Book excerpt: PERSPECTIVES ON STRUCTURE AND MECHANISM IN ORGANIC CHEMISTRY “Beyond the basics” physical organic chemistry textbook, written for advanced undergraduates and beginning graduate students Based on the author’s first-hand classroom experience, Perspectives on Structure and Mechanism in Organic Chemistry uses complementary conceptual models to give new perspectives on the structures and reactions of organic compounds, with the overarching goal of helping students think beyond the simple models of introductory organic chemistry courses. Through this approach, the text better prepares readers to develop new ideas in the future. In the 3rd Edition, the author thoroughly updates the topics covered and reorders the contents to introduce computational chemistry earlier and to provide a more natural flow of topics, proceeding from substitution, to elimination, to addition. About 20% of the 438 problems have been either replaced or updated, with answers available in the companion solutions manual. To remind students of the human aspect of science, the text uses the names of investigators throughout the text and references material to original (or accessible secondary or tertiary) literature as a guide for students interested in further reading. Sample topics covered in Perspectives on Structure and Mechanism in Organic Chemistry include: Fundamental concepts of organic chemistry, covering atoms and molecules, heats of formation and reaction, bonding models, and double bonds Density functional theory, quantum theory of atoms in molecules, Marcus Theory, and molecular simulations Asymmetric induction in nucleophilic additions to carbonyl compounds and dynamic effects on reaction pathways Reactive intermediates, covering reaction coordinate diagrams, radicals, carbenes, carbocations, and carbanions Methods of studying organic reactions, including applications of kinetics in studying reaction mechanisms and Arrhenius theory and transition state theory A comprehensive yet accessible reference on the subject, Perspectives on Structure and Mechanism in Organic Chemistry is an excellent learning resource for students of organic chemistry, medicine, and biochemistry. The text is ideal as a primary text for courses entitled Advanced Organic Chemistry at the upper undergraduate and graduate levels.