Learning Objectives, Chapter 4

Carbon and the Molecular Diversity of Life

Understand and be able to use the following terms:

organic molecules	hydrocarbons	functional groups	macromolecules
hydroxyl group	carbonyl group	carboxyl group	amino group
sulfhydryl group	phosphate group	methyl group

1. Distinguish between organic molecule, hydrocarbon, and functional group.
2. Explain how carbon's electron configuration determines the kinds and numbers of bonds that carbon will form.
3. Describe how carbon skeletons may vary, and explain how this variation contributes to the diversity and complexity of organic molecules.
4. Distinguish among the three types of isomers: structural, geometric, and enantiomer.
5. Name the major functional groups and describe the chemical properties of the organic molecules in which they occur. (Table 4.1 p. 58)