Chemisty vs. Anatomy I&II

NaomieRN · Jul 18, 2006

It is depend on your background. For me, I thought Anatomy was much easier because I have a solid biology background. Whereas Chemistry was more challenging, with balancing those formulas, acids and bases.

shock-me-sane · Jul 19, 2006

I found chemistry WAY easier than A&P. Mainly because I am more of a math and process person than I am a memorizer.

so it depends on you (and the instructor)

WannaBeMaleRN · Jul 19, 2006

Nothing is harder than Anatomy. PERIOD! Well IMO anyway. Good Luck whatever you decide on.

Laura77598 · Jul 28, 2006

I thought Chemistry was harder due to the math involved, but if you think of Chemistry like cooking, putting in certain things that work together to make something else, you will understand it better. Chemistry is about combining atoms of different elements ins such a way that they complete each other. It is almost like putting puzzle pieces together. One atom of one element can combine to another atom or group of atoms in another group of elements (called a compound) to form another compound. Think of puzzles: the pieces have to have the right shape to get the right fit. In Chemistry, atoms have to have the right number of electrons to complete their shells. If they do not have enough electrons to complete their outer shell, they look for an atom with that extra electron and bind to it. That way both atoms are happy and stable. Its like having a gaping hole in your side and finding someone who fits that hole perfectly. Think of Puzzles one can go with another to make a stable complete fit. That is the basic idea of general chemistry. It gets a little harder with balancing equations in the later half of the class, but the first part is just learning how to fill electron shells and how certain groups (compunds) with an atomic wieght can balance another compound with the same atomic weight. If you understand basic math, and balancing you'll do fine. Algebra gave me fits, but I thought of Chemistry as great fun, because I could think of it as making supper or trying a new recipe I haven't made before. There is an air or excitement working with stuff that changes into other stuff when you combine the atoms in the right way. If you like puzzles and cooking, it'll be fun!!!

Get cliffs notes to accompany Chemistry,

Never hurts to have books that simplify the material.

Your textbook won't simplify it for you.

Good luck,

Laura

Also, there is a member of this board "Daytonite" who very graciously answers lots of math (dimensional analysis, and chemistry questions) She has posted a help site for chemistry. I forget what it is, but I 'm sure she'll tell you if you post to her she helps out regularly on the nursing students forums.

Good Luck

lilypad2424 · Jul 28, 2006

Laura77598, that's a great synopsis of chemistry. It really helps me when things are put in a different way, one that I can understand.

MikeyJ, RN · Jul 29, 2006

I personally found chemistry to be MUCH easier than A&P. I am not sure if all schools require their students to take organic chem/biochem (ours does), but I am finding it to be a tad bit challenging (still maintaining an A), however, nothing near that of A&P. Aside from our organic chem class, my general chem was a breeze. It will depend upon how it is taught and the type of student you are.

JoshuaC · Jul 29, 2006

Chemistry deals a lot with solving equations and figuring out things like that. Anatomy and Physiology deal more with understanding processes and concepts. So it depends on what you're good at learning. If you study for each you should do fine.

Personally, I thought chemistry was hard. But I'm not a math person, and chemistry deals a lot in numbers.

Also I think it has a lot to do with your interest in the subject. I didn't really care about electrons, which is what the class revolved around, so it wasn't fund studying for that crap that I'll never use in my nursing career.

abrainerd · Jul 29, 2006

My class is actually called CHEM1030 - Fundamentals of Chemistry. I am hoping this is more of an intro and overview. The organic and Gen. Chemistry sound alittle more challenging.

Laura77598 · Jul 30, 2006

Hi abrainerd

I also took the Introductory/Fundamentals of Chemistry. I found it to give me a very good introduction to chemistry. It really is basic. Hardly any math involved in it. I really enjoyed that course, and I am a Science/Math phobic person. I was always afraid of math and science. Boy did THAT change. When you go back to school at an older age, I found that I was more dedicated and also less afraid of my courses. You'll have lots of fun in Fundamentals of Chemistry!!!!!!! It really is like "This is an atom. An atom is made up of three parts. A proton, a neutron, and an electron. The proton has a positive charge, the neutron has no charge, and the electron has a negative charge." There is little if any math involved in Fundamentals; at least not when I took it. You should probably go right into general chemistry after you complete Fundamentals. That's how I did it. I got a C in Fundamentals and a B in General Chemistry. I was so proud!! I was also 19, and did all the work without any help from anyone! That was hard, because I usually had help from my dad with math. Fundamentals of Chemistry is a very fun course. It really gives you a good introduction to the basics so that when you take (if you take) General Chemistry (with a lab) you will get it right away! There is also a chemistry help club that posts on this page you might check them out too. They may be able to point out some good help sites.

Good Luck!

Don't worry,

You'll do GREAT!!!

Laura77598

romansten9 · Oct 1, 2006

I'm currently taking Anatomy, Chemistry and Psychology. (and the labs too of course) I think Anatomy is the hardest, and thats the one I'm most familiar with. I think the human body is the most complex thing on earth without question. I don't consider myself very intelligent, but I have an A in all of them. (I study constantly) and most importantly, I am highly motivated and interested (especially in the human body) I have some good chemistry books: "Complete idiots guide to chemistry" and my favorite "The cartoon guide to chemistry" I got them at the local library. They make it much easier.

JoeyDog · Oct 1, 2006

intro to chem is easy. it really is like "this is an atom, this is the periodic table". inorganic chem involves lots of math, at my school it is described as a quantitaive analysis of inorganic chemistry. i hated inorganic chem b/c of all the math involved. organic chem (which i am taking right now) is all naming and drawing, and very little math. the concepts of o-chem are more difficult than they are in inorganic chemistry but i like organic chem better.