The Measurement and Meaning of Intrinsic Radical Stability: Are Chemical Questions just Problems in Applied Mathematics?

Abstract

Some of the reasons for thinking that Eyring thesis is wrong, and that chemical questions are not just 'problems in applied mathematics' are discussed. Eyring thesis, this does not entail that the concept of intrinsic stability is 'arbitrary', 'subjective' or 'ad hoc', for it can still be defined in a way that makes the concept a very useful tool for understanding and predicting molecular behavior. The concept of intrinsic radical stability is a counter-example to the Eyring thesis and the reductionism. It appears that the concept of the intrinsic stability of a radical can function as part of a qualitative chemical explanation. Quantum mechanics tells us about the ultimate nature of molecules, and therefore we should be able to deduce from it what the behavior of any given molecule will be. The concept of intrinsic radical stability cannot play a role in any 'real' explanation of the chemical facts as it does not reduce to a 'problem in applied mathematics'.