So I'm just wondering how I should look for references in general. Not a specific compound. If I wanted to synthesize X compound, how would I go about
searching the internet for synthesis reports and the such? Is it as simple as typing in the IUPAC name into Google? That has never worked out very
well for me, so I'm wondering if I'm doing something wrong. When I look on Google Scholar, I get a bunch of papers that do not pertain to the
particular target compound.
Also, does anyone have tips for how to synthesize X from Y? How should I go about memorizing reactions? I have not officially taken Organic
Chemistry, but it's been an interest of mine. Metal chemistry and most inorganic chemistry has way too many numbers. Numbers scare the living hell out
of me (meaning, I am very terrible at math......).Nicodem - 1-12-2010 at 16:04
I once already wrote instructions for how this is done, see here.
As for synthesizing X from Y it only depends on what X and Y are. In general, you first check the "prior art" described in the literature, then follow
it if you can (if you can get everything necessary). If some reagent is not available to you, you can develop a modified method. If nothing is
available to you, then you try out a different synthetic approach, but this already requires you to have knowledge in chemical mechanisms which is
probably beyond your current interests. In some cases you can help yourself by using only basic organic chemistry knowledge, like functional group
transformations, or other such things that don't require you to think too much or consider the whole reaction system. This approach is still useful on
smaller molecules with only very few functional groups where you can, even without understanding the mechanism, more or less confidently expect what
kind of functional group transformation is compatible with the other functional groups present. Though such a simplistic approach has a high
probability of failure, it is more or less the only approach you can take unless you want to spend years studying.starman - 1-12-2010 at 16:33
Good search instructions.I see back in 2006 you still had a sense of humor O wise one.franklyn - 2-12-2010 at 11:19
@ Nicodem
So what do you have against Chemical Abstracts ?
I would look there before Beilstein since me no speeky Deutsch.
This was the only available means before the internet existed, and it is very
tedious if done without the use of computerized databases. It is however the
only sure way of doing an exhaustive meta research of a topic. One aspect of
this method is that it is in many ways an Easter egg hunt , you really cannot
foretell what you may uncover and will with diligence discover some extremely
obscure paper or monograph that is forgotten and therefore unknown but has
significant relevance to your interest. I have done this in the past but I had
the very fortunate luxury of living where public and university libraries are
without peer in the world. If it cannot be sourced here , then possibly the
Library of Congress or the British Library, I have utilized both.
Foreign language publications present a major hurdle not well addressed even
today. Imagine if the heroic effort of Tedeusz Urbanski had not been translated.
I just recently priced a cursory translation of a three page article writen in Cyrillic
that I found using method 2 , 600 dollars is the quoted fee of the translation
service. The 160 page book that is referenced would cost thousands even if
priced more reasonably. On an occasion I was in Washington DC , I photocopied
that book myself at the Library of Congress. It is the only copy of this book in the
United States and I was the only one who had ever looked at it. The British Library
has another copy of it which is ten years more recent , both were published in
Uzbekistan during the Soviet Era. - How's that for deep search.
.DJF90 - 2-12-2010 at 13:39
Reaxys, saves a bunch of time!franklyn - 2-12-2010 at 14:51
@ Nicodem
So what do you have against Chemical Abstracts ?
I would look there before Beilstein since me no speeky Deutsch.
Did I ever said I have anything against Chemical Abstracts? Back in 2006, when I "still had a sense of humor", I did say that SciFinder is one of the
two best indexes ever for chemistry. I do hope that you are aware that SciFinder is now the new name for Chemical Abstracts (renamed during the
digitalization).
Why do you think you need to speak German to use Beilstein? I also don't speak German, yet use it without problems. All the topic tittles have been
translated in English already long ago when they digitalized it. The only thing that remained in German are the abstraction comments (for example,
reaction conditions and such), which are few, not particularly important, and if you speak English or any other germanic language you surely must be
able to understand them (at least I do). By the way, Beilstein has also been renamed just recently into Reaxys, officially because they merged it with
Gmelin and now sell the hybrid as something new (and more expensive).
The young generations that have all these tools available, yet are too lazy to even use them, should consider how this used to be done before these
databases were digitalized. My generation was probably one of the last ones that still spent dozens of hours with indexes and volumes of printed
Chemical Abstracts. To find what you wanted to find, you really needed to be skilled in the fineness of the CA indexing technique and have lots and
lots of patience and enthusiasm. Seeing the attitude of the younger members on this forum, I can only say that most are too spoiled and oversponfeed.
At their age I never expected others to do literature searches for my own interests - I would just go to the (real) library and spend whole afternoons
in the room containing the Chemical Abstracts, making notes and copying references.
Quote:
Foreign language publications present a major hurdle not well addressed even today.
I see it quite the opposite, at least in my experience. With the development of interlibrary exchange you can now easily, rapidly and cheaply obtain
articles from the most obscure journals. The translation and transliteration is also very much easier and cheaper due to machine translators. Also
with the advance of internet and rapid communication, I can now just email a chinese chemist that only know remotely or trough a friend of a friend,
ask him if he can get me a chinese paper that interests me and possibly be so kind to translate the relevant part. People are often kind enough to do
so and help a researcher of the same field.
Quote:
I just recently priced a cursory translation of a three page article writen in Cyrillic that I found using method 2 , 600 dollars is the quoted fee of
the translation service.
For that money, I think you are better off by OCR-ing the article and copy/paste it into google translator.Sandmeyer - 23-12-2010 at 17:27
No need Beil$tein... Me want good method, me ask PolyetheneSam...
