This chapter has solely educational purposes and only recalls classical optical phenomena, therefore its bibliography consist of textbooks, manuals and tutorials. This chapter considers the physical nature of colour stimuli. “Colour stimulus – visible radiation entering the eye and producing a sensation of colour, either chromatic or achromatic.”1–3 “Colour stimulus function ϕλ – description of […]
Thinking in systems may sound like a distant yet appealing concept to the layman. It has a smart, technical, objective, and superior cognitive air to it, right? However, when I ask my students “What do you think ‘thinking in systems’ means?” they are usually confused and can’t truly articulate a one-sentence answer. I can’t […]
As a child in the early 1980s, I tended to talk with things in my mouth—food, dentist’s tubes, balloons that would fly away, whatever—and if no one else was around, I’d talk anyway. This habit led to my fascination with the periodic table the first time I was left alone with a thermometer under my […]
Since the start of the mass production of plastics in the 1950s, synthetic polymers have profoundly improved human comfort through their pallet of properties, their ease of shaping, and their low cost. Yet, these plastics are affecting more than just humans. The presence of plastic litter in the environment and its impact on wildlife has […]
FOCUS POINTS ★ What is the structure of matter? ★ What are the three states of matter? ★ How does kinetic particle theory help us understand how matter behaves? In this first chapter, you will look at the three states of matter: solids, liquids and gases. The structure of these states of matter and how […]
Using This Book Kaplan MCAT Organic Chemistry Review, and the other six books in the Kaplan MCAT Review series, bring the Kaplan classroom experience to you—right in your home, at your convenience. This book offers the same Kaplan content review, strategies, and practice that make Kaplan the #1 choice for MCAT prep. This book is […]
And now it starts: your long, yet fruitful journey toward wearing a white coat. Proudly wearing that white coat, though, is hopefully only part of your motivation. You are reading this book because you want to be a healer. If you’re serious about going to medical school, then you are likely already familiar with the […]
Electrons, protons, and neutrons form atoms—that’s physics. But atoms bond together to form molecules, and that’s chemistry. Beginning textbooks for chemistry students tend to say something about the “Central Science” to emphasize chemistry’s role in scientific progress—and in the process make their readers feel better about taking the course—but that characterization is truly accurate. Chemistry […]
Theoretical chemistry provides a systematic account of the laws governing chemical phenomena in matter. It applies physics and mathematics to describe the structure and interaction of atoms and molecules, the fundamental units of matter. Through the end of the 19th century, chemistry remained predominantly a descriptive and empirical science.1 True, there had been developed by […]
You are about to embark on one of the more intellectually challenging experiences of your life, the Advanced Placement Examination in Chemistry. Fewer than 1 percent of all high school students take this exam. Whatever the outcome, you are to be congratulated as one of a select group. As a conscientious student, you can use […]
RNA likely underpinned the emergence of life, yet it is arguably the least appreciated of all biological mac-romolecules. For most of the past century, RNA has been regarded principally as an intermediary between gene and protein. However, most of the human genome expresses RNAs that do not encode proteins, which begs the question: why? The […]
Smell is the Cinderella of our senses. It has acquired a remarkably poor reputation throughout history. Traditionally dismissed as communicating merely subjective feelings and brutish sensations, the sense of smell never attracted critical attention in philosophy or science. The French Enlightenment philosopher Étienne Bonnot de Condillac remarked in 1754: “Of all the senses it is […]