A chemistry for dummies book

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - A chemistry for dummies book

Posted: 4/5/2015 5:58:05 PM EDT

I'm not wanting something like the anarchists cookbook. I would link a book that gave useful lessons and reactions with readily available chemicals and household compounds. Not necessarily explosives or other nefarious things, but to help learn reactions and uses of different chemicals, what substances contain such chemicals, and layman reasonings behind the reactions. Is there any suggestions for such a book?

Posted: 4/6/2015 1:54:47 PM EDT

[#1]

Probably not the answer you want...

But youtube has a great amount of information for this. Everything from novelty to academia. I've always enjoyed NurdRage's channel. https://www.youtube.com/user/NurdRage

Posted: 11/5/2015 1:52:24 PM EDT

[#2]

I'm surviving an environmental chem class custom made by the professor who is teaching without a book as she doesn't have it in print yet..... Yeah...

I'm using a book from goodwill, and three youtubers.

Benschem channel. Just search ben's chem.
Next is a very gay, but very thoural guy named tylerdewitt , and finally khanacademy ( I use the other two when Khan confuses me.

The book was $0.87. HONEST!

Posted: 6/1/2016 11:48:37 AM EDT

[#3]

Just about any General Chemistry book will outlay the basics. Find a good used one that is an edition or two behind the current one (elements haven't changed, just the questions they ask). Should be able to get one cheap. If you really want to understand, you have to have the basics down.

Posted: 6/4/2016 9:49:57 AM EDT

[#4]

look up youtube, there are tons of them over there.

Posted: 6/4/2016 9:54:52 AM EDT

[#5]

I bought a chemistry gre study guide a while back and was surprised how well it tonight the subject.

I took the chemistry gre and barely scored 50th percentile, it was the hardest fucking test I've ever taken no doubt.

So I would say the book doesn't prepare you for PhD level chemistry, but I thought taught the basics pretty well.

Posted: 6/4/2016 3:09:47 PM EDT

[#6]

Quoted:

I'm not wanting something like the anarchists cookbook. I would link a book that gave useful lessons and reactions with readily available chemicals and household compounds. Not necessarily explosives or other nefarious things, but to help learn reactions and uses of different chemicals, what substances contain such chemicals, and layman reasonings behind the reactions. Is there any suggestions for such a book?

View Quote

I'm confused. Are you looking for ways to make your own household cleaners (checkout youtube) or are asking "why do some chemicals react with each other?" There is a Chemistry for Dummies book, btw http://lmgtfy.com/?q=chemistry+for+dummies That author also wrote a "Chemistry Essentials for Dummies" which sounds relevant to your enquiry- it's on Amazon...

The modern periodic table is laid out with several repeating patterns. I'm not very fond of chemistry myself, but the basics are:

The farther apart any 2 columns are (aka Groups), the more likely the chemicals are to react with each other and the more energy it will produce

EXCEPT for Group 18. They are the Noble Gases and they DGAF. Their electron shells are full which means the atoms don't have any net charge and therefore don't give 2 shits about other atoms. These elements are kinda like that self absorbed cliq of bitchy girls in high school who thought they were cooler than everyone else.

Elements in the same Group share similar properties but the higher the Period (closer to the bottom) the more reactive the element

The big block of elements in the middle are the ones that generally got us out of the stone age: Iron, Chromium, Magnesium, Titanium, Platinum, Palladium, Copper, Nickel, Lead, Gold, Zircon, Silver.

Atomic numbers greater than 108 can only be made in a lab and generally live for a very small time (<<< 1 second) before they decay.

Posted: 6/7/2016 11:07:55 AM EDT

[#7]

Anything but the very simplest of reactions require known reactants.

'Household' items are rarely very pure.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - A chemistry for dummies book

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