L. G. Wade, Jr.
Organic Chemistry, 4th Edition, Prentice Hall, 1999
Ch 6 - Substitution/Elimination
Ch 17 - Aromatic Substitution
Ch 19 - Carboxylic Acid Derivatives
Ch 21 - Amines
Wade
very well organized, and I liked the mechanisims, was really
easy to follow and understand.
Liked the concepts and the way thinks were presented
Dislikes: as most of the other books the carboxylic chapter was
so long, and wasn't as easy to follow and understand as it was
in the ege book.
Wade
Layout of the Text: I liked the way how they illustrate the
reactions. I think it has been done in a more clear way than in
Brown and Foot. Look for example chapter 17, p. 763 - Benzyne
Mechanism (on bottom of page). The author even draws the orbitals
inside the molecule. In the next page, P.764, he shows the reaction
of benzyne with NH2 step by step. Another example is chapter 6
p. 250. I really liked Fig. 6-5 that illustrates the back-side
attack. My only criticism, the book is very compressed.
Clarity of presentation: The book is very wordy but I think the
explanations are more clear than in Brown & Foot. Particularly
chapter 6 about elimination/substitution I think they did a better
job than Brown & Foot. I like the short summaries at the end
of each section, for example p. 262 which presents the differences
between SN1 and SN2.
Logical Organization: I think this is one of the biggest weakenesses
of the book. All information is so compressed that it sometimes
hard to determine whether or not they have started a new section.
For example chapter 17 p. 757. Here starts Fridel-Craft Acylation
but it was kind of hard to notice the brown line marking a new
topic. On chapter 6 p. 268, second paragraph "In the examples
shown above,... " - I honestly had a hard time finding the
examples.
Overall usefulnes: I think this book is a good candidate for next
year. It has some informations that I find it redundant eg. chapter
17, p. 760 - it explains the procedures of formylation. But it
presents the mechanisms very clearly and that's what every student
needs to understand - and good summaries with a glossary in the
end of the chapter, too.
Wade
LIKES: graphics are great and is easy to read. learned lots
in ch 17; good explanations of directing, ortho, para, meta, etc.
DISLIKES: chapter were way too long and there were no example
exercises. Is there a solutions manual?
Wade // Brown and Foote
Just looking at the aesthetics of the two, there are a few
pros on the side of Wade. There is a good use of colors and structures
to demonstrate not only what is happening in the reaction, but
what is important about it. I like the summary at the end of each
new idea to break up the material into chunks and the use of bullets
to mark each reaction or important point to be studied. I also
like the problem solving hints listed in the margin of this text.
These hints helpt to formulate ways of attacking a reaction problem,
etc. The little reminders pointing out exactly where the allylic
position is in Chapter 6 and the listing of all resonance forms
for different eletrophillic substitions problems in chapter 17
really help to clarify an understanding for a more visual person
such as myself (as opposed to just repeating a definition or showing
half a problem assuming we will draw the correct conclusion).
However, there are some weaknesses in how the material is presented
as compared to BF. For example, the BF text presents an example
problem after each new idea and then a question to be answered
in reference to the study guide. The Wade text only offers problems,
no solutions at these intervals. It's much like the concept tests-I
find it more beneficial while reading the chapter to do a quick
check to see if the information is registering. I also prefer
the introduction of new terms to coincide with their definitions
in the margin as in BF as opposed to the chapter glossary in Wade.
Furthermore, BF puts material into charts more often and more
efficiently. A good example of this is the chart listing ortho-para
activators and deactivators versus meta of the same. Wade puts
the info. into charts, but only at the end of each topic. For
example, after explaining ortho-para activation, there was a chart.
Then later, one for meta and so on. The information somehow clicks
more effectively in my mind when it is spread out as a comparison
chart listing all of them. This applies to the general structure
of the text which I find to be more effective in the BF text.
Overall, I feel that both texts are comparable. However, if I
had my choice, I'd stick with BF.
