educational innovation that seeks to introduce the world of molecular gastronomy in chemistry lessons as a means to review stoichiometry and offer an alternative way to learn. In the literature to date, there is no evidence of haute cuisine having been employed to contextualize stoichiometry problem statements with its everyday applications. The proposed novel strategy, called “MasterChemist”, involved the participation of Spanish first-year university students taking the subject General Chemistry in the Bachelor’s Degree in Chemical Engineering. A Game-Based Learning (GBL) approach was used to solve the exercises and make the activity more appealing and interesting by adding fun to the learning process. The problems were contextualized in the use of siphons, isomalt sugar, and the spherification technique. Furthermore, dividing students into groups also boosted their cooperative skills. The students’ answers to a final survey revealed that the general opinion regarding the activity was highly positive. The undergraduates reviewed some stoichiometry concepts which we had previously observed that they had problems understanding. In addition, the attractive theme of haute cuisine made the activity dynamic and enjoyable both for students and for the teacher.

Design and impact of a stoichiometry voluntary online course for entering first-year STEM college students

“…Performance in this subject is closely related to student retention in STEM fields (Harris et al, 2020;Bastyr et al, 2022). However, learning chemistry poses challenges, as students tend to focus on memorizing equations rather than understanding the underlying concepts (Hussein and Reid, 2009;Serna-Galle ´n et al, 2022). Additionally, the diverse preparation levels of students further complicate the teaching of chemistry, leaving little time for remediation within the semester.…”

Medical Gastronomy and Glucofriendly Gastronomy: Tools for Chronic Disease and Diabetes Care

“…In recent years, molecular gastronomy has gained appreciation as a distinct field which studies the chemical and biochemical aspects of food preparation and presentation. 2 This concept allows meaningful cross talk between culinary scientists, chemists, as well consumers, and enhances the scope and spectrum of gastronomy as a science.…”

Determination of Energy Content of “Zero-Sugar” Artificial Sweeteners via Bomb Calorimetry and Theoretical Calculations

“…In learning activities, students often connect better when the activity is personally interesting and demonstrates some relevance to their everyday lives. − Because of food’s prevalence in students’ lives, it has been used as one way to connect to both science and nonscience majors. This Journal contains quite a few laboratory activities that include some relation to food. − A number of these activities employ food to teach the use of various laboratory techniques, including GC-MS, , flame atomic absorption spectroscopy, HPLC, , UV–vis spectroscopy, bomb calorimetry, , and computational methods …”