the honor and high honor list was posted on ACS
A lot of you guys recommended Atkins Physical Chemistry (I just bought the 10th edition) as a good book. I just looked through the first chapter of the sample section on Amazon and the calculus in it just looks daunting (I have minimum knowledge of calculus). Do all of you guys know calculus and have memorized all the formulas in this book? The local/national exams don’t look this hard and some people claim that Zumdahl is just as good as Atkins, and Zumdahl has no calculus in it. Will I be just as successful if I use Zumdahl? Or is it just the first chapter of Atkins that has a lot of calculus in it?
skip the calc part
Do you think it’s possible that ACS made an error when tabulating the results? Like, people who were told they made honors but actually did not.
@MSU_Spartans How was your son’s camp experience?
Wonderful, amazing, and fun! That would be the words to describe his experience. All campers are chill, super smart, and genuinely nice. In the end, three boys and one girl made the team. Wait for the official news.
Really? I heard from a camper that there was actually a lot of salt between some campers, and that there was a lot of discontent with both mentors and campers this year.
https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/education/students/highschool/olympiad.html
The news was out. Congrats!
@MSU_Spartans
It is JOYful to know that “Mike” enjoyed the camp experience
@www7102 Full marks on the “named reactions” and detective work. 
hey guys,
I’m starting Atkins right now and was wondering if I need to memorize all those complicated looking equations… (ex. born-mayer equation, etc.) thanks!!
@chem8888 eh, probably not, but it’s still good to know how they derived it and to understand the principles behind
the equation.
On another note, how’d everyone do this year on both national and local? I heard the MC cutoff was 40 this year for top 150.
At local, I got 50+, but my school’s super competitive so I didn’t make nationals. 
Does anyone know what the local section cutoff for North Jersey was last year (2016) or in 2015? Thanks!
should i use atkins or zumdahl?
Hey guys, I’m interested in participating in UNSCO this year, but my school is not registered. Can I take it at another school, and if so, does it count for one of the two spots in that school, or will I be competing in a separate category? Has anyone done this before?
I just asked one of my teachers personally, and they registered for me. I think it’s pretty easy to sign up, and you can persuade them that all they’ll have to do is stay after school one day (which they probably do often anyway) and proctor a test.
@pianoswim I don’t think it really matters…they are both good general chem books. Different people have different opinions on which one is better, so just choose the one that suits you
Sorry to bother you guys but I was wondering that is USNCO finalist (making nationals but not camp) a form of national level of recognition on the common app? Thanks in advance
HELP GUYS so um how much quantum do you need to know for USNCO? The 1st chapter of Atkins is terrifying…
Okay so I plan on participating in 2017 USNCO but there is not a thread yet. I am currently in AP Chem and I’m using Zumdahl’s 8th edition (it also says AP edition… does that make a difference?). I’ve heard that Atkins pretty much covers it all, but I’m not in the mood for dropping $100 for the book and then more for a solutions manual. I know that Zumdahl does not have calc, but I am in AP Calc right now so maybe that will make up for it?
Should I get Atkins or just stick with Zumdahl? Any other advice in general is also welcome. thanks.