Wade (Ch 6)
Reasons and comments:
No index;
Graphs need more color, I think;
There are problems, but no solutions throughout the text, which
does not able you to check knowledge before continuing with reading;
Good introduction to alkyl halides, vinyl and aryl halides;
Nomenclature of alkyl halides was unnecessary, should have been
in another section;
Section 6.3C-E was related to biological stuff (freons, pesticides);
I think that they should put biological information in separate
sections, just like B&F's chemistry in action;
Very good space-filling orbitals (sp3 orbitals etc);
Summary to preparation of alkyl halides and examples +; it has
separate light yellow sections;
Mechanisms not well illustrated because it needs a separate box,
even though the mechanism steps are ok;
Text too dense; more pictures would be better;
I like the glossary after each chapter that include some illustrations,
however, I would rather prefer to have the glossary at the end
of the book;
Sections 6.1-6.6 should be in a different chapter regarding alkyl
halides, like in B&F's chapter 7;
Dividers are not clear.
Wade (Ch 6)
like:
excellent mechanisms and summary of methods of preparation of
alkyl halides
very precise
gives general, then example for reactions
excellent summary of reactions and glossary
glossary is alphabetized, makes it easy to go back and find topics
excellent comparison of nucleophilic and electrophilic substitution
excellent problem solving techniques, gives you general, then
example and exercise
very good exercises in this chapter
don't like:
to clustered over the page, makes it hard to focus on page and
get a good overview
Wade (Ch 6)
Good summary. Very strong chapter when compared to Brown and
Foote.
Wade (Ch 6)
The following are things that I liked:
1) The author clearly gave definitions throughout the text. Plus
a glossary was included at the end of each chapter. This was a
great reference.
2) The text was very clear and easy to follow.
3) Each section included summary boxes which were great reference
points.
4) Section 6-16 was excellent in comparing SN1 and SN2 reactions.
The following are things that I didn't like:
1) The layout was too busy.
2) The mechanisms were not clearly laid out. For example, in Brown
and Foote we have separate mechanism boxes. These were not included
in Wade. I find these mechanism boxes to be extremely useful as
I am thumbing back through the text.
3) The author did not include example problems with explanations
in the text.
4) The chapter was extremely long, which caused me to keep losing
my interest.
Wade (Ch 17)
like:
very good and detailed summary of reactions
general, then example of reactions is very helpful
excellent problem solving techniques
excellent tables
good and challenging exercises
very detailed and organized
don't like:
too clustered on the pages
Wade (Ch 17)
Comments:
Again, I like this chapter in this book a lot. Clear with lot
of examples and a summary at the end with examples. Better explanation
as to directing groups than Brown & Foote
Wade (Ch 17)
1. THE SUMMARY OF THE SYNTHESIS PROCESSES IS HELPFUL AND EASY
TO READ. ALSO IT IS A GOOD OVERALL LAYOUT OF THE WHOLE SECTIION
OR CHAPTER. THE IMPORTANT MATERIAL IS OUTLINED HERE
2.
3.
4. THE USEFULLNESS OF THIS TEXT FOR THIS COURSE IS A 10. IT CERTAINLY
IS BETTER THAN B&F
Wade (Ch 17)
The following are things that I liked:
1.) Included the sulfonation of benzene mechanism. This was not
included in Brown and Foote.
2.) Wade clearly explained the three limitation of Friedel Crafts
alkylation. Brown and Foote only gave a table.
The following are things that I did not like:
1) The charts and tables were too busy, which made them confusing
and not very useful.
Wade (Ch 19)
The following are things that I did like:
1) Aside from everything already mentioned about this text, this
chapter also included a review of the amine reactions from previous
chapters.
The following are things that I did not like:
1) Again, the presentation really took away from the text.
Wade (Ch 19)
Comments:
Like the nomenclature section a lot! Very detailed section on
IR, HNMR. Great examples in the text. Needs a summary of reactions
at the end of the chapter, if it did I give the overall grade
an A.
