Woodward‐Hoffmann or Hoffmann‐Woodward? Cycloadditions and the Transformation of Roald Hoffmann from a “Calculator” to an “Explainer”

• Published in: Chemical record Vol. 24; no. 8; pp. e202300181 - n/a
• Main Author: Seeman, Jeffrey I.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Wiley Subscription Services, Inc 01.08.2024
• Subjects: Calculators; Careers; Chemical reactions; Cycloaddition; cycloadditions; History of chemistry; Hoffmann, Roald; pericyclic reactions; Woodward-Hoffmann rules; pericyclic reactions; Woodward-Hoffmann rules; cycloadditions; History of chemistry

On May 1, 1965, Roald Hoffmann and R. B. Woodward published their second joint communication, Selection Rules for Concerted Cycloaddition Reactions, in the Journal of the American Chemical Society. Herein is presented a historical analysis of Woodward and Hoffmann's determination of the mechani...