Chemistry Transcript

Chemistry can be defined as the study of matter and the changes that matter undergoes.
You may remember that everything is made up of matter. This may make studying
chemistry a bit overwhelming.
The five areas of study are organic chemistry, inorganic chemistry, biochemistry,
analytical chemistry, and physical chemistry.

physical chemistry: the area of chemistry that deals with the rate and energy
transfer that occurs when matter undergoes a change
o Deals with the behavior of chemical substances.
o Example : Physical chemists might test factors that affect breathing rate
during exercise.
biochemistry: the area of chemistry that focuses on processes that take place in
organisms
o Biochemists are particularly interested in the function of proteins,
carbohydrates, and nucleic acids.
o Biochemistry is part of many fields, including medicine, genetics, and
agriculture.
inorganic chemistry: the study of substances that, in general, do not contain
carbon
o The study of inorganic chemistry is valuable to nuclear scientists and
geologists.
organic chemistry: the study of compounds containing carbon
o Great number of carbon compounds are possible bc of carbons ability to
form strong covalent bonds with other carbon atoms.
o This branch of chemistry is important to pharmacists, textile industries,
and chemical plants.
o Some common substances that consist of carbon compounds are
plastics, paints, dyes, synthetic fibers, and fuel for cars.
Analytical chemistry: the area of chemistry that focuses on composition of matter
and function of matter.
o Analytical chemists are concerned with reaction rates and levels of
chemicals in different types of matter.
For example, an analytical chemist might test a patient's blood to
investigate how a medication is working.

None of the branches are completely independent of one another.

For example, an organic chemist might depend on the work of an analytical chemist to
understand the composition of a substance that she is studying.
There are also two different approaches to chemistry: pure chemistry and applied
chemistry.

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Scientists who try to answer questions about the world around them use applied
chemistry. There is a direct application for what they are researching.
o For example, a scientist might study different materials in order to make
an artificial limb that moves more like a real limb.
Scientists who do research to better understand the world around them use pure
chemistry.

Pure and applied chemistry do not work in isolation.

Often a pure chemist will discover something that will lead to an application.
For example, long before the hole in the ozone layer was reported, Sherry Rowland &
Mario Molina were studying the interaction between chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) &
ozone. When the hole in the ozone layer was discovered in1985, they were able to
hypothesize that CFCs were responsible for the damage.

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