Wade (Ch 19)
Reasons and comments:
First section is very much like B&F (e.g. physical properties,
pKa/pKb);
Divisions are not very clear; uneasy to find certain information;
B&F mass spec information is more condensed;
Good and brief review of ketones and aldehydes;
Includes 3 or so solved problem sections to test skills and knowledge,
however, more of them would have been preferred;
Overall, chapter is too long and it could have been more condensed;
Good illustrations of showing a reaction plus additional examples;
Summaries are also well presented with a number of examples; light
yellow pages with reactions, but no short descriptions unlike
in B&F;
Gabriel reaction was introduced in this chapter, but not in B&F;
Glossary should have been in back of the book;
Interesting how Wade has separate sections for electrophilic aromatic
substitution with a number of different heterocycles;
Good and in depth explanation of mass spec, etc.\
Wade (Ch 19)
All around very similar to Brown and Foote except with a little
more explanation and reasoning that we obtained from your lectures.
An example is again the pointing out of 2 and 3 position attacks
on pyridine. Tended to go deeper than Brown and Foote. This could
hurt students from grasping the overall picture, but the amount
of info presented can't be beat.
Wade (Ch 19)
like:
very good and detailed summary of reactions
general, then example of reactions is very helpful
good and challenging exercises
excellent problem solving techniques
don't like:
too clustered on the pages
Wade (Ch 21)
I really did not like the layout of the text because the pages
were too cluttered, leaving no room in the small margins for a
student to write in. This chapter was too long. The mechanisms
were not in boxes, causing a student to search for them. The only
good point of this chapter was the priority of the substituents
in naming, and the text provided both a general rule and a specific
example for each of the mechanisms.
Wade (Ch 21)
The following are things that I did like:
1) The author included several nomenclature examples, whereas
I do not think that Brown and Foote provide enough.
2) There was much more detail given in explaining and giving examples
of NMR problems. Also, absorptions for each carboxylic acid derivative
were given in a table!
3) The author included summaries of the chemistry of each carboxylic
acid derivative. This of course was very helpful, especially for
quick reference.
4) Pages 966-967 was very helpful because they laid out conversions
between all of the derivatives.
The following are things that I did not like:
1) As stated in previous reviews, the text was so busy and colorful
that it seemed very unorganized. Every time I flipped the page
I felt like I was lost again.
Wade (Ch 21)
like:
very good and detailed summary of reactions
general, then example of reactions is very helpful
excellent problem solving techniques
good and challenging exercises
very detailed and organized
don't like:
too clustered on the pages
Wade (Ch 21)
1. A LOT OF THE REACTIONS ARE FROM PREVIOUS CHAPTERS BUT BEING
REFERENCED BACK TO THE CHAPTER AND SECTION. I FOUND THAT THIS
IS A GOOD
2. IT IS CLEAR ON THE INFORMATION BETWEEN REACTIONS AND WRITTEN
EXPLANATION.
3. BOTH TEXT ARE LOGICAL ENOUGH FOR ME
4. I LIKE BOTH CH. 21 AND 17 OF BOTH TEXT EQUALLY. I FOUND IT
EQUALLY USEFUL WITH LITTLE FAVOR OF WADE'S TEXT
5.
Wade (Ch 21)
lots of examples = very good. I really liked the IR they showed
for carboxylic acid derivatives. The book made a good use of figures
to show reactivity and sequences of steps in sythesis. Wade contains
a lot of info, but taught at a steady pace, students should be
able to handle it.
Wade (Ch 6 and Ch 17)
Things I like:
In chapter 6, I was very impressed with the quality of the models
used to demonstrate leaving groups, Nucleophiles, and changes
in stereo chemistry. I also liked the pairing of SN2 with E2,
and SN1 with E1 consistently. There are very good charts comparing
properties. The authors have done a good job again with leading
up to Nucleophilic Substitution with a thorough section on preparing
alkyl halides, and referencing other chapters with appropriate
information pertinent to this topic. I appreciated the consistent
use of color throughout to keep track of the components. The problem
solving section is well placed to prepare you to work on the given
problems, and I thought the glossary at the end of the chapters
was a nice touch. It seemed well placed and thorough enough to
be of more use than nuisance. Once again the reaction mechanisms
in chapter 17 were very succinct. The treatment of o,p,m direction,
delocalization of charges, and resonance was reasonably well done.
