[zhubo]

Dear Professor XXX:
Pardon me, though a stranger to you personally, for taking liberty to address you these few lines.
I am a graduate student, major in organic chemistry under the supervision of Prof. XXX. Recently, I have been very interested in one of your articles, titled " Molecular Crystals with Moving Parts: Synthesis, Characterization, and Crystal Packing of Molecular Gyroscopes with Methyl-Substituted Triptycyl Frames" in JOC, especially the preparation of 4,5-dimethyl-anthranilic acid which is needed for my current research. However, I can’t produce it though I tried it several times. So I wonder if you can give me some 4,5-dimethyl-anthranilic acid if you still have some on hand.
Thank you for your kind consideration of this request.

Best regards?
XXX XX

[Wisemanleo]

Is it normal to ask other professors for reagents if they don't know you personally?

[Ψ×Ψ]

Yeah...I might ask for clarification of the published procedure instead.

[english]

There's no way you can synthesize 4,5-dimethyl-anthranilic using stuff you already have?  Shouldn't your research advisor see to your needs for such supplies?

[sjb]

There's no way you can synthesize 4,5-dimethyl-anthranilic using stuff you already have?

I think that was the point of the letter. Zhubo appears to be following a procedure from Prof X (the second), but can't quite get the chemistry gods onside enough to make it. My approach would me more like ?*?'s.

Shouldn't your research advisor see to your needs for such supplies?

So if I'm doing some research, but can't make a compound, it's OK for my supervisor to make it instead? Where should this stop, maybe they should do my project for me, or perhaps get their supervisors to make it, or ...?

Out of interest Zhubo, how *are* you trying to make the compound - perhaps there's something we can do to help in the head scratching...  Is it this paper http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/jo035517i ? A bit late for me, but I'll have another look in the morning..

S

[billnotgatez]

I am a graduate student, major in organic chemistry under the supervision of Prof. XXX.

Does your prof know you are making this request?

[kiwi]

thank god i'm not the only person who thought that letter kind of forward. chemistry doesn't work, regularly. i'd ask him for hints and tips as previously suggested, rather than coming right out and asking for compound.

[zhubo]

to sjb: that is the paper you pointed to. Could you give me any suggestion?

[DavidW]

Zhubo, what a coincidence    Not sure if you are still interested in making that compound, but I was a graduate student in the group that published that paper.  You are welcome to e-mail me personally and we can try to figure out what were the problems that you were having.

P.S.  I don't know how my former advisor would feel about giving out compounds like that, I agree that it may not be such a good idea.

[Custos]

Maybe you could check out this paper: Brandstrom, Arne; Carlsson, Stig A. I.  Preparation of 2-amino-4,5-dimethylbenzoic acid and related compounds. Acta Chemica Scandinavica (1967), 21(4), 983-92.

[sjb]

to sjb: that is the paper you pointed to. Could you give me any suggestion?

I seem to have lost access to the full paper I'm sure I had it Monday, which is why I thought I could go through it.. I'll keep trying, in case it's a software glitch - no I don't have easy access to the paper copy...

S