Modern Physical Organic Chemistry [Hardcover]

Eric V. Anslyn (Author), Dennis A. Dougherty (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1891389319 | ISBN-13: 978-1891389313 | Publication Date: July 15, 2005 | Edition: illustrated edition

This is the first modern textbook, written in the 21st century, to make explicit the many connections between physical organic chemistry and critical fields such as organometallic chemistry, materials chemistry, bioorganic chemistry, and biochemistry. In the latter part of the 20th century, the field of physical organic chemistry went through dramatic changes, with an increased emphasis on noncovalent interactions and their roles in molecular recognition, supramolecular chemistry, and biology; the development of new materials with novel structural features; and the use of computational methods. Contemporary chemists must be just as familiar with these newer fields as with the more established classical topics. This completely new landmark text is intended to bridge that gap. In addition to covering thoroughly the core areas of physical organic chemistry – structure and mechanism – the book will escort the practitioner of organic chemistry into a field that has been thoroughly updated . The foundations and applicabilities of modern computational methods are also developed. Written by two distinguished researchers in this field, Modern Physical Organic Chemistry can serve as a text for a year-long course targeted to advanced undergraduates or first-year graduate students, as well as for a variety of shorter courses on selected aspects of the field. It will also serve as a landmark new reference text, and as an introduction to many of the more advanced topics of interest to modern researchers. An accompanying Student Solutions Manual will become available.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"It will certainly inspire." -- Barry Carpenter, Cornell University

"This book is the new authoritative physical organic resource that will benefit researchers, students, and teachers alike." -- Timothy Swager, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

"This book is the new authoritative physical organic resource that will benefit researchers, students, and teachers alike.” --Timothy Swager, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

"This much needed text places physical organic chemistry in its most modern context." -- Timothy M. Swager, MIT

I can enthusiastically recommend the text." --Nicholas J. Turro, Columbia University

About the Author

Eric V. Anslyn received his PhD in Chemistry from the California Institute of Technology under the direction of Robert Grubbs. After completing post-doctoral work with Ronald Breslow at Columbia University, he joined the faculty at the University of Texas at Austin, where he became a Full Professor in 1999. He currently holds four patents and is the recipient of numerous awards and honors, including the Presidential Young Investigator, the Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellow, the Searle Scholar, the Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award, and the Jean Holloway Award for Excellence in Teaching. He is also the Associate Editor for the Journal of the American Chemical Society and serves on the editorial boards of Supramolecular Chemistry and the Journal of Supramolecular Chemistry. His primary research is in physical organic chemistry and bioorganic chemistry, with specific interests in catalysts for phosphoryl and glycosyl transfers, receptors for carbohydrates and enolates, single and multi-analyte sensors – the development of an electronic tongue, and synthesis of polymeric molecules that exhibit unique abiotic secondary structure. Dennis A. Dougherty received a PhD from Princeton with Kurt Mislow, followed by a year of postdoctoral study with Jerome Berson at Yale. In 1979 he joined the faculty at the California Institute of Technology, where he is now George Grant Hoag Professor of Chemistry. Dougherty's extensive research interests have taken him to many fronts, but he is perhaps best known for development of the cation- interaction, a novel but potent noncovalent binding interaction. More recently, he has addressed molecular neurobiology, developing the in vivo nonsense suppression method for unnatural amino acid incorporation into proteins expressed in living cells. This powerful new tool enables “physical organic chemistry on the brain” - chemical-scale studies of the molecules of memory, thought, and sensory perception and the targets of treatments for Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, schizophrenia, learning and attention deficits, and drug addiction. His group is now working on extensive experimental and computational studies of the bacterial mechanosensitive channels MscL and MscS, building off the crystal structures of these channels recently reported by the Rees group at Caltech.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 1104 pages
• Publisher: University Science; illustrated edition edition (July 15, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1891389319
• ISBN-13: 978-1891389313
• Product Dimensions: 11.1 x 8.9 x 2.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #185,286 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The long wait is over..., September 19, 2006