The use of p-orbital diagrams in discussing the benzyne mechanism
was very useful (like you did in lecture)
Things I don't like: I didn't like the scattered graphics for o,p,m direction / activating/deactivating groups. It made it harder to grasp the concept.
Wade (Ch 6 and Ch 17)
This was another very good textbook. The chapters were organized
well, with a good balance of text, diagrams, tables and reaction
mechanisms. Important points were clearly highlighted with bolded,
italicized, or colored text. Not only does this make it easier
to sustain attention, it makes it very easy to locate information
for reference. Sections contained good summary statements throughout
the chapter that were in colored text. Reactions were easy to
follow. Chapters also contained good chapter summary sections.
I would have liked to see a small table of contents at the beginning
of each chapter.
Subst./Elim.:
Good organization of subtopics. SN1/SN2/E1/E2 discussed independently
first then compared collectively later. Zaitsev was spelled "Saytzeff"
in this book. This spelling discrepancy is interesting. If a student
tries to use another book as a reference would this lead to confusion?
Arom. Subst.:
Limitations to Freidel-Crafts alkylation clearly marked and discussed.
Thorough reaction mechanisms (i.e., the benzyne mechanism).
Wade (Ch 6 and Ch 17)
(1) Layout of the text
There is no contents of the chapter sections at the beginning
of each chapter. However, the chapters include a great glossary
at the end of each chapter, which is easier to use than looking
at the back of the book. The use of the colors for the nucleophile
and leaving group is appreciated. Tables are easy to read. There
is little upper and lower margin on the pages, and I find it difficult
to read the text to the very bottom of the page. Additionally,
it is smaller font than our current text. This adds to the difficulty
of reading this text. Key reactions are listed at the end of the
chapters, which is of course very helpful. This presentation of
key reactions needs the use of bold type for names of reactions.
Chapter 6 includes great summaries of various ideas within the
chapter in table format. However, this chapter is also very long.
(2) Clarity of the presentation
The chapters seem well written and clearly presented (e.g. the
discussion of limitations of the Friedel-Crafts Alkylation in
chapter 17).
(3) Logical organization of the material
The order/organization of the material in chapter 6 is easy to
follow. Chapter 17 was organized very well concerning order and
dividing into sections. The division of sections was easy to see.
However, the diagrams were too close together, just like the text.
I would prefer a thicker book, with easy to look at pages.
(4) Overall usefulness as a text for this course
Although I like the clarity and order of this text, the layout
of the text (appearance wise) does not appeal to me.
Wade (Ch 6 and Ch 17)
One of the first things that i noticed about the Wade text
is how brief it is, even more so than B&F sometimes. Other
than that particular, Wade is very similar to the B&F text.
Many of the mechanisms and examples are superimposable over each
other.
The organization of the Ch. is better in B&F, ie. highlighted
and enclosed mechanisms, and the blue color of the highlighted
text in the Wade book adds little benefit. One nice point about
the Wade text is that at the end of each sub-section is a summaru,
a little check off to make sure you picked up the major concepts
as you go along. Overall, I would not recommend the Wade text.
There are very few differences from the B&F text, and and
Brown and Foote (Ch 8)
Wade (Ch 6 and Ch 19)
LIKE: Summary reactions after each section because they provide
you with a general reaction and an example of that reaction. The
glossary at the end of chapter is kind of nice as well.
DISLIKE: no example problems and chapters seem to be pretty long.
Wade (Ch 6 and Ch 19)
The layout of this book was very awkward and busy. The margins
were often blurred and there was not enough distinction between
the text and graphical portions of the chapters. Reactions often
ran into the margins, and the important mechanisms, tables and
figures were often cluttered, which made it hard to figure out
what I was looking at. Even in the summary parts of the chapter,
which I think should be pretty simplified, the information was
cluttered. I missed the photographs and different kind of graphics
that Brown and Foote chose to use. Overall, I felt like figuring
out the layout of this book seemed to make learning OCHEM more
difficult than intended.
