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The goal of this textbook is not to make you an expert. True expertise in any field is a years-long endeavor. Here I will survey some of the basic topics of chemistry. This survey should give you enough knowledge to appreciate the impact of chemistry in everyday life and, if necessary, prepare you for additional instruction in chemistry.

The text starts with an introduction to chemistry. Some users might find this a throwaway chapter, but I urge you to look it over. Many people—even scientists—do not know what science really is, and we all can benefit if we learn what science is and, importantly, what science is not. Chemistry, like all sciences, is inherently quantitative, so Chapter 2 - Measurements discusses measurements and the conventions for expressing them. Yes, chemistry has conventions and arbitrarily adopted, agreed-on standards against which everything is expressed. Students are sometimes dismayed to learn that a hard science like chemistry has arbitrary standards. But then, all fields have their arbitrary standards that experts in that field must master if they are to be considered “experts.” Chemistry, like other sciences, is no different.

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