what is vitalism and why did it crumble? what replaced it?
-the belief in a life force outside of our jurisdiction of physical and chemical laws.
-it crumbled after several decades of laboratory synthesis of some increasingly complex organic compound.
-it was replaced by mechanism
What is mechanism?
the view that physicaland chemical laws gvern all natural pheomena, including the process of life.
what is organic chemistry?
the study of carbon compouds
what facet about carbon makes large, complex molecues possible?
it is tetravalence. it acts as an intersection point from which a molecule can branch off in as many as four directions.
what are the 4 major components of organic molecules?
-carbon
-nitrogen
-oxygen
-hydrogen
under what condition are all carbons in the same plane as opposed to the tetrahedral shape?
when two carbon atoms are joined by a double bond
methane
-comment
-molecular formula
-ch4
-when a carbon has 4 single bonds to other atoms, the molecule is tetrahedral.
ethnane
-molecular formula
-comment
-c2h6
-a molecule may have more than one tetrahedral group of single bonded atoms. (ethane consists of two such groups)
ethene (ethylene)
-molecular formula
-comment
-c2h4
-when two carbon atoms are joined by a double bond, all atoms attached to those carbons are inthe same plane; the molecule is flat.
whata re hydrocarbons? What is a key characterisctic about them?
-organic molecules cnsisting of only carbon and hydrogen
-they can undergo reastions that release a relatively large amount of energy.
-also they mainly exict is fossil fuel which is in dead animals. however it is only really existing in the human/animal body as tails attached to non carbohydrate components; making then nonpolar because of their bonds to the hydrocarbns.
in what ways do hydrocarbons exists?
-length
-double bonds
-rings
-branching
what are isomers and what are the different kins of isomers?
-compounds that have the same numbers of atoms of the same elemts, but different structures and hence different properties
-structural isomers
-geometric isomers
- enantiomers
what are structural isomers?
-differe in the covalent arrangements of their atoms
-such as straight or branching
what are geometric isomers? and what are the two types?
-have the same covaent partnerships, but they differ in their spatial arrangements.