This book was one of the best in terms of readability and ease
of comprehension. Concepts were expressed in a very straightforward
manner, and Wade took ample time to review even very basic concepts
throughout both chapters. Although he did not do a great job of
graphically depicting the information, the text did a good job
of simplifying reaction mechanisms to their most general forms
and organized the products into general classes. I also liked
how Wade spent a fair amount of text to explaining theoretical
background on topics such as basicity of amines, nucleophilicity
trends, and stereochemistry inversion due to orbitals and steric
hindrance. This text greatly emphasized in-chapter summaries of
reactions, however each of these made me hope that the chapter
was finished, when in fact it kept going and going and going.
These chapters were WAY too long! I really liked the "essential
problem-solving tips" section at the end of the chapter,
which gave me a structure for systematically answering sets of
problems.
The organization of Wade's text also seemed a bit scattered. In
Chapter 6, I did not like how he just introduced other methods
of preparing alkyl halides without really taking the time to teach
us these reactions. Conversely, Brown and Foote had dedicated
the previous chapter to this subject so we had a better idea of
what they were and how substitution and elimination reactions
related to them. I also found it strange that, in Ch. 6, Wade
introduced SN2 then SN1 reactions, followed by the elimination
reactions in the reverse order (E1 then E2). Along with that,
Wade did not even cover stereochemistry of factors influencing
E1 reactions. He labeled overall sections, but did not stay consistent
within the sections; i.e. he did not always introduce the general
topic, move to a discussion of influencing factors, and finish
with a description of the mechanism. With such difficult and important
topics to learn, logical organization and a clear layout make
a world of difference in mastery of a topic. In addition to the
above inconsistencies, the amines chapter also seemed out of order
by placing the amine synthesis section at the end of the chapter.
It seems to me that we need to know (or at least review) how to
make amines before we talk about using them in reactions.
What I liked most about this book compared to Brown and Foote
were the ease of reading and the simplified mechanisms in both
chapters. Sometimes, the summary pages (blue page) at the end
of Brown and Foote's chapters became so familiar that I began
to think of certain reactions only in terms of the given example
(i.e. "oh, you mean a propyl can do it like a methyl, or
a ring?). However, my overall reaction to this text was one of
feeling overwhelmed and lost. The layout was blurred and inconsistent,
and often left me hunting for my own clarity. Even those text
boxes that were outlined were left without clear titles or captions.
In addition, I felt that Wade's text could have benefited from
more solved example and in-chapter problems. I liked how Brown
and Foote gave students a chance to practice with sample problems
while receiving a thorough explanation of each answer. Finally,
the glossary at the end of Wade's chapters, unlike Brown and Foote's
narrative summary, did not help integrate chapter concepts. By
leaving students with just a list of terms, it makes it easy for
us to keep all of them in fragmented pieces in our minds, which
seems counterintuitive.
Wade (Ch 19 and Ch 21)
Things I like:
The coverage of individual amine reactions(Sandmeyer, Hofmann,
Cope, etc) Is better than B &F. Most of the reactions were
fully explained rather than just mentioned, and full reaction
mechanisms were presented for each. Synthesis of amines is liberally
covered and separated for better clarity, and there seems to be
a logical order to the presentation that leads you along instead
of just dropping you into a new topic. The reasonably simple summaries
of reactions are nicely placed at the end of a section which allows
better review later, and better access to examples of reactions
when doing problems for that section - mostly a time saver when
doing homework. In Chapter 21, I loved the charts for IR spectrum
information. Each derivative of COOH was sequentially discussed
with the reactions, and mechanisms, for each reagent applied to
them in one section. With all of the different reactions with
COOH derivatives, there are a dizzying amount of graphics for
mechanisms, but seeing them repeated for each derivative helps
one begin to see the trends. There is also a feeling that when
doing the problems, there will be a great reference to turn to,
unlike B & F. Another overall impression I received in looking
at the whole text is that it really spends time discussing chemical
reactions instead of spending so much time and space on bios,
history, and other chemistry trivia.
