" I especially love teaching freshmen, where it is both possible and desirable to perform many practical demonstrations to illustrate and enliven the lectures. The books by Bassam Shakhashiri provide guidance for performing classroom demonstrations in a safe, dynamic, and instructive manner."
Stephen Lippard
2014 Priestley Medalist
Arthur Amos Noyes Professor of Chemistry at MIT
Excerpted from his cover story in the March 17, 2014 issue of
Chemical and Engineering News
"This exceptionally well-written volume presents superb descriptions of the most minute detail with a balance between the chemistry and the appeal of doing demos. Chemical Demonstrations, Volume 5 is a blueprint for success in presenting chemical demonstrations and describes demos appropriate for all consumers."
Diana S. Mason
University of North Texas
Excerpted from her review in the June 2012 issue of the
Journal of Chemical Education
“This series is written with a clarity of purpose and an attention to detail that truly set it apart. These volumes have something for everyone, but they are especially valuable for new teachers looking for an authoritative source for reliable and meaningful demonstrations to share with their students. It is obvious that Shakhashiri has a profound passion for the craft of the chemical demonstrator, and he understands the need to keep this art alive and relevant.”
Robert Becker
Kirkwood High School
Kirkwood, MO
“Hands down, Shakhashiri’s series is the quintessential resource that every chemistry department may rely upon to offer demonstrations that vividly convey a wide spectrum of compelling topics. They captivate audiences of all ages, both in informal educational and formal classroom settings. I am very excited to learn that he has published yet another gem.”
Sharmistha Basu-Dutt, Ph.D.
Professor of Chemistry, University of West Georgia
“The clear instructions for preparation, protocols, safety, and disposal translate into demonstrations that work reliably and safely every time, and the excellent descriptions of the mechanisms involved allow us to explain the concepts understandably to the public here at the museum. These books have helped innumerable times to inspire and engage our visitors through the beauty and wonders of chemistry.”
David Sittenfeld
Museum of Science, Boston
"Thank you so much for your magnificent Demonstrations 5! It is a stunning volume, and Roald Hoffmann's introduction ( including his mention of our work with predatory female fireflies ) is really intriguing. I can see how these books must make a major contribution to science education, and I want to congratulate you on the great job you have done."
Jerrold Meinwald
Professor Emeritus, Cornell Institute for Research in Chemical Ecology
“[This] series is a must for the classroom, library, and chemistry club at both the high school and collegiate levels.”
Joseph W. Kamsar
The Science Teacher
“This is a welcome fifth volume for an already outstanding series of demonstrations that are not only unique, state-of-the-art, and the fruit of rigorous scholarly research, but also extremely classroom-friendly. Teachers will love it!”
Mary Virginia Orna
Professor of Chemistry, College of New Rochelle
President, ChemSource, Inc.
“I write about chemistry in Popular Science magazine, and for that reason people often confuse me with someone who knows a lot about chemical demonstrations. But in that regard I am not worthy to wash the beakers of the true master of this domain, Bassam Shakhashiri. The addition of a brilliant fifth volume to his classic and invaluable four-volume set is long awaited and sure to be another milestone in the history of chemical education.”
Theodore Gray
Author of The Elements and Mad Science
Co-founder of Wolfram Research and Touch Press
Creator of Mathematica
2011 ACS James T. Grady-James H. Stack Award for Interpreting Chemistry for the Public
“Volume 5 of Chemical Demonstrations makes light reading (!) as it is all about radiation, shining, glowing, pulsating, flashing, blinking, scintillating. It is the best account I know of to introduce students and instructors into the amazing world of color, vision, and perception from a chemical viewpoint. Classroom and public chemistry demonstrations continue to be one of the most vivid, compelling, and memorable experiences that so many can appreciate about this awesome chemical world around us.”
Richard N. Zare
Professor of Chemistry
Chemistry Department Chair, Stanford University
2010 ACS Priestley Medalist
“I have enjoyed these books for over 30 years. They gave me everything I needed to know about the chemistry behind the demonstration along with complete safety guidelines. They changed my life. These books inspire me to do more for my students.”
Sally B. Mitchell
East Syracuse-Minoa High School
East Syracuse, NY
ACS 2009 James Bryant Conant Award
2011 Chair, ACS Syracuse Section
“Shakhashiri’s books provide both new and veteran teachers with a powerful tool, one that can be used to show students the exciting and intriguing world of chemistry that we love. They are in-depth, scholarly, and clear.”
Amina Khalifa El-Ashmawy, Ph.D.
Professor of Chemistry, Collin College
McKinney, TX
“Chemistry teachers have always had the challenge of helping students make sense out of what they see in the world. Chemical Demonstrations has always been the definitive resource for helping students see the chemical world. This new edition continues the long tradition of describing great tools to direct student learning about chemistry by allowing them to see chemistry in action. It's an invaluable resource for chemistry teachers.”
Thomas Holme
Professor of Chemistry, Iowa State University
Director, ACS Exams Institute
“The most comprehensive set of chemical demonstrations handbooks ever created.”
Roald Hoffmann
Nobel Laureate in Chemistry
"It is a great pleasure for me, as the NewsLetter editor, to introduce Bassam Shakhashiri's latest book, Volume 5 in his Chemical Demonstrations: A Handbook for Teachers of Chemistry series has been published. I've seen several of his live demonstrations in different countries in the world, amazing, from very classical to innovative approaches, but always illustrative, very expressive and presented with great and communicative humour and fun, and as he is so keen to repeat as often as possible 'Science is Fun'!"
Pascal Mimero
Editor, EC2E2N Newsletter
See this testimonial as it appeared in the newsletter
