[Autonomes Chemielernen im Fernunterricht und darüber hinaus!].

Autonomous Distance Learning in Chemistry and Beyond! Using specific examples, some of which originate from online teaching in school during the COVID-19 lockdown in spring 2020, it is demonstrated how autonomous learning in chemistry can be supported, also in the long-term. Examples include the use of electronic media, experiments carried out at home, and discussion of current topics in the media that relate to chemistry to show how learning can be encouraged and the student motivation maintained. The aim is to encourage, on the one hand, self-guided learning to fulfill given study goals and on the other, autonomous learning out of curiosity and, later in life, to have the toolset to meet professional challenges.

Reactions of the HCN-tetramer with aldehydes.

The HCN-tetramer, a 'classic' of the prebiotic chemistry of HCN, is shown to undergo a remarkable reaction with acetaldehyde in slightly basic or neutral aqueous solution at room temperature. The reaction consists in an aldolization-type C,C-bond formation, accompanied by a (presumably aldehyde-catalyzed) hydration of one of the two nitrile groups and the formation of two cyclic aminal-type groupings, each of the latter incorporating an additional molecule of the aldehyde. Should this so far unexplored type of chemistry of the HCN-tetramer prove to have some generality, the finding might add a new dimension to the potential etiological relevance of this HCN-oligomer.