A [Non-Poetic] Ode to Chemistry -or- How I came to love Organic

I'm a chemistry major. Therefore, I should like all things chemically related, right? Well, I came to find out that at the beginning of this semester, I really didn't "like" organic chemistry ['o chem' for short]. It didn't help that the semester started off going over stuff I'd already learned so well in high school [I mean, who CAN'T name organics after having Mr. Orlando?]. So, I didn't really notice when the transition to new material happened. So I made the mistake of assuming I knew everything, and got my ass handed to me on the first test. The funniest part is, the section of the test I did the worst on involved math [relative reactivities, to be more precise].

I decided that no matter what, I would do better on the second test [we only have three tests and a final, so I figured that if I wanted to eek out {note: yeah, I'm being a little melodramatic to add some pizzaz} an A, I might want to do better than an A- on the easiest test]. So, I studied my ass off, more so than I probably have for any other test since, well, ever. I really overstudied, but that's not anything to complain about.

The test covered stereochemistry [basically, how molecules are oriented in 3D space. Think of molecular models, but on crack], substitution reactions [where you pull off one atom/molecule and put on another], elimination reactions [like the name suggests, you eliminate a molecule/atom and put a double bond in its place], and alkenes [you don't really need me to explain that one, do you?]. Stereochemistry was probably the hardest, but most rewarding, part of the material. I flat out have not built the skill set to visualize models in my mind. But with a great deal of practice and a few 2D tricks, I managed to pull it off. Substitution and elimination reactions just require the learning of a few basic rules [like what makes a good reactant, leaving group, etc.] based on a few simple theories [electronegativity, resonance stabilization, etc.]. All of this just requires practice, practice, practice.

And here's where the interesting part comes in [you've been waiting for that, haven't you?]. I started to LIKE organic after this test. All the different reactions, the ways of writing out three dimensional molecules, all of it, started to seem like this fun little game that you can play. The lingo of Organic Chemists [like 'attack the backside'] started to sound not only funny, but more importantly FASCINATING.

The transformation in interest happened when I realized that I shouldn't treat o chem like general chemistry [gen chem]. Gen chem is a lot of math [stoichiometry, gas laws, thermodynamics, electrochemistry, etc.] wrapped around a few simple theories. O chem is a few simple theories wrapped around a whole lot of practical applications. One isn't the other. And they shouldn't have to be.

Chemistry really does come in so many different flavors: there's Physical Chemistry [p chem] for the mathematically inclined, o chem for the geometer / synthesizer, inorganic chemistry [no nifty abbreviations for that one that I know of] for the, well, someone that likes metals a lot, analytical chemistry for those that like fiddling with instruments, and bio chemistry for those interested in how life works. And they all combine into this beautiful whole known as 'chemistry'. There's room for just about everyone in the field. It's sad that you don't find out about all the OTHER types of chemistry until it's really too late. 'I don't get what this mole thing is... Man, chemistry must just not be for me... In fact, since I don't get it, I HATE it. Yeah, that's right, I hate chemistry, it's so stupid!' What a strange progression from 'I don't quite understand this' to 'I despise this! It's stupid!'

True, this variety in all the sciences. I love physics for it's mathematics, but I'm sure there's plenty of room for non-math in it. Biology, well, I don't know if I could ever do something with that. Plants are cool, but I don't want to know about the plasmodesmata or the sclerenchyma and collenchyma. Unless, of course, you're letting me know how they work on a molecular level. Like viagra and NO synthetase. Now that's cool stuff.

Maybe it's just a matter of different strokes for different folks. I like the basics. The fundamentals. The little things that make life work. Go back to energy, work your way to matter, and soon enough you'll come to us. That's just cool.

And now I'm going to leave the original point of this post [discussing how o chem really is math] for a different post.

I hope you enjoyed this Ode to Chemistry. Maybe I'm rationalizing now that I've picked my major. But isn't that what most of life is? Rationalizing to reassure ourselves that we made the right decisions in an uncertain world.

Thank God we're so good at it.