Chapter 1: A Cup of Chemistry Check Access

This chapter opens with a very short history of tea, then sketches four basic concepts of chemistry that can be used to understand the chemical composition of tea and its infusions. The four big ideas are: (1) molecular function depends on molecular structure; (2) atoms are the building blocks of matter; (3) reactions between molecules can be driven by the attraction of opposing charges; and (4) proximity is a necessary condition for chemical reactivity. A primer of how to decipher molecular line structures and chemical names follows.