Ph.D. Physical Chemistry, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, 1984 Thesis: Energy Derivatives of Correlated Wavefunctions: A Matrix Directed Approach B.S. Chemistry (with Highest Honors), DePaul University, Chicago, Illinois, 1979.

Dr. Jasien's research interests are somewhat eclectic in nature. Some of his major interests are listed below: (1) Applications of computational quantum chemical techniques to elucidate molecular structure, energetics, and intermolecular interactions. One recent area of investigation is the elucidation of intermolecular halogen-bonding interactions and their role in modifying chemical reactivity and molecular properties. Another topic of interest is in the stability and reactivity of metal clusters. (2) Student conceptual understandings of topics in General Chemistry and development of guided-inquiry exercises for the classroom and laboratory. These interests also tie into his interest in the preparation of middle and high school physical science teachers. He also has a variety of experimental projects that are for undergraduate students senior research projects. Typically these use some sort of spectroscopy to investigate some practical problem in chemistry. Some recent student projects include: • “ATR-IR Analysis of Cis vs. Trans Fat Content in Oils,” Courtney Rethwisch • “Use of A Vernier Mini-GC for the Determination of ∆vapH°,” Rhianna Smith • “A Computational Study on Halogen Bonding,” Geoffrey Piland • “The Solubility of Disperse Orange 1 and 3 in Surfactant Solutions,” Jayda K. Spong • “Viscosity of Polymer Solutions and SDS,” Arshad Hamideh • “Interactions of Surfactants and PEG Polymers,” Valerie Nichols • “Tunneling Probabilities in Model Quantum Systems,” Steven George • “A Computational Study of Na and Al Substituted Lithium Hydride Structures,” Russell Watt • “IR Analysis of Products From the Thermal Decomposition of Polystyrene,” Ben Shen • “FTIR Analysis of Cigarette Smoke,” Melody Trump

A few illustrative peer-reviewed publications are given below. G.B. Piland* and P.G. Jasien, “Halogen Bonding of Substituted Iodobenzenes with Potential Solvent Molecules: A Comparison of Binding Energies,” Computational and Theoretical Chemistry 988 (2012) 19-26. P. G. Jasien and Ryan Cross*, “Calculation of sequential hydrogen atom binding energies on a model lithium cluster,” Journal of Molecular Structure: THEOCHEM 756 (2005) 11-17. P.G. Jasien, “Helping Students Assess the Relative Importance of Different Intermolecular Interactions,” Journal of Chemical Education 85 (2008) 1222-1225. P. G. Jasien, “You Said Neutral, but What Do You Mean?,” Journal of Chemical Education 87 (2010) 33-34. P. G. Jasien, What Do You Mean That “Strong” Doesn’t Mean “Powerful”? Journal of Chemical Education 88 (2011) 1247-1249. G. E. Oberem and P. G. Jasien, "Measuring the Impact of an Intensive Three-Week Summer Physics Course for In-Service High School Teachers,” Journal of Physics Teacher Education Online 2 (2004) 17-23.