The Thrill of the Build: Excitement and Challenges in Organic Synthesis To a synthetic organic chemist, there is nothing more exciting than planning and executing the preparation of a complex target molecule. Organic synthesis requires mastering an extensive toolkit of reactions to build desired chemical structures from simpler starting materials. This process can be exhilarating but also filled with challenges. Let's explore some of the key excitements and trials of this dynamic field. Planning the Path The first thrill comes from retrosynthetic analysis - working backwards mentally from the target compound to decide a viable synthetic route. This puzzle-solving exercise examines functional groups and connectivity to map out possible disconnections. Choosing the optimal path from many options gets the juices flowing! Reaction Discovery Synthetic chemists get to scout and screen new chemical transformations that become part of the toolkit for future syntheses. Finding new reaction