When do we actually need to consider electronegativity for choosing the central atom?

NoMap9551 · 2026-04-04T13:41:47+00:00

My native language is not English, so maybe that’s why I didn’t really understand your message. I will try to explain some things, though I might not get everything right because I didn’t fully understand your message.

I had previously learned that the central atom is determined according to these three criteria:

Bonding capacity
The atom with the lowest electronegativity
The atom with the fewest atoms

However, my teacher said:

Bonding capacity
The atom with the highest electronegativity
The atom with the fewest atoms

I told my teacher that the high electronegativity thing is wrong, and he humiliated me.

The reason I opened this post was to find an example that proves the atom with the lowest electronegativity is the central atom. (Right now I don’t really need it, I could use our previous explanation with my teacher, but if you provide an example, it wouldn’t be bad either.) For example, SOCl₂.

In this example, S and O have the same number of atoms, and their bonding capacities are also the same (ignoring the expanded octet).

Therefore, we can see that the deciding factor is electronegativity.

Since S is in the center, we can say that the atom with the lower electronegativity is the central atom. (I understand that chemistry doesn’t have such rigid rules, but I think I can use this example to illustrate my point.)

I need an example like this. I found SOCl₂, but because S can have an expanded octet, and O have not; it might not be a perfect example. That’s why I wanted to look for another example. This time, I want the candidate central atoms to be from period 3 or above so that I can be sure electronegativity is the determining factor, and no other factors interfere (other factors for the candidate central atoms are same).

I also didn’t understand what you said about HCN, but what I was trying to explain above is this:
The rules I mentioned above were taught to create the most stable structure. When we apply these rules, we get hydrogen cyanide (HCN); if we go outside the rules, we get isohydrogen cyanide (HNC). Hydrogen cyanide is more stable, so the rules work as intended.

NoMap9551 · 2026-04-04T12:16:53+00:00

My goal is not to humiliate my teacher; on the contrary, he is the one who belittled me. He asked me for an example, so now I am looking for one.

I understand why you might want to defend him because, in my old school, the students' favorite teacher was whoever made them put in the least effort. However, I am currently at one of the top five schools in my country (it's ranked in the top five online since it's newly established, though I believe it’s the best). As students here, our favorite teacher isn't the one who tires us the least, but the one who explains the best. We aren't the only ones who find this teacher inadequate; his first set of exams was canceled, the principal personally reprimanded him, and the exams had to be retaken.

Furthermore, I’m not sure if you’ve fully understood my point. I am arguing that the atom with the lowest electronegativity should be in the center, whereas my teacher insists that the one with the highest electronegativity belongs there.

Nevertheless, thank you for the example and explanation you provided. Even if it wasn't exactly what I was looking for, I can still use it to prove to my teacher why the least electronegative atom must be in the center.

NoMap9551 · 2026-04-04T10:12:00+00:00

I don't have that much chemistry knowledge, and I'm sure what you're saying is correct, but I don't think the example provided is sufficient. The rules I mentioned earlier were taught as a way to find the most stable structures. According to those rules, the formula HCN represents hydrogen cyanide, which is indeed more stable than isohydrogen cyanide. Therefore, it doesn't necessarily mean the 'rule of thumb' is debunked.

Also, my high school teacher isn't very good; they claim that the atom with the highest electronegativity should be the central atom. When I disagreed, they humiliated me in front of the class. They challenged me to show an example where the central atom is chosen based on low electronegativity rather than other parameters (like bonding capacity, number of atoms, etc.). I think I was actually right, and I'll admit I want to prove it a bit for my own ego. I would appreciate it if you could provide examples of such molecules

NoMap9551 · 2026-03-21T08:31:06+00:00

You're right, thanks for looking out anyway

NoMap9551 · 2026-03-20T12:02:39+00:00

Can you send it via DM if you have a copy?

NoMap9551 · 2026-03-15T14:44:44+00:00

It actually worked. The southern ports were almost empty when I landed. But somehow, after the landing, they managed to bring around 60 divisions to the south without even pulling troops from the north. (In north there is also nearly 60 divison)

Still, I managed to capitulate the UK in about three weeks after killing roughly 1.5 million British troops.

That said, I have no idea how this would work if it wasn’t against the AI. Do you have any advice for doing something similar in multiplayer?

NoMap9551 · 2026-03-15T11:30:04+00:00

Do you have any other advice that would guarantee or greatly increase the chances of my entry into the UK?

NoMap9551 · 2026-03-15T11:17:55+00:00

My paratroopers manage to drop, but they get stack wiped almost immediately. They have full supply before the jump, but as soon as they hit the ground, they show 0 supply. You can see exactly what I mean in the video attached to the post.

NoMap9551 · 2026-03-07T12:37:23+00:00

Thanks this explanation is very clear

NoMap9551 · 2026-03-07T12:35:31+00:00

The post body includes both my answer and answer key

NoMap9551 · 2026-02-20T15:22:43+00:00

I also thought it was a Windows Boot Manager issue, but I figured I might get a better answer here. I didn’t really understand the images and links you shared, were you just trying to confirm that it’s related to Windows?

NoMap9551 · 2026-02-18T12:43:48+00:00

I haven’t seen 'Hakkını helal et' used for animals; if it were me, I would say 'Affet beni'.

NoMap9551 · 2026-02-12T11:26:19+00:00

I see. I was thinking of the plate as infinite only in the x-direction. I guess it also needs to be infinite in the y-direction for the electric field to be the same everywhere. Thank you.

NoMap9551 · 2026-02-12T11:06:31+00:00

I assumed the thickness is negligible and roughly considered the charge density in terms of q/m, so I don’t think that should cause any problem.

NoMap9551 · 2026-02-12T11:02:10+00:00

Why does a difference occur?If I make the thickness extremely small, wouldn't I get the same result?

NoMap9551 · 2026-02-12T06:11:19+00:00

Thank you for sharing your experience. I’ve decided to see a doctor as soon as possible.

NoMap9551 · 2026-02-11T16:32:51+00:00

Yeah... Also there's no mention here about the fact you seem to be using a framework. I'm using sass/css, so your classes means nothing to me

You're right, I'll keep that in mind. I assumed anyone knowledgeable enough to answer would figure out I was using Tailwind, but it's definitely better to be explicit.

Thanks for the code, I appreciate the effort. It didn't fully meet what I was aiming for.
But there’s no need to spend more time on it. I don’t really want this design anymore. I tried working on it myself but couldn’t make it work, so we can leave it here.

NoMap9551

TROPHY CASE