Chem 33 & Math51A - Page 3

jwj · 01-11-2007, 07:53 AM

It will make utterly no difference for 36. For 35, however, it will definitely be harder, I think, because it leaves you with two options:
1) Take 35 in the summer to catch up. The course is not as easy as it sounds when you walk in the door, believe me. That, and you only get 4 weeks to study 10 weeks of material, with a midterm at the end of each week and a final at the end of the month covering material you learned only the day before.
2) Take 35 the following fall. This will really depend on your abilities, but it tends to be difficult because you're probably going to forget everything over the summer. There are far more ties between 33 and 35 than between 35 and 131, which is why it's more of a pain to try and remember everything.

Also, taking 35 in the fall this year left you with Professor Trost for 131 in the Winter...who is not exactly famous for being nice to students...

calikent · 03-23-2007, 10:16 PM

Ok, so there is a ton of great chem advice in this thread, so I'm digging for some more. Honestly I am not happy with my Chem 33 grade and I've heard 35 is harder. I study like crazy and I understand the material then I still do horribly on the tests. Any advice?

celestial605 · 03-23-2007, 11:38 PM

My best advice is to learn reactions in all possible combinations. For example, for the reaction A + B -> D with the help of reagent C (labeled over the arrow), study: A + B -> D needs what C? Using C to make D, what A and B do you need? What does A + B using C give you? Thinking of reactions in multiple ways will help with synthesis problems.

Also sort your reactions by type, for example "adding carbons", "creating double bonds", "decarboxylation", etc.

Then, do lots and lots of practice problems, and don't be afraid to ask TAs and friends for help. Best wishes for 35!!!

jwj · 03-24-2007, 04:27 AM

Just memorize the crap outta your reagents in 35, and learn to spot patterns in the types of reactions. Go to office hours religiously. Screw the Vollhardt book, and read Klein. 33 is probably more annoying than 35, in my opinion, simply because you're learning random **** without the profs being very good at tying it all together. This seems particularly true this past quarter, when they taught you spectroscopy. I heard this and I thought it was BS, given that spectroscopy requires a hell of a lot of practice even for chem majors, and it's a laboratory technique, not a typical concept. This should be less of a problem in 35, where the focus is purely on reactions.

edwinksl · 03-25-2007, 04:24 AM

Hey, I was just wondering if it is common for people to take Chem 35 and Chem 36 together or in separate quarters. Thanks in advance.

celestial605 · 03-25-2007, 09:43 AM

Both are common. I took them simultaneously and thought it was minimally helpful; you could definitely put off 36 if you want to.

jwj · 03-25-2007, 12:50 PM

Yeah. If you have the time in your schedule, get rid of 36 that quarter, but it's not a big deal. I couldn't sign up in time because the infamous prof running the class put some stupid block on axess.

calikent · 03-25-2007, 02:00 PM

infamous prof? should we be scared?

jwj · 03-25-2007, 08:38 PM

Nah. New prof for 36. Not great either, since her English isn't exactly fantastic, and her tests are somewhat anal. But meh, at least she's nice.

shramleon · 12-16-2007, 03:05 AM

can anyone comment on these 2 notecard packets?

Organic Chemistry Study Cards ©2002

Amazon.com: Organic Chemistry (Flash Cards): Books: Flash Anatomy

I'm also, looking at Marye Fox's book for a supplement...is this a good idea?

jwj · 12-16-2007, 06:14 PM

Study cards that are commercially available don't tend to be a great idea--they often include reactions or reagents you're not expected to know. It's better to make your own and tailor it to the class rather than spend money. These study kits often just shovel in reactions, and orgo is more about memorizing a set of reactions and being able to use them creatively, rather than memorizing a ton and spewing them back out on tests.

Use Klein's Organic Chemistry as a Second Language set. It's short, sweet, and clear. Don't get another textbook, it'll seriously just be a waste of your money. If getting another textbook will really make you feel better, then get McMurry's Organic Chemistry. It's the best of the 5 orgo textbooks I've seen.

superwizard · 12-21-2007, 09:50 AM

So how different is Chem 131 from Chem 35? I just took 35 and did pretty well until I pretty much bombed the final

(my fault I didnt study for it enough) but all in all I disliked the class. Is 131 similar in the type of material taught?? (for the record I actually liked chem33...)

jwj · 12-24-2007, 02:14 AM

Chem 131 is benzene/ring chemistry for the first half, and then the remainder is a smattering of carbo chemistry and a few other (somewhat) random topics. It's similar in style--given a set of reactions, can you make compound B from compound A, stuff like that. This is from me taking 131 in the fall, though, so it might be different.

Mind if I ask what exactly you didn't like about chem 35 but you liked about chem 33? I'm TAing next quarter, so it'd be helpful to know.

superwizard · 12-25-2007, 04:18 PM

thanks for the info jwj!

honestly I think its more of how I approached the class than the class itself. I sort of took the 'memorize at the last moment' approach instead of the 'understand the reactions day by day' approach I had taken for Chem 33. I learned my lesson though that's for sure. My grades plummeted as a result...