Professor Kovac Publishes New Book
Jeff Kovac, Professor of Chemistry at the University of Tennessee Knoxville and Michael Weisberg, Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Pennsylvania published a new book on science history, Roald Hoffmann on the Philosophy, Art, and Science of Chemistry.
They gathered together chemist Roald Hoffmann’s most significant contributions to the field of philosophy and included in the book some unpublished lectures to increase the value of the collection.
Professor Kovac’s honors and awards include election to Phi Beta Kappa, the Woodrow Wilson Fellowship and election as a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Kovac is the author of over 100 publications including four books.
Abstract from Book
Nobel laureate Roald Hoffmann’s contributions to chemistry are well known. Less well known is that over a career that spans nearly fifty years, Hoffmann has thought and written extensively about a wide variety of other topics, such as chemistry’s relationship to philosophy, literature, and the arts, including the role of symbolism and writing in science, the nature of chemical reasoning, and the relationship between art and craft and science.
In Roald Hoffmann on the Philosophy, Art, and Science of Chemistry, Jeffrey Kovac and Michael Weisberg bring together twenty-eight of Hoffmann’s most important essays. Gathered here are Hoffmann’s most philosophically significant and interesting pieces, many of which are not easily found in print. In essays such as “Why Buy That Theory,” “Nearly Circular Reasoning,” “How Should Chemists Think,” “The Metaphor, Unchained,” “Art in Science,” and “Molecular Beauty,” we find the mature reflections of one of America’s leading scientists. Organized under the general headings of Chemical Reasoning and Explanation, Writing and Communicating, Art and Science, Education, and Ethics, these stimulating works provide invaluable insight into the practice of science. Hoffmann also has a reputation as a superb teacher of chemistry–one with a special talent for communicating complex ideas to novice students–and many of the essays here are of special interest to teachers of science in general, and chemistry in particular.
Insightful, thought-provoking, and filled with good humor, Roald Hoffmann on the Philosophy, Art, and Science of Chemistry will fascinate anyone interested in modern science or who enjoys engaging with an exceptional mind.
A retirement party was hosted for Darrell Lay today in Buehler Hall 511 to honor his 46 years of service to the Department of Chemistry.
It’s again time of the year that we say congratulations and goodbye to some of our friends. Yesterday, 2011 UT Fall Graduate Hooding Ceremony was hosted in Thompson-Boling Assembly Center & Arena. While 
Alan Cramer, a third year graduate student in 
Born and raised in Powder Springs, GA, Cramer always wanted to be a chemist. He received his Bachor of Science degree in Chemistry from Kennesaw State University in 2008 and joined Jenkins Group a year later.
Dr. Jeff Kovac, Professor of Chemistry, was appointed the new Director of College Scholars Program in the College of Arts and Sciences.
Chemistry graduate student Xiaojun Wang in 
Members of the 
KNOXVILLE – Michael Best, associate professor in the department of chemistry, will be speaking at this week’s Pregame Showcase on “Bioorganic Chemistry: Advancing the Frontiers of Medicine.”
Department of Chemistry hosted 2011 Board of Visitors Annual Meeting on Sept. 30 and Oct. 1 in Buehler Hall 511.
Chris Bennett, a fourth year graduate student in Dr. Camden’s group, published 
Prior to joining Camden group, Bennett obtained his Bachelor of Science degree from the Wofford College in 2003 and Master of Arts from the Wake Forest University in 2004. He also serves as the secretary for the East Tennessee Section of the American Chemical Society.