My Journey Through Organic Chemistry
1. The most valuable lesson learned from organic chemistry:
Organic chemistry is the study of the structure, reactions, chemical and
physical properties of organic compounds. However, as I reach my final week of
the second semester of the two semester organic chemistry sequence at
Campbellsville University I wonder how such a simple definition could turn into
endless hours of studying topics that seem far beyond the reach of the basic
definition of organic chemistry. There are many things that I have learned from
organic chemistry that I would consider important. In the first semester of
organic chemistry we learned the basic properties of chemical compounds such as
acidity, basicity, polarity, hybridization, and inter and intra molecular
bonding. In the first semester of organic chemistry lab we learned the basic
techniques of simple and fractional distillation, recrystallization, and acid
base extraction. We also learned how to apply our knowledge through conducting
proton NMR, and infrared spectroscopy at
the University of Louisville to compounds we synthesized in our organic chemistry
lab.
In the second semester of organic chemistry we learned how to apply the
foundation of knowledge acquired during the previous semester to reactions
involving organic compounds. Some of the reactions studied in the second
semester of organic chemistry was the fisher esterfication, diels-alder
reaction, aldol reaction, reduction
reactions, and reactions of amides, amines, carboxylic acids just to name a
few. During the second semester of organic chemistry lab we learned how to take
the basic lab techniques acquired in the first semester and apply them to
conducting various synthesis reactions and ultimately a final synthesis project
using the product recovered from a previous experiment.
Overall the most important thing I
believe that I learned from taking organic chemistry was how to apply the
knowledge apply from lecture and lab. The information I gained from taking
organic chemistry was applicable to real world situations in terms of carrying
out synthesis reactions in lab, determining how prescription drugs are
synthesized, and observing the chemical reactions that affect the human
physiology. Also, analytical thinking
was another important skill I took away from the course. Learning how to
analyze the mechanisms of certain reactions helped to determine the possible
products that could be formed from certain reactions and which reagents to use
to produce certain products.
2. The most difficult component
of the course:
The most difficult
component of the first semester of organic chemistry was learning how to
analyze proton and carbon NMR spectrum, and determining the stereochemistry of
molecules. While most of the second semester of organic chemistry was reactions
it was difficult to keep all of the reactions organized and to remember which
reaction mechanism went with each reagent. In additon, applying the material learned in lecture to lab was difficult at times. Because, you had to take pieces of information gathered from lecture and apply them to the big picuture of performing the actual reactions studied in lecture to lab.
3. The most surprising element of the
course:
The most surprising element
of the course the amount of material covered throughout both semesters of the
two semester sequence. The amount of time required to be successful in the
course is tremendous due to the difficulty level and amount of course material. In addition I was surpised with the amount of team work that went into performing lab experiments. Each member of lab brought their own unique outlook on experiments which made the material more understadable and fun to learn. The benefits of working together as a team were present in both the lab and lecture protions of organic chemistry.
1.
Manage your time effectively and schedule a brief time to study the course
material on a daily basis.
2.
Do not procrastinate on assignments or studying for exams.
3.
Learn the material now and it will help on future exams and more complex topics
covered in the future.
4.
Study in groups to get different perspectives on the material being covered.
5.
Make a reaction notebook that summarizes reactions covered in both semesters of
organic chemistry to study for the ACS and finals.
5. ACS Exam
A) How well did the ACS exam correspond to
the material covered in the course:
I believe the ACS exam corresponded quite well with the material covered
in both semesters of organic chemistry. While there were a few questions that
were unfamiliar on the standardized test, I was familiar with most of the
questions that were asked on the exam. I believe that I would have benefited from
an overview of which reagents went with certain reactions before the exam. However,
overall the material covered in both semesters of organic chemistry allowed me to
be familiar with the material covered on the exam.
B) What was the most challenging question
on the ACS exam?
The most challenging aspect of the ACS exam for me was remembering which
products were formed from the reagents. In addition, I found the stereochemistry
questions slightly challenging also. A sample question I found difficult on the
ACS exam was : Reaction of D-(-)-ribose with sodium borohydride gives? With the
correct answer being a meso compound.
