Nucleophilicity vs. Basicity
Following up on Nucleophiles and Electrophiles, here’s a common question students have about nucleophilicity: What’s the difference between nucleophilicity and basicity? Great, great question. First
Read morebases
What makes a good leaving group?
A leaving group is a nucleophile acting in reverse; it accepts a lone pair as the bond between it and its neighbor (usually carbon for
Read moreA Handy Rule of Thumb for Acid-Base Reactions
Last time I talked about pKa and how it’s the closest thing we have to a universal measurement of the strengths of all kinds of
Read moreThe Organic Chemistry Reagent Guide is here!
It’s taken a long time – late April through early May was hectic – but today I’m thrilled to finally announce the launch of the
Read moreCarbonyl Mechanisms: Neutral Nucleophiles, Part 1
Today, building on the previous 2-part series on mechanisms of anionic nucleophiles in carbonyl chemistry, I’m going to start looking at the reactions of the
Read moreGen Chem and Organic Chem: How are they different?
After finishing my freshman year of college, I spent my summer in the university town where I went to school. I had a menial telemarketing
Read moreFrom Gen Chem to Org Chem, Pt. 9 – Acids and Bases
First of all, back to the shepherds: Oxygius, having six sheep to take care of, found he could make a bargain with two of the
Read moreThe Magic Wand of Proton Transfer
When textbooks (or your teacher/TA/tutor) start writing down reaction mechanisms, sometimes you’ll see hell of a lot of curved arrows. The curved arrow notation is useful
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