Nature of the chemical bond

What Hacker News says

1. rramadassJul 2026
   > If I would have stuck with it, would things have improved?

   Yes.

   I have a B.Sc in Chemistry (Honours) from late 1980s and it was not until the final year that things finally began to click. The main catalysts were the books "Concise Inorganic Chemistry by J.D.Lee" and "Mechanism in Organic Chemistry by Peter Sykes". Both beautifully written and try to give a framework within which to think viz. the former based on the periodic table and the latter on carbon valence bond properties. I think i need to revisit these (and other books) to justify my degree in Chemistry :-)

   For background and inspiration, consult Linus Pauling's classics; The Nature of the Chemical Bond and General Chemistry - https://archive.org/search?query=creator%3A%22Pauling+Linus%...

   Linus Pauling (the only scientist in history to be awarded two undivided, unshared Nobel Prizes) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linus_Pauling

   Show morethread
2. rpmullerSep 2022
   It was Peter Atkins’ lectures in Quantum Mechanics that made me decide to go into Quantum Chemistry, so the book always brings back fond memories.

   For Chemistry I’d also list Pauling’s Nature of the Chemical Bond. And maybe Szabo and Ostlund’s Modern Quantum Chemistry.

   thread
3. TheAceOfHeartsJun 2021
   This isn't a great line of reasoning. We have evidence that even the smartest individuals can be exceptional in one field while being regarded as cranks in others. Failures and mistakes are inevitable as you try doing more things and branching out. Taking on this mindset forces brilliant individuals to remain in the safe lane without experimenting, potentially stifling progress. The expectation of perfection seems like an unreasonably high bar. Is it not better to try and fail than to have not tried at all? Perhaps the broader issue is that there's insufficient interdisciplinary communication and collaboration.

   For example, the Nobel laureate Linus Pauling made outstanding contributions to chemistry in explaining the nature of the chemical bond. He also believed vitamin C could help cure or prevent cancer, for which there doesn't appear to be much evidence.

   Show morethread
4. thisrodMay 2009
   Scientists have created the most beautiful and useful artifacts ever made. Think "Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica", "On The Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection", "The Nature of the Chemical Bond", and "The Principles of Quantum Mechanics". Unfortunately, most people are too dumb and lazy to appreciate them.

   Picture Francis Crick, putting down his pen after writing, "It has not escaped the attention of the authors that this structure suggests a mechanism for replication."

   Show morethread