Question
A December 2023 Nature Astronomy paper reported the discovery of this molecule in the plumes of Enceladus. For 10 points each:
[10m] Name this molecule, of interest to astrochemists as a precursor to many molecules of life. On Earth, this molecule reacts with an aldehyde in the presence of ammonia to form a certain class of molecules via the Strecker synthesis.
ANSWER: hydrogen cyanide [or HCN; accept prussic acid]
[10e] The Strecker synthesis produces this class of molecules, the building blocks of proteins.
ANSWER: amino acids
[10h] Hydrogen cyanide may be produced in interstellar clouds via one of these reactions, rare on Earth, in which a polyatomic cation and an electron react, forming two neutral molecules.
ANSWER: dissociative recombination
<Omer, Chemistry>
Summary
| 2024 ESPN @ Stanford | 03/09/2024 | Y | 2 | 10.00 | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| 2024 ESPN @ Brown | 04/06/2024 | N | 3 | 13.33 | 100% | 33% | 0% |
| 2024 ESPN @ Cambridge | 04/06/2024 | N | 2 | 10.00 | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| 2024 ESPN @ Chicago | 03/23/2024 | N | 6 | 8.33 | 83% | 0% | 0% |
| 2024 ESPN @ Columbia | 03/23/2024 | N | 7 | 10.00 | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| 2024 ESPN @ Duke | 03/23/2024 | N | 2 | 10.00 | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| 2024 ESPN @ Online | 06/01/2024 | N | 3 | 6.67 | 67% | 0% | 0% |
Data
| Free Agents | Berkeley A | 0 | 10 | 0 | 10 |
| Stanford | Berkeley B | 0 | 10 | 0 | 10 |