Bassam Z. Shakhashiri, PhD
Credentials: Department of Chemistry
Position title: Emeritus Professor
Email: bassam@chem.wisc.edu
Website: Science is Fun
Phone: (608) 262-0538
Address:
9355 F Daniels & J H Matthews Chemistry Bldg
1101 University Ave
Madison, WI 53706
- William T. Evjue Distinguished Chair for the Wisconsin Idea
Education
BA, 1960, Chemistry, Boston University
MSc, 1964, Chemistry, University of Maryland
PhD, 1968, Chemistry, University of Maryland
PostDoc, 1969, University of Illinois-Urbana
Research Interests
Bassam Shakhashiri is the first holder of the William T. Evjue Distinguished Chair for the Wisconsin Idea at UW-Madison. He is well known internationally for his effective leadership in promoting excellence in science education at all levels, and for his development and use of demonstrations in the teaching of chemistry in classrooms as well as in less formal settings, such as museums, convention centers, shopping malls and retirement homes. The Encyclopedia Britannica sites him as the “dean of lecture demonstrators in America.” His scholarly publications, including the multi-volume series, Chemical Demonstrations: A Handbook for Teachers of Chemistry, are models of learning and instruction that have been translated into several languages. Volume Five of this series includes a rich section that explains the science of color and light, and outlines the chemical processes of vision and the effects of visual stimuli that lead to perception.