By 

Ashutosh Jogalekar "Sciencecat" (Cambridge, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Modern Physical Organic Chemistry (Hardcover)

Phys. Org. Chem. has always been one of my favorite subjects. As I continued to study chemistry during high school, college and grad school, I began to realise that phys org chem represents not so much a separate field as a philosophy and approach; to treat chemical and biological systems from the perspective of structure, conformation, and reactivity which are after all the most fundamental aspects of any such system. I realized that phys org chem is a truly interdisciplinary framework, and any one who has a solid background in it can be a good computational chemist, synthetic organic chemist, and/or bioorganic/biochemist.

Unfortunately, all the classic phys org books until now have been of the 'pure' kind, focusing on mechanism and reactivity, but not discussing the interdisciplinary nature of the topic, especially for biological systems and materials. The wait is over: Modern Physical Organic Chemistry by Dennis Dougherty and Eric Anslyn has completely and satisfactorily reinvented the phys org chem textbook. Now one can look to a wholesome treatment of phys org as a multidisciplinary, fundamental, and exciting approach to both chemistry and biology. The book is worth its price, and covers the gamut of topics, including basic ones like mechanisms and bonding, but also is interspersed with lots of boxes and discussions explaining the applications of basic phys org concepts to host guest systems, proteins and nucleic acids, strained molecules, and materials science. Fantastic reference. It should make you a well-rounded chemist, which is a requirement in today's era of interdisciplinary and collaborative research.

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Modern Physical Organic Chemistry, October 3, 2005

By 

J. Little - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Modern Physical Organic Chemistry (Hardcover)

The book by Anslyn and Daugherty is terrific! I recommend it enthusiastically. It fills a large void in the modern day curriculum, and does so brilliantly. I am grateful to the authors for having done so.

Impressively, the text is sophisticated yet readable, both for those of us who have
studied organic chemistry for many years, and most importantly, for students. I've
spoken with a number of students who echo this sentiment. Furthermore, the text is
thoroughly enjoyable to read and is full of wonderful insights. There are very few
chemistry books I've read where I was anxious to see what was coming next. Anslyn and Dougherty's book is one of them.

It is clear that the authors have taken a great deal of care to express their thoughts
carefully, clearly, and concisely. In addition, they have expertly communicated the
interconnections between physical organic chemistry and all other phases of chemistry, including bioorganic and materials chemistry, and have shown that the tools of the physical organic chemist permeate each of the contemporary sub-disciplines.

The publishers, too, are to be congratulated for taking the time and exercising the
care needed to put together a beautifully formatted rendering of the ideas expressed by the authors. In addition, the binding is strong, well constructed, and gives every indication that it will hold up over many years of repeated use.
"Modern Physical Organic Chemistry" is an important and prized addition to my library. I am certain that it will find its place as one of the most important books in the field that has ever been written. Enjoy!

Dan Little

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally, no more "Lousy and Ridiculous" for chemistry graduate students, January 22, 2006

By 

ItsChmical (Houston, TX United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Modern Physical Organic Chemistry (Hardcover)

As a recent grad of an org chem graduate program who had to suffer through the nearly 20 year old text "Mechanism and Theory in Organic Chemistry" by Lowry and Richardson, this book by Anslyn and Dougherty is a fabulous update that is easy to read and great asset to any chemistry student. I agree with the other reviewers that the problem sets are challenging, the text is clearly written, and the material relates well back to current research issues. If you are a graduate student considering getting another reference to help you through your organic chemistry graduate program, get this book before you try "Advanced Organic Chemistry: Structure and Mechanisms" by Carey and Sundberg. I expect that "Modern Physcial Organic Chemistry" will become a staple to most chemist's shelves similar to that of a CRC Handbook or "Advanced Organic Chemistry" by March.