We live in a Chemical Age 2 characterized by an abundance of materials which are manufactured with deliberate intent rather than simply isolated from Nature. We have plastics, synthetic fibers, pharmaceuticals, superconducting materials, genetically engineered materials, composites, and more. Chemistry has been called the Central Science , not because it is more important than other scientific activities, but because many fields of science and engineering depend in a least some way on the vocabulary, concepts, insights, and problem solving techniques of chemistry. Traditionally, five subheadings constitute the field of chemistry, although the division between each is becoming more difficult to discern. General chemistry tries to touch upon each of these subheadings.
Organic chemistry is the study of long chains and rings of carbon atoms.
Twenty-nine of the top 50 chemicals manufactured by the chemical industry are organic molecules. Almost all of the molecules associated with life are organic molecules. This left hand-right hand property imparts a three dimensional complexity and subtlety to organic chemistry. The large number of non-bonding interactions between organic molecules allows chemists, not to mention Nature, to design molecules with memory. Inorganic chemistry is centers on the remaining elements.