A neglected aspect of the puzzle of chemical structure: how history helps

Earley, Joseph E.

doi:10.1007/s10698-012-9146-0

Cited by 5 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…The QM approach considers all particles within the system as interacting, albeit to different extents: there are no priviledged interactions between atoms or totally disconnected atoms. This is not devoid of consequences (Earley 2012). Let's examine a system made by 4 hydrogen atoms and 2 oxygen atoms.…”

Section: B Molecular Structure and Quantum Mechanicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Structure, shape, topology: entangled concepts in molecular chemistry

Ghibaudi

Cerruti²,

Villani

2019

Found Chem

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The concepts of molecular structure and molecular shape are ubiquitous in the chemical literature, where they are often taken as synonyms, with unavoidable drawbacks in chemistry teaching. A third concept, molecular topology, is less frequent but it is a reference term in molecular research domains such as Quantitative Structure-Activity Relationships. The present paper proposes an epistemological analysis of these three notions, aimed at clarifying the nature of their relationship, as well as the contiguities and differences between them. At first, we discuss the various acceptations of the terms molecular structure and molecular shape. Then, we examine some crucial milestones in the history of these concepts and we analyse the relationship between structure, shape and topology from an epistemological viewpoint. We point out the distinguishing features of each concept and we show that their semantic openness, that may be fruitful in a specialized context, turns into a source of incoherence and inaccuracy in the teaching context, fostered by the misleading use of these terms made by textbooks. Eventually, we propose a criterion fit to discriminate between the conceptual domains of molecular shape, molecular structure and molecular topology.

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Section: B Molecular Structure and Quantum Mechanicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Structure, shape, topology: entangled concepts in molecular chemistry

Ghibaudi

Cerruti²,

Villani

2019

Found Chem

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“…A myriad of detailed configurations would be consistent with any given composition of an isolated mechanical system. The history of the relevant context (Earley 2012) determines which of the many possible configurations of each specific real system is the one that actually exists. There is no single ''fundamental'' level of description that is adequate for all scientific discourse.…”

Section: Beyond the Renaissance Worldviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

A New ‘Idea of Nature’ for Chemical Education

Earley

2012

Sci & Educ

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Ontological status of time in chemistry

Sukumar

2020

Found Chem

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A neglected aspect of the puzzle of chemical structure: how history helps

Cited by 5 publications

References 22 publications

Structure, shape, topology: entangled concepts in molecular chemistry

Structure, shape, topology: entangled concepts in molecular chemistry

A New ‘Idea of Nature’ for Chemical Education

Ontological status of time in chemistry

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