Zusammen

If you've ever had trouble visualizing molecular symmetry and finding point groups - or explaining them to others, today's stop on our continuing tour of free chemistry databases and Web services is for you. Symmetry@Otterbein (S@O) is dedicated to teaching molecular symmetry using an interactive, 3D approach.

S@O is organized around around three concepts:

• Interactive Tutorial Explains in plain English and with reference to interactive 3D models the elements of symmetry. Each element can be animated onto a given structure viewed from any vantage point.
• Gallery Let S@O show you the symmetry elements of dozens of molecules. Each can be rotated, zoomed, and panned.
• Challenge Think you know symmetry? Take a test that uses the same 3D interactive approach as in the tutorials and gallery.

S@O makes especially good use of animation. For example, in addition to simply overlaying symmetry elements such as mirror planes, each symmetry element can be animated by pressing a button that transposes the positions of atoms over a second or two.

I did experience a minor techical glitch on my Ubuntu Linux/Firefox 3 system in which the browser became unresponsive while loading the Jmol applet. After stopping and restarting, the site worked flawlessly.

S@O is an excellent example of taking a subject that is very hard to learn from a book or in a lecture and making it much more comprehensible through the Web. For anyone learning symmetry or just a bit rusty, Symmetry@Otterbein makes an excellent resource.

Kudos

• Very well-thought and clean design.
• Many excellent examples.
• Interactive point group flowchart.
• Animated symmetry operations.
• Many useful links to symmetry resources.

Ideas for Improvement

Not easy to come by, so here's one that's probably a stretch:

• Submit any structure and interactively find its point group and symmetry elements.