Ring compounds Memes

The chemical hierarchy of intimidation on full display! As ring structures lose carbon atoms, they apparently also lose their ability to look threatening. Pyran (6-membered ring) looks ready to dissolve your face in acid, Furan (5-membered) still means business, but poor little Oxetene (4-membered) is just happy to be included in the heterocyclic family photo. Chemists spend years naming compounds after Greek gods and deadly weapons, then draw this derpy little oxygen-containing square and expect us to take it seriously. The smaller the ring strain, the bigger the personality, I suppose.