Things I don't like: None
Wade (Ch 6, 17, 19, and 21)
The wade text was an enjoyable text to read. The different
models and ways things were represented made reading ochem a little
more interesting. The problem solving skills sections were excellent.
The glossary for each chapter was an excellent idea. Ch 6 explained
E and S very clearly. The nomenclature section in ch 19 could
use some improvement. But the explaination of how to use cocain
and crack made up for it! Ch 17 provided excellent PE diagrams
the help explain what is really happening. Layout of nomenclature
in ch 21 and tables such as 21-1 were very helpful.
The NMR section were easier to understand and the homework pages
look
comprehensive.
rating
Wade (Ch 6 // Brown and Foote (Ch 8)
Layout
Wade and B&F had similar graphics, but wade had more color,
and B&F was easier to read in tables. Both gave excellent
summaries at the end of chapter that were accessible and clear.
Wade also introduced tips and strategies and a glossary of terms
for the chapter.
8/10 (7/10)
Clarity
Both texts were clear and concise. I liked wade's pictorial on
the effects of water as a solvent. I also liked wade's 3D models
for helping demonstrate steric hinderance and its role in sn2.
8/10 (8/10)
org.
I liked B&f's format better. Wade jumped between sn1 and sn2
too much.
6/10 (8/10)
total: wade 73%, b&f 77%
Both were okay, but b&F had a better format and did not jump
around
Wade (Ch 6) // Brown and Foote (Ch 8)
Liked:
Wade has a glossary at the end of each chapter which I found useful
in order to clarify what new terms were brought up in that chapter.
The graphics seemed to be a little better than Brown and Foote,
which could be due to the fact that they are new to me. Wade shows
a nice comparison of Sn1 and Sn2 rxns. Wade also gives a little
more background to general chemistry terms, which is a nice refresher.
Didn't like:
There were only 3 practice problems in Wade, which is a major
drawback. Brown and Foote excels here since you can practice whatever
was just explored, and immediately know if you have the answer
correct or not, very convenient. Wade also lacked in having a
"key rxns" section at the end of each chapter, like
B&F. There were a few type-o's in the Wade chapter...maybe
not proof-read enough times?
Wade (Ch 6) // Brown and Foote (Ch 8)
This book I didn't think was very strong. The text had a whole
lot of problems to work on, but a sample with a solution was not
given. There were hints for some of the problems, but not for
enough of them. This is not easy stuff, so help is always good
during the reading. Let the hard questions come at the end. The
reading flow didn't seem to work as well as B&F does. It was
like things were being introduced out of sequence at times. There
is a whole lot of information given on each subject area, but
it seems like it is a bit overdone at times. Too much all the
time can be overwhelming and discouraging; compact it some would
be better. A glossary is also given at the end of the chapter
for all the new key terms, but they should be given in the margin,
as B&F does, so the reader isn't needing to flip the pages
all the time. This was not much of a contest, as I would not recommend
this text.
Wade (Ch 17) // Brown and Foote (Ch 20)
This chapter was bit better in some ways than the last I looked
at for this text, but still was no match for the B&F text.
Here I found no large table summarizing the directing and activating/deactivation
effects of specific substituents. The tables are there, but are
all broken down and made separate. This makes it harder to follow.
The mechanisms are not really offset from the text much, this
makes them harder to review. The book has many diagrams throughout,
but some seem unneccessary. The point being if a student was quickly
trying to review main points, they are more difficult to locate.
This text just didn't seem to read as easily as it should; there
seemed to be less simple flow to it. B&F is the much better
text here.
