Chemistry — The Central Science

Chemistry is often called the central science because it links physics to biology, geology and medicine. It studies what substances are made of and how they change when they interact.

Main Branches

• Organic Chemistry — carbon-based compounds.
• Inorganic Chemistry — metals, minerals, coordination compounds.
• Physical Chemistry — thermodynamics and kinetics of reactions.
• Analytical Chemistry — identifying and quantifying substances.
• Biochemistry — chemistry of living systems.

Core Concepts

The periodic table organises the elements by atomic number and electron configuration, which in turn explains almost every chemical trend: reactivity, bonding, ionisation energy and electronegativity.