Pushing Electrons: A Guide for Students of Organic Chemistry (Paperback)

by Daniel P. Weeks (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
By Daniel P. Weeks. This brief text will help you develop a skill that is essential to learning organic chemistry and success in your course. By working through the program, you learn to push electrons to generate resonance structures and write organic mechanisms.

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Brooks Cole; 3 edition (1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0030206936
• ISBN-13: 978-0030206931
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #20,615 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Students Should Read This Before Organic Course, August 29, 2000

By	Matthew M. Yau "Voracious reader" (San Francisco, CA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Adoption of hard cover for this book indicates that it has been more widely used as a supplimentary text for organic courses. Indeed just as the title suggests, this serves as a guide to "push electrons", the main principle behind writing reasonable mechanisms for organic reactions. Many students, unfortunately, find writing mechanisms extremely difficult and have no clue of how to begin. This book does not present chemistry of major functional groups, rather focuses on discussing how electrons shall move properly. Students who consider taking organic chemistry should at least read through this book, as a prerequisite check for your knowledge of electron structures and feel comfortable about directions of which electrons move. Excellent tool for organic student except that now students have to pay a higher price for the hard-cover version.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great! But . . . . ., April 18, 2003

By A Customer

This book starts out great, because it really makes it clear for us idiots the reason electrons are pushed. It is an engaging study tool that makes you want to open the book everyday. The problem with the book, I'm now learning, is that I now know how to push electrons, but I still don't know when to apply what rules. I thought that the book would have talked more about how to identify electrophiles, and nucleophiles (with regards to reagents). Instead the books jumps for being really easy to follow, to asking the reader to attempt really complex mechanisms. That's like asking a kid who just learned his ABC's to write a book. Very poor ending.

However, for those of you who are clear on electrophiles and nucleophiles, this book would be perfect for you. I suspect that if you know those well, you might not need this book.

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Prep for organic, August 26, 2003

By	Doan Ho (Richmond, VA) - See all my reviews

This book is not a substitution for organic chemistry by any means. It's mean (the first 2 chapters) to prepare, review, and reinforce concepts learned in Gen Chem but vital to organic.

The last 3 chapters are not review. They require some understanding of organic first. They are meant to reinforce and review what you learn in class.

So you can't just jump for chapter 1 and 2 directly into 3. One and two are meant for prior to organic. And 3 through 5 are to be used during the class.

It's definately got me several steps up on my classmates so far.

Ken