The Chemical Society hosted a Mole Day event to commemorate Avogadro’s number on Oct. 23.  

The Chemical Society, known as the chemistry club, is a student affiliate chapter of the American Chemical Society (ACS) that aims to create enthusiasm about chemistry.  

“We work to engage students, exposing them to the fun and interesting aspects of chemistry through lectures, social events and philanthropic opportunities,” Lynnie Chong, president of the Chemical Society at Iona, said.   

Mole Day is celebrated all around the world with various activities related to chemistry and/or moles to foster an interest in chemistry. Mole Day usually occurs during National Chemistry Week. The overall purpose of the event was to get club members and other members of the science department to celebrate chemistry, according to Chong.  

There was an eight-person turnout at the virtual event. However, the event was originally scheduled to be in–person before the campus closed for two weeks, possibly attributing to the lower than expected turnout, according to Chong.  

The event was originally planned to be in–person by the Ginkgo tree, where students would have been able to attend with masks and socially distance. The participants were supposed to receive individually packed guacaMOLE, chips and a water bottle, according to Chong.  

“Once we found out that school would be closed for the two weeks, we switched to an online format via Zoom,” Chong said. “On Zoom, we discussed some fun facts about Mole Day and played a Mole Day/chemistry Kahoot.” 

The event was targeted to but not limited to students studying science.  

“The target audience was students studying science, but we were not limited to that,” Chong said. “The great thing about Mole Day and National Chemistry Week is that they can be celebrated by anyone and everyone!” 

Chong hoped that the participants left with a final takeaway.  

“I hoped for everyone who attended to enjoy celebrating chemistry,” Chong said. “It is easy for students in STEM to feel stressed or overwhelmed, so events like this are great way for students to destress and have fun while also talking about chemistry.”