orgo rxns are most likely in a given environment/solvent

[omegaz]

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Orgo is my weak spot. Specifically it's the reactions that are given me pain.

Is there a list with all the orgo reactions and in what environment they occur most favorably and the solvent?

 

[justadream]

Orgo is my weak spot. Specifically it's the reactions that are given me pain.

Is there a list with all the orgo reactions and in what environment they occur most favorably and the solvent?

I don't know if any such "list" exists but you could make your own by going through your organic textbook.

Even memorizing such a list should be somewhat inefficient. It's better to have a general understanding of the mechanism (not every step but perhaps the general scheme) of the reactions.

 

[techfan]

For me at least, I found that making my own table helped the most. First making it huge, and then condensing by finding the similarities between reactions. I find I learn better when I'm the one who made the notes rather than trying to memorize someone else's (since the MCAT is more of an IQ test than a memorization one). Also, from what I've been hearing (and my past MCAT {2010}) organic chemistry isn't stressed as much (I think I had MAYBE 1 passage), which is probably good for both of us.

 

[The Brown Knight]

I agree with the above. Rather than memorizing reactions, you need a solid INTUITION in organic chem because good chances are they'll ask about a reaction you've never seen before and apply concepts you know from study. Look at chemical structures as more than just little Lewis structures floating around in solution; e.g. a nucleophile would be like a bull with the electrons being its horns and an electrophile would be a person in a red shirt or something like that. Key is to understand what these chemicals LIKE to do in any given situation, not what they did in the past reactions you memorized.