chemistry

Gregory L. Hillhouse

Gregory L. Hillhouse is a chemistry topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Gregory L. Hillhouse rather than just read about it. In short: Gregory Lee Hillhouse (March 1, 1955 – March 6, 2014) was an inorganic chemist with a long-standing interest in the chemistry of organotransition metal compounds at the University of Chicago. Much of his work focused on creating organometallic compounds to stabilize and isolate reactive intermediates, molecules that are proposed to exist briefly during a larger catalytic reaction progress.

Key takeaways

Gregory L. Hillhouse belongs to chemistry; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Gregory L. Hillhouse to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Gregory L. Hillhouse from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Gregory Lee Hillhouse (March 1, 1955 – March 6, 2014) was an inorganic chemist with a long-standing interest in the chemistry of organotransition metal compounds at the University of Chicago. Much of his work focused on creating organometallic compounds to stabilize and isolate reactive intermediates, molecules that are proposed to exist briefly during a larger catalytic reaction progress.

Biography Hillhouse was born on March 1, 1955, in Greenville, South Carolina. He attended the University of South Carolina in 1976 and received his Ph.D. from Indiana University Bloomington in 1980. He then became a postdoctoral research associate at California Institute of Technology, before taking a position in the department of chemistry at the University of Chicago in 1983. Professor Hillhouse was not only a dedicated researcher but also a dedicated mentor and teacher to dozens of undergraduates at the University of Chicago. He won the prestigious Quantrell Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching at the University of Chicago in 1997. He died from cancer at his home in Chicago on March 6, 2014, aged 59.

Research

Organometallic nickel complexes While the early work of Hillhouse focused on early-transition metal chemistry, his later career efforts were dedicated towards base metals. For example, in 2001 Hillhouse and co-workers synthesized a complex that refuted the notion that it was impossible for late transition metals like nickel to form multiple bonds with heteroatoms. The result was a molecule that he affectionately referred to as “Double Nickel,” which possessed an indisputable nickel-nitrogen double bond. Later the group published a study showcasing that one can also synthesize and isolated an electronically similar phosphinidine species. Additionally, using bulky N-heterocyclic carbene (NHC) ligands, Hillhouse and co-workers showed that one can stabilize a linear two-coordinate Ni-based imido species. His group has also showcased how some of these and similar complexes can undergo redox chemistry forming Ni(I) and Ni(III) species.

Personal life Hillhouse was gay, although he did not come out openly in his professional career until later in his life. In his career as a teacher and mentor, he served as a role model for younger LGBTQ+ chemists.

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Gregory L. Hillhouse

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Gregory L. Hillhouse claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In chemistry, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Gregory L. Hillhouse before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Gregory L. Hillhouse ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Gregory L. Hillhouse

In research: Gregory L. Hillhouse appears in chemistry research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Gregory L. Hillhouse in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Gregory L. Hillhouse is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1955 births, 2014 deaths, American LGBTQ scientists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Gregory L. Hillhouse outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Gregory L. Hillhouse in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Gregory L. Hillhouse means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Gregory L. Hillhouse out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Gregory L. Hillhouse in simple terms?

Why does Gregory L. Hillhouse matter?

Because it connects several chemistry ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Gregory L. Hillhouse?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Gregory L. Hillhouse.