Upon completion of my MS, I transferred directly into a PhD program in Curriculum and Instruction.  This program was interdisciplinary where my research was still in chemistry but the coursework was in education.  The program of study was somewhat flexible and allowed me to pursue classes in educational technology as well as curriculum, research in visualization, and statistics.  My project for this degree was a comparison of Two- and Three-dimensional Animations in Coordination Chemistry.  I used Rasmol, Inspire, Photoshop, and Director to create the modules.  All data were analyzed using SPSS.  There were no significant differences between the three treatment and 1 control groups. One of the purposes of the study was to determine if there is, in fact, a justification for spending up to $1000 on software if freeware (e.g., Rasmol) or just affordable software is just as effective.  In this study, Rasmol would have been sufficient.  However, there were several limiting factors in the study that perhaps limited the capabilities of the software programs.  Based on qualitative data, I believe that there can be benefit from three-dimensional animations.  I would like to repeat this study using different software (Bryce) that is a bit more flexible than Inspire. 

     One reason I think Bryce might be beneficial is because it is an affordable 3D program that, once past the steep learning curve, is quite user-friendly.  I used it for 2 years as a post-doc working with Steve Reynolds in geology at ASU.  I used Bryce to develop topography, mineralogy, advanced structures, interactive periodic tables, and general visualization animations for Steve's Website.