Wade (Ch 17) // Brown and Foote (Ch 20)
In my opinion, I would say that Wade's text should not be
recommended as a class text. Personally, when I open a page, the
layout of the material could ruin my interest in studying. Also,
a quick reference about a particular rxn is not easily accessible
as a bunch of information because the information of the materials
is spread all through the chapter. It was also pretty hard to
follow the rxns compared to Brown & Foote because of lack
of proper presentation of mechanisms
Wade (Ch 17) // Brown and Foote (Ch 20)
layout
Both gave good tables and charts for showing effects of substituents
on further sub.
Clarity
Wade gave a better understanding of oxidation, but both were good
in showing reactions and mechanisms.
Org.
The two texts went over side chains last, which is the appropriate
place for them, but wade was more in depth
Wade gave a better understanding of oxidation and side chains,
but otherwise the two books were comprable.
Wade (Ch 17) // Brown and Foote (Ch 20)
Liked: Wade was very clear in showing which positions would
be considered ortho, meta and para along with different colored
inks which helped clarify the pathways for different molecules.
Didn't like: Mechanisms aren't "announced" like in Brown
and Foote. Wade only had one solved problem for this chapter.
Wade (Ch 19) // Brown and Foote (Ch 21)
a) Things I liked:
for B&F The glossary terms are in the margins and close to
where they appear in the text.
Wade uses Newman projections to show more stable conformations
in a Hoffman elimination.
b) Things I didn't like:
This chapter was long, > 50 pages ugh. But if they had used
the same paper width as B&F maybe it wouldnt have been so
long.
The pages are narrow, it makes me feel like I'm reading a high
school book. I know the folks at Whitman are bright people but
the format felt less comfortable, maybe since we've been using
B&F all year it's format is more familiar.
Wade (Ch 19) // Brown and Foote (Ch 21)
Liked:
Wade has a good use of different colored ink in showing the placement
of the new substituents. The examples given along with the summary
of rxns in Wade is very helpful.
Didn't like:
The summary sections for Wade are scattered throughout the chapter,
it would be helpful to have one summary section, similar to the
Brown and Foote's Key Rxn section. In Wade, there were only 3
solved problems given.
Wade (Ch 21) // Brown and Foote (Ch 17)
Remarks on Wade: There were a few good things presented in
this text. The glossary at the end of the chapter, summary of
reactions and functional groups, and problems solving methods.
However, the presentation of the text was awful and disorganized,
which made it difficult to read. The text was cluttered and used
too many colors which added to the difficulty. Remarks on B&F:
the overall presentation was fine, but more examples of nomenclature
for various functional groups would have been much more appreciated.
Wade (Ch 21) // Brown and Foote (Ch 17)
The content of material in both texts was similar and presentation
of material was also similar in the sense that characteristics
of each derivative were discussed under various sub-topics. The
thing that I found problematic in Wade is how the mechanisms were
within the text. This creates reading and clarity more difficult
and also reduces the ease of quick reference. The presentation
of the material per page in Wade was also too much less reader
friendly. The pages are packed with too many materials.
Wade (Ch 21) // Brown and Foote (Ch 17)
a) Things I liked:
The text gives a list of essential problem solving skills and
a glossary of terms at the end of the chapter.
b) Things I didn't like:
The discussion of lactams (and esters) did not define what a lactam
or ester was. B&F started out by defining these at the beginning
of the section that discusses them.
Wade did not give a summary of reactions at the end of the Chapter
This is a nice feature of B&F.
The graphics are smaller, i.e. IR and Mass spectra graphs do not
take advantage of the full width of the page, and the page size
is narrower vs B&F.
Wade (Ch 21) // Brown and Foote (Ch 17)
Liked: Wade's graphics are very nice in showing the different
orbitals. Wade provides a helpful table showing the IR stretching
absorptions. The problem solving hints given in Wade are also
helpful.
Didn't like: There weren't any solved problems in this chapter for Wade!! Brown and Foote is very good at provided these in every chapter.
