Preface

About Chemistry

Chemistry is designed for the two-semester general chemistry course. For many students, this course provides the foundation to a career in chemistry, while for others, this may be their only college-level science course. As such, this textbook provides an important opportunity for students to learn the core concepts of chemistry and understand how those concepts apply to their lives and the world around them. The text has been developed to meet the scope and sequence of most general chemistry courses. At the same time, the book includes a number of innovative features designed to enhance student learning. A strength of Chemistry is that instructors can customize the book, adapting it to the approach that works best in their classroom.

Coverage and Scope
Our Chemistry textbook adheres to the scope and sequence of most general chemistry courses nationwide. We strive to make chemistry, as a discipline, interesting and accessible to students. With this objective in mind, the content of this textbook has been developed and arranged to provide a logical progression from fundamental to more advanced concepts of chemical science. Topics are introduced within the context of familiar experiences whenever possible, treated with an appropriate rigor to satisfy the intellect of the learner, and reinforced in subsequent discussions of related content. The organization and pedagogical features were developed and vetted with feedback from chemistry educators dedicated to the project.

• Chapter 1: Essential Ideas
• Chapter 2: Atoms, Molecules, and Ions
• Chapter 3: Composition of Substances and Solutions
• Chapter 4: Stoichiometry of Chemical Reactions
• Chapter 5: Thermochemistry
• Chapter 6: Electronic Structures and Periodic Properties of Elements
• Chapter 7: Chemical Bonding and Molecular Geometry
• Chapter 8: Advanced Theories of Covalent Bonding
• Chapter 9: Gases
• Chapter 10: Liquids and Solids
• Chapter 12: Kinetics
• Chapter 13: Fundamental Equilibrium Concepts
• Chapter 14: Acid-Base Equilibria
• Chapter 15: Equilibria of Other Reaction Classes
• Chapter 16: Thermodynamics
• Chapter 20: Organic Chemistry

Pedagogical Foundation

Throughout Chemistry, you will find features that draw the students into scientific inquiry by taking selected topics a step further. Students and educators alike will appreciate discussions in these feature boxes.

• Chemistry in Everyday Life ties chemistry concepts to everyday issues and real-world applications of science that students encounter in their lives. Topics include cell phones, solar thermal energy power plants, plastics recycling, and measuring blood pressure.
• How Sciences Interconnect feature boxes discuss chemistry in context of its interconnectedness with other scientific disciplines. Topics include neurotransmitters, greenhouse gases and climate change, and proteins and enzymes.
• Portrait of a Chemist features present a short bio and an introduction to the work of prominent figures from history and present day so that students can see the “face” of contributors in this field as well as science in action.

Interactives That Engage
Chemistry incorporates links to relevant interactive exercises and animations that help bring topics to life through our Link to Learning feature. Examples include:

• PhET simulations
• IUPAC data and interactives
• TED talks

Assessments That Reinforce Key Concepts
In-chapter Examples walk students through problems by posing a question, stepping out a solution, and then asking students to practice the skill with a “Check Your Learning” component. The book also includes assessments at the end of each chapter so students can apply what they’ve learned through practice problems.

OpenStax projects offer an array of ancillaries for students and instructors. The following resources are available.

• PowerPoint Slides
• Instructor’s Solution Manual

Our resources are continually expanding, so please visit http://openstaxcollege.org to view an up-to-date list of the Learning Resources for this title and to find information on accessing these resources.

About Our Team

Content Leads

Paul Flowers, PhD, University of North Carolina – Pembroke

Klaus Theopold, PhD, University of Delaware

Richard Langley, PhD, Stephen F. Austin State University

Senior Contributing Author