Chemistry
California State University, Los Angeles
NeXTSTEP development environment and bundled software make all the difference
Reproduced with permission from NeXT
Computer, Inc.
A Reference
Guide to NeXT in Higher Education, Fall 1992
ยช
1992 NeXT Computer, Inc
Trina Valencich, a computational chemist and chemistry
professor at California State University, Los Angeles, was
accustomed to working in a 64-bit mainframe computing
environment. So when CSULA opted to replace their mainframe
with distributed workstations, Valencich had quite an
adjustment to make.
"I wanted as much computing power I could get so I was
accustomed to using machine language, FORTRAN and Basic,"
she says. "I knew very little about C or UNIX. I also had
to learn to use a menu and windowing system."
Valencich was given a Sun and a NeXT computer. "I
immediately became fascinated with the NeXT machine," she
says. "It provided an outstanding alternative in terms of
user friendliness and programmer friendliness."
She continues, "To me, Sun and NeXT are pretty comparable
in terms of hardware, but NeXT is much better in terms of
software. The Sun is not nearly as user friendly and it
doesn't come with any bundled software."
Valencich uses the NeXT machine for a research project
which involves computing trajectory calculations-the area
of chemistry that deals with time-dependent events. Because
most of her research work is done in FORTRAN, Valencich
purchased the Absoft FORTRAN 77 compiler. She adds that
"there are enormous amounts of public domain software for
chemistry that are available in FORTRAN."
Valencich also uses NeXT technology in her upper-division
physical chemistry course. "This is a mathematics-intensive
course," she explains. "Before the NeXT came along,
students could only solve simple pencil and paper equations
unless they planned to learn how to program on a mainframe.
With the NeXT, students can now get involved in helping
with some of my research projects and in trying out more
in-depth problems in the classroom. With the NeXT machine,
we're able to elevate the level of science students are
learning."
Using Interface Builder, Valencich has written Inertial
View, an interactive instructional package that varies
molecules in real time. The application gives students 53
options for changing the identity of atoms. Inertial View
also allows students to call up the periodic table of
elements to use the average mass, covalent radius, and
electronegativity of these atoms. Students can also change
the geometry and masses of molecules.
Also in the NeXTSTEP environment, Joe Bragin, associate
dean of the College of Natural and Social Sciences, and
Vicky Bragin, assistant professor of chemistry, have
developed Ideal Gas, an interactive simulation that
demonstrates the kinetic molecular theory of ideal gas.
Molecular motion is illustrated with changing temperature
and pressure so students can easily visualize what's
happening at the molecular level."
Valencich points out that she also uses a number of the
applications that come bundled with the NeXT machine,
including Mathematica and Draw. "It's great that
NeXT comes with bundled software. I feel like I've gone
back to school since I got my NeXT."
For more information, please contact:
Trina Valencich
Associate Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry
California State University, Los Angeles
5151 State University Drive
Los Angeles, CA 90032-8201
(213) 343-2368