Wade (Ch 6 and Ch 17) // Brown and Foote (Ch 8 and 20)
Like: I really like this text and would like to recommend
the future Ochem students use this textbooks because there're
a lot of helpful sections in each chapter. There're summaries
of all reaction and new material that we have learn so far. The
problems in the text are very helpful. There're also of many lists
of reagents, nucleophile, leaving groups and visualizing of how
the reactions occur in certain conditions.
Don't like: No comments
Wade (Ch 6 and Ch 17) // Brown and Foote (Ch 8 and 20)
Wade: 1.) The layout of this text was very crowed. Each page
was filled with text and graphics in a manner that made it a bit
overwhelming to decipher. Overall the text did present the material
in an effective manner. The graphics used in the chapters offered
excellent insight and clarity into the behavior of the outlined
systems. However, I found this text to be somewhat difficult to
use as each page was densely crowded with material and some of
the tables were not clearly marked, nor presented in a straight
forward manner.
Brown and Foote: 1.) I found the graphics in these chapters to
lack in their explanation of the subtleties that exist within
the system of focus. However, where this text lack in its molecular
graphics it certainly made up in the clarity and presentation
of its numerous tables. I found this text to be very user friendly
as it often cross referenced past concepts when they were utilized
as a building block for new ones.
Wade: 2.) The material in this text was presented in a detail
oriented manner which offered clarity to the material presented
in these chapters. The verbal representation of the material was
generally clear but often lacked in defining important terminology
within the body of the text. The glossary, found at the end of
each chapter, served as an important resource for this purpose.
Brown and Foote: 2.) The representation of the material studied
within this text was well done. When clarification was necessary,
information and definitions were presented in the margins of the
text, a useful format that saved time.
Wade: 3.) I found the material in this text to jump from topic
to topic, often presenting complex concepts before properly educating
the reader. It appeared that the base of fundamental knowledge
was built on a need to know basis only. This contrasted with Brown
and Foote's method which built up a solid fundamental base and
expanded on it with different concepts covered in the chapters.
Brown and Foote: 3.) I preferred this texts method for approaching
the material. It offered a general overview of the information
in the chapter and then presented each concept in its entirety.
Later it went on to explain the differences between each example.
I felt that this approach built a solid base of understanding
to which it then applied different concepts.
Wade: 4.) I found the graphics contained within each of these
chapters to be extremely useful in conveying the material at an
understandable level. However, I found the organization of the
text to be erratic, crowded and somewhat confusing.
Brown and Foote: 4.) The graphics in these corresponding chapters
were certainly not of the caliber presented in Wade's text, however,
I felt that this book did a better job at presenting the material
in a clear and effective manner. The Chapters followed a logical
order and each section was clearly marked. Overall this text served
as an useful resource for understanding organic chemistry.
Wade: A.) I especial liked the explanation of substitution and
elimination reaction through the application of molecular orbital
theory. The graphics in this chapter offered excellent insight
into the underlying principals defining these reactions. The detailed
glossary at the end of each chapter was also very well done.
B.) I did not like the order that the material was presented in
the two chapters that I reviewed, (6 & 17). Nor did I like
the layout of the text. The pages were crowed and looked quite
intimidating. Brown and Foote: A.) The area that I appreciated
most in this text was its format. It outlined the chapter, presented
the material in a clear manner and highlighted important information
that was presented in the body of the text by redefining it in
the margins.
B.) After reviewing Wade's text, I did not like that this book
left out the MO explanation of sub/elim. reactions. This information
would have proven quite useful in gaining a complete understanding
of the material.
Wade (Ch 6 and Ch 19)) // Brown and Foote (Ch 8 and 21)
The text provided more graphics and reaction mechanisns than
the Brown & Foote text which I found very helpfull. However,
they tended to pack to much information onto a page. If it was
my first time covering this material I think I would have been
overwhelmed with the amount of information. I did like the "essential
problem-solving skills" section and the glossary they provided
at the end of each chapter. I found both of these a better way
to review the chapter than the summary that Brown & Foote
provides. Overall, I would say that if I was a first year student
I would prefer the Brown & Foote text due to the simplictiy
of presentaion of material.