Chemistry

leavingcert2003

Right so I have to do a lot on this.
Any tips to narrow it down?
How the **** do you do mechanisms?

also any sample questions on experiments and what ones r likely this year. thanx

StickyMcGinty

i can tell you one thing... its gonna be a bitch of an exam

learn the option, all organic chemistry and the history of the periodic table. then learn Volumetric analysis and you'll be laughin!

leavingcert2003

why will it be a bitch?

StickyMcGinty

cause chemistry is a bitch of an exam. you can never predict what is gonna come up!! what you get in your mocks!

cartman

I heard chemistry is impossible haha to whoever picked it:)

i regret pickin biology too much bollix to learn
anyz g/l to ye:)

smiles

Originally posted by leavingcert2003
Right so I have to do a lot on this.
Any tips to narrow it down?
How the **** do you do mechanisms?

also any sample questions on experiments and what ones r likely this year. thanx

erm... what "mechanisms" exactly?

StickyMcGinty

chemistry is a bollix!

but i'll be aimin for a B anyway. its like history... you can be lucky on the question.

on mecanhisms anre you talking about Bromine & ethene or what are you on about??? UV breakin down Cl atoms?

pseudonym

compared to physics, chemistry is fairly pissy in all honesty. Im leaving out the options, water and electrochemisty. All you really need to know, I think, is organic, the titrations, the histroy bit at the start and all that ****e to do with the periodic table. and also rates or reactions and radioactivity and catalysts and ph and indicators and , ah F**k it, learn da whole lot.

c0rk3r

oh thank god i dropped chemistry at the start of the year. Best decision i ever made.

When we got our mock results chemistry had the highest failure rate, 15 out of 17 pupils failed.Another pre-leaving cert exam was taken and again 15 people failed. the people in the class were relatively intelligent but for some reason ....just couldnt pass.

Best decision i ever made!

CuLT

Haha, couldn't pass Chemistry, :P .

Theres like 2-3 equations in the whole book. Failing Chemistry is like failing English. <slight exaggeration>.

Chemistry is the easiest parts of physics couple with a slightly more specific Biology. Plus the other stuff. 0_o.

pseudonym

the mechanisms are tricky enough to remember alright, all that 'heterolytic fusion' and 'carbonium ion formation' crap to remember.

SOL

LOL, chem is simple, the course is really short, you shoulda seen the old one, and no its hetrolytic fission

pseudonym

yeah, i know its heterolytic fission, but i woz just after learning the nuclear fusion def from physics, and it stuck in my head. u no wot i ment

Sev

I dunno about you, but if I'm asked, I'm gonna give the mechanisms exactly as they are in the book, ad verbatim. As for heterolytic fission.. Cormac, learn to spell.

StickyMcGinty

right need tips.....

option question, Water, Vol. Analysis titrations, Organic chemistry.

what expt you reckon will come up??

Sev

Originally posted by VinnyL
cause chemistry is a bitch of an exam. you can never predict what is gonna come up!! what you get in your mocks!

The chemistry course comes up, what else do you expect? Learn everything on the course and you should have no problem at all. You've had what 2 years to do it right? Should be more than enough.

StickyMcGinty

Originally posted by Sev
The chemistry course comes up, what else do you expect? Learn everything on the course and you should have no problem at all. You've had what 2 years to do it right? Should be more than enough.

i take it you dont do chemistry then......

other subjects, like history, i have been able to revise 60% of a course because your able to allow for a few questions not to come up. thats because its such a huge course. but chemistry is a brand new course, with only 1 previous exam, so there is no trend. so why did you bother telling me that i had 2 years to learn the course?? you dont think i know that?

Learn everything on the course and you should have no problem at all.

so its that simple, yea?

anyone with any worthwhile posts?

Sev

I do chemistry. And it is in fact that simple.

It must be the most straightforward course there is, except for maybe Physics. You study all the material and you regurgitate it on the day. I cant understand how you cannot get an A1, if you simply study the entire course and remember it. If you studied the entire course, like you were intended to, then you would not need to worry or care about predicting whats going to come up. This isnt English, this isnt History, this is Chemistry and its does exactly what it says on the tin.

Look at the book, its only 400 pages or so. Dont tell me it takes 2 years to read, learn and apply 400 pages (mostly pictures and waffle). Well thats my take on things. There are going to be people who agree with me, and people who dont, and thats just down to the kind of person you are.

StickyMcGinty

Originally posted by Sev
I do chemistry. And it is in fact that simple.

It must be the most straightforward course there is, except for maybe Physics. You study all the material and you regurgitate it on the day. I cant understand how you cannot get an A1, if you simply study the entire course and remember it. If you studied the entire course, like you were intended to, then you would not need to worry or care about predicting whats going to come up. This isnt English, this isnt History, this is Chemistry and its does exactly what it says on the tin.

Look at the book, its only 400 pages or so. Dont tell me it takes 2 years to read, learn and apply 400 pages (mostly pictures and waffle). Well thats my take on things. There are going to be people who agree with me, and people who dont, and thats just down to the kind of person you are.

here, credit where credit is due... its obviously one of your strong subjects. mine is history, i learned around 75 foolscaps of notes and regurgetated them on the day and i'm sure i got me A1

but chemistry is tough, especially when combined with Higher maths, history, german irish, engliash ans ag science.

all i'm askin for is a few suggestions, not a lecture. i can get that from you on the day of the results. so have you any tips??

