Page 8 - UMN Chemnews December 2020

Three key staff members retire with a combined 77 years of service... continued from page 7
Energy & U presenters Professor Aaron Massari and Joe Franek wow students with a Rube Goldberg-inspired grand finale that uses different forms of energy to ignite a thermite reaction exploding in light and heat and creating molten iron.
“Joe’s queue is always the longest: every kid wants to high-five Joe and tell him how awesome the [Energy & U] show was. I think they all leave the show wanting to be a little like Joe, and that’s a big step toward envisioning themselves as scientists.”
Energy and U is the College of Science & Engineering’s high-impact outreach program that brings more than 10,000 elementa- ry-aged school students to campus every
year to learn about energy and the 1st Law
of Thermodynamics. Joe creates, develops, refines, and manages demonstrations for the shows. He ensures that the shows, which are filled with explosions, demonstrations, and amazing transformations of energy from one form to another, go off without a hitch. He also is the only Energy and U presenter in all of the shows, which sometimes adds up to 27 shows a year.
One of the demonstrations that Joe has per- fected over the years involves using laser light to initiation a reaction between hydrogen and chlorine gases. Called the Death Star, it is a student and audience favorite. He assembles
a balloon within a balloon reactor. The inner balloon contains the reactive gases (hydrogen and chlorine), and the outer balloon con- tains hydrogen. Activation energy is needed to ignite the reaction, and Joe uses lasers of different wavelengths or colors to achieve this. Students try the lasers of varying energy to set off the reaction from a safe distance. When the correct laser is selected, the result is a spectacular explosion.
Another Energy & U crowd favorite is the Rube Goldberg-inspired grand finale that uses all of the forms of energy talked about in the show to ignite a thermite reaction exploding in light and heat and creating molten iron.
“One of the most satisfying moments for Energy and U performers is when we meet the kids at the building doors to send them off
to their buses after the show,” said Professor Aaron Massari, director of Energy and U. “Joe’s queue is always the longest: every kid wants to high-five Joe and tell him how awe- some the show was. I think they all leave the show wanting to be a little like Joe, and that’s a big step toward envisioning themselves as scientists. Joe’s passion for making this show safe and exciting to watch will continue to fuel Energy and U for many years to come.”
—Professor Aaron Massari, Energy & U director
respected instructor in the classroom.
Most recently, during this time of COVID, Joe created a library of videos that professors can use for their online instruction. The videos augment a large catalog of step-by- step chemical demonstrations that Joe has built over the years, which includes detailed instructions, clear safety risks and precautions, and photos.
For Professor Lee Penn, director of Undergraduate Studies, Joe has been es- sential to the department’s teaching and outreach missions. “He has helped us all be more generous with our time and energy by tirelessly, generously, and passionately working to improve and develop demonstrations of chemistry,” Penn said.
Joe has left his mark on the Department of Chemistry community, inspiring many into a career of chemistry. One of those is Eric Kehoe who has known Joe since he was an
undergraduate major in the department. Kehoe is now a high school science teacher at Janesville Waldorf Pemberton High School.
“Many of the demonstrations that amazed
me as a chemistry student have made their way, in some form, into my own classroom instruction,” said Kehoe. “Joe is always willing to help out, spreading his passion and won- derment for chemistry. He not only is more than willing to explain the setup of a demon- stration for a high school teacher like myself, but he also has made my students’ trips to the University memorable with displays that never disappoint. I am not sure how many students make their way through the chemistry depart- ment knowing Joe, but I know that everyone who has been through a chemistry class has a lasting memory of just how exciting chemistry can be.”
One of Joe’s passions is outreach. He is the key member of the Energy and U team.
8 Chemnews December 2018