The School of the Physical Universe · physics, chemistry, earth & sky
Chemistry (General & Organic)
Atoms, bonds, and reactions — why substances behave as they do, and how to predict what happens when they meet.
The mole, the bond, and the balanced equation — a first rigorous pass through how matter combines.
Syllabus · 5 units · ~40 hours
Unit I — Atoms and the Periodic Table
Atomic structure and isotopes · Electron configuration · Periodic trends · Ions and why atoms form them
Unit II — Bonding and Molecules
Ionic and covalent bonding · Lewis structures · Molecular shape and VSEPR · Polarity and intermolecular forces
Unit III — Stoichiometry
The mole and Avogadro's number · Balancing chemical equations · Limiting reagents · Percent yield
Unit IV — Reactions in Water
Dissolution and concentration · Acids and bases, a first pass · Precipitation reactions · Oxidation and reduction
Unit V — Gases and Energy
The gas laws · The ideal gas equation · Thermochemistry and enthalpy · Calorimetry
Carbon's architecture — functional groups, stereochemistry, and the arrow-pushing logic of mechanism.
Syllabus · 4 units · ~44 hours
Unit I — Structure and Shape
Bonding in carbon and hybridization · Drawing skeletal structures · The functional groups · Conformations of alkanes
Unit II — Stereochemistry
Chirality and handedness · R and S naming · Enantiomers in medicine · Optical activity
Unit III — First Mechanisms
Curved-arrow notation · Nucleophiles and electrophiles · Substitution: SN1 and SN2 · Elimination: E1 and E2
Unit IV — Alkenes and Alkynes
Pi bonds and addition reactions · Markovnikov's rule · Hydrogenation and oxidation · First steps in synthesis strategy
Browning, rising, curdling, and dissolving — real chemistry you can run with a pan and a grocery list.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~10 hours
Unit I — Mixtures and Changes
Physical change versus chemical change · Solutions, suspensions, and emulsions · Dissolving sugar and salt · Separating mixtures at the counter
Unit II — Heat at Work
The Maillard reaction and browning · Caramelization · Denaturing proteins: what cooking an egg is · Boiling points and altitude
Unit III — Acids, Bases, and Bubbles
Acids and bases in the pantry · Baking soda versus baking powder · Why bread rises · The red-cabbage indicator experiment
Titration to spectroscopy — the craft of measuring what a sample holds, and reporting it with honest error bars.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~28 hours
Unit I — Measurement and Error
Precision versus accuracy · Significant figures and uncertainty · Calibration · Statistics for the bench
Unit II — Classical Methods
Gravimetric analysis · Acid-base titration · Redox and complexometric titrations
Unit III — Instrumental Methods
Beer's law and spectrophotometry · Chromatography · Mass spectrometry in outline · Choosing the right method
Thermodynamics and kinetics applied to the flask — what drives a reaction forward, and what sets its speed.
Syllabus · 3 units · ~38 hours
Unit I — Chemical Thermodynamics
Enthalpy, entropy, and free energy · Spontaneity and equilibrium · The equilibrium constant from free energy · Phase diagrams
Unit II — Kinetics
Rate laws and reaction order · The Arrhenius equation · Mechanisms and the rate-determining step · Catalysis
Unit III — Quantum Chemistry in Brief
Why quantization matters to chemists · Orbitals revisited · Spectroscopy as molecular fingerprinting