Sev

Ok, well sorry, I must just have completely different brainwiring. Personally I would hate to do History, couldnt stand the idea of writing so much waffle/essays. I take comfort in subjects like chemistry and physics, what I know to be straightforward, knowing that if I learn the material Im going to get an A1.

Anyway, cant really give you much advice, apart from maybe make sure you learn all 6 Organic experiments, one is supposed to come up every year. One titration is supposed to come up every year too.

Maybe make sure you can do them heat of reaction questions, Hess's law things. And em, balancing equations with oxidation numbers.

ella minnow pea

good luck to y'all!

selling_irish

Originally posted by Sev
I do chemistry. And it is in fact that simple.

It must be the most straightforward course there is, except for maybe Physics. You study all the material and you regurgitate it on the day. I cant understand how you cannot get an A1, if you simply study the entire course and remember it. If you studied the entire course, like you were intended to, then you would not need to worry or care about predicting whats going to come up. This isnt English, this isnt History, this is Chemistry and its does exactly what it says on the tin.

Look at the book, its only 400 pages or so. Dont tell me it takes 2 years to read, learn and apply 400 pages (mostly pictures and waffle). Well thats my take on things. There are going to be people who agree with me, and people who dont, and thats just down to the kind of person you are.

Sev, MY take on things is that you are a bloody tosser! Don't insult people like that, implying they must be idiots if they don't get an A1 in chemistry.

I doubt even people who ARE gonna get an A1 in chemistry agree with ANTYHING you said, or the way that you said it.

Chemistry is not about about reguritation. The majority of chemistry is about having an decent teacher who explains everything to you really well. It's about understanding everything you are taught. Then and only then can you regurgitate.

Now maybe you have some study technique where you just learn off 400 pages in a book, remember it all and are able to regurgitate on the day of the exam, but frankly, alot of us aren't like that and can't do that. I'm pretty sure all those people who got A1's last year actually understood what they were talking about on the day of their exams.

So lose the terrible, ignorant, cocky and arrogant attitude. Wake up, get a grip, open your eyes, and stop being so narrow minded.

c ye

Sev

Well, I did make it clear that there are some people who are just adapted to the more technical subjects.

There are going to be people who agree with me, and people who dont, and thats just down to the kind of person you are.

Anyhow.. whats this you say. Wake up? Stop being so narrow-minded?

I'm the one telling you how it is. I cant understand how you can possibly disagree with anything I've said, its the harsh and cruel truth.

What IS the problem exactly? I'm telling you that if you learn and understand the entire course, you should get an A1. As very distinct to a more subjective subject like English, in which if you dont have a natural flare for waffle and impressing your examiner then your screwed.

Is there something wrong with that? Am I wrong? Do you not believe me? Are you telling me that no matter how much chemistry you could ever study that you could never ever ever get an A1, and it is not your fault?

So what? What if tomorrow, I dont get an A1, because I forget a few things, make a few calculation slips and overall fcuk up the paper. I'm not gonna go bitch about the course, bitch about how I couldn't predict the paper, and how hard the examiners are setting the paper or bitch about how the course is only 1 year old so there are no trends set. If anything the fact that the course is 1 year old should help you predict the paper by excluding specific material that was asked in 2002. If I dont get an A1, I can only blame myself, myself for not knowing the entire course, when I bloody well was given enough goddamn time to. That is my point.. are you disagreeing?

I dont have an 'ignorant, cocky, arrogant' attitude. If I seem to, it is only because that is how you prefer to interpret it. I'm the realist here, I'm telling you how it is, wether you want to accept it not. I'm making no judgements.

Anyway, that aside, I am being bitchy. Sorry about that. Good luck in your Chemistry tomorrow anyway however way you approach it. I'm sure you'll find it easier than you're thinking it to be.

paniniter

i know its late to be telling you this, but chem is real predicatable, and studyable for. titration, organinic preparation in section a, section b q5 is first ionisation, that heat of reaction stuff is always up, etc. nothing to worry about. hope you did well.

CuLT

exam doesn't start til 2 this afternoon :rolleyes: . .

And to be quite honest Sev is correct. If you learn your course you get an A1, I'm not looking at an A1 in any of my subjects, and the reason for that is that I haven't learned the course as well as I should have.

Think about it. You've most likely done more study in the last few weeks than the sum of your total other study for the past 2 years AT LEAST.

If you've gathered enough to get you a C-B in that time then imagine if you'd applied yourself all year?

StickyMcGinty

i'm not disagreeing with sev, but he put his point across in a right arse of a way. he makes us all out to be idiots if we cant get an A1 in chemistry.

i'll let ye know how i get on i know i could have done better if i devoted more time to chemistry, but at the end of the exams i'm just knackered!!

Sev

I'm not saying your an idiot if you don't get an A1 in Chemistry, I'm saying you're an idiot if you think you cant. It's all about confidence as far as I'm concerned.