Office of Public Relations:                                           For more information, contact: Stephen E. Snyder

(229) 931-2028                                                                         (229) 931-2037 ssnyder@canes.gsw.edu

(229) 931-2072 fax

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Oct. 21, 2009

Southwest GA chemists donate resource books to
 local teachers for National Chemistry Week
 

AMERICUS--As part of its annual celebration of National Chemistry Week, the Georgia Southwest section of the American Chemical Society (ACS) will donate three copies of the “The Merck Index” to high school chemistry teachers in Americus and nearby cities.

A ceremony will be held at 12:45 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 22, at the Georgia Southwestern State University (GSW) Marshall Student Center. Local chemistry teachers, students, GSW faculty, and local officers of the Georgia Southwest ACS section will be present.

Merck & Co., Inc., which publishes the internationally-recognized resource book, is donating more than 12,000 copies of “The Merck Index” to schools and chemistry teachers around the country in partnership with the American Chemical Society, for National Chemistry Week, Oct. 18-24.

Nedialka Iordanova, Ph.D., chair-elect of the Georgia Southwest ACS, said that “The Merck Index” is particularly relevant to this year’s National Chemistry Week theme, “Chemistry—It’s Elemental!”

“This year is the 140th anniversary of the periodic table,” added Iordanova.

 “The Merck Index” contains chemical, pharmaceutical and biomedical information on more than 18,000 compounds that we know as drugs, fragrances, cosmetics, food supplements, pesticides and organic chemicals used in research.  It has a number of additional tables, a glossary, structures and reactions of interest to students and teachers, as well as a periodic table of the elements. 

National Chemistry Week is an outreach program that brings chemists together with students, teachers and the public, to improve public awareness for the role of chemistry in solving global challenges and improving the quality of our lives.

The American Chemical Society, which has more than 60 members in the Georgia Southwest Local Section, is a nonprofit organization chartered by the U.S. Congress. With more than 154,000 members, ACS is the world’s largest scientific society and a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related research through its multiple databases, peer-reviewed journals and scientific conferences. Its main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio.

Merck & Co., Inc. is a global research-driven pharmaceutical company dedicated to putting patients first.  Established in 1891, Merck discovers, develops, manufactures and markets vaccines and medicines to address unmet medical needs.  The Company devotes extensive efforts to increase access to medicines through far-reaching programs that not only donate Merck medicines but help deliver them to the people who need them.  Merck also publishes unbiased health information as a not-for-profit service.  For more information, visit www.merck.com.

For more information, contact Nedialka Iordanova at (229) 931-2334 or email her at niordano@gsw.edu

- GSW -