Nucleophilic-substitution Memes

This meme is peak organic chemistry wordplay. SN2 reactions involve nucleophilic substitution where one group gets kicked out as another swoops in—basically molecular ghosting. The joke brilliantly compares relationship dynamics to chemical mechanisms: she won't leave her current partner (the leaving group) until a suitable replacement (the nucleophile) comes along. The backside attack approach of SN2 reactions makes this even more deliciously awkward. Chemistry students everywhere just snorted coffee through their noses.

Organic chemistry explained through feline behavior—pure genius! The top row shows SN1 (unimolecular nucleophilic substitution): the gray cat leaves the bed first, creating a "cat-ion" vacancy, which the orange cat opportunistically fills afterward. The bottom row depicts SN2 (bimolecular nucleophilic substitution): the orange cat directly attacks the gray cat's cozy spot, simultaneously pushing it out while claiming the territory in one concerted step. This is the kind of visualization that would have saved countless undergrads from failing organic chemistry. Twenty years of drawing arrows on whiteboards, and not once did I think to use cats. No wonder students fall asleep during reaction mechanisms—they needed more whiskers and fewer wedge-dash notations!