[Squeegy]

I disagree. It is often very useful to know that one is wrong, even without knowing exactly how.

i am just a new guy here, and it does seem like this forum has to deal with a lot of people who dont know what they are talking about and claim they do, so you guys probably get sick of it. however while being told you are wrong can be useful, its usually much more useful to know why, and its also often more constructive for someone to tell someone why they are wrong. just saying wrong can seem very blunt and unfriendly and wont help him figure out WHERE he went wrong.

i suspect he was initially thinking that ionic compounds were non organic, and thats what lead to the mistake?

[sophotect]

I agree, it usually is better to know why one is wrong as opposed to just hearing someone say "wrong, try again" but think about it from a perspective of risk vs. reward. We don't know OPs personal capabilities except by what OP says here. If OP asks a well thought out question indicating awareness of an experiment's theoretical foundations as well as its inherent risks, we risk little by pointing out a potential flaw, limitation, or even a firm opinion. However, if OP asks a question that could be better answered by google and/or wikipedia, that usually indicates that the OP didn't even bother to frame the question or issue in terms of accepted scientific thought, & by assuming he knows what we know, we risk grossly overestimating OP's [intelligence|education|fortitude], perhaps fatally for OP.

Objectively, it isn't fair to O.P. to assume he knows enough to understand the answer.

Also, bearing that in mind, one person's opinion should not be the basis for continuing an inquiry.

EDIT:

Lastly, & more to the OPOQ (Original Poster's Original Question), yes, you can salt out out ethanol from water with potassium carbonate, which is available online for 10$ a kilo. http://www.soapgoods.com/Potassium-Carbonate-p-719.html

Here's a video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1SS3-D-Aqr4

[Ander08]

Cat, what you said was not very intelligent. On a forum like this people from all different fields of knowledge can reply to a post. Even ones that do not know what they are talking about, somebody could claim you are wrong when you may actually be mostly right about your answer. If you are just told "you are wrong" without providing an explanation as to why, you learn nothing. It is just an opportunity for somebody to make another user feel stupid when they themselves might not even know the answer. Which is exactly what you are doing right now. Nobody learns from it, The user just earns a small ego boost from telling the other user they are wrong without any real basis, which is exactly what you are doing right now.

[Ander08]

and squeegy, thats exactly what my train of thought was that lead to my misunderstanding, thank you for your support.

[billnotgatez]

As MOD for this board I thank the CHEMIST 408 for taking the time to come over here from the Organic board and let us know that an answer was wrong.
I know the CHEMISTs over there are busy.

We will stay on topic in this thread from now on.
Contact me off line if you have a need to discuss something other than the topic that the original poster had in mind or a clear associated off shoot.

[Ander08]

so you are actually encouraging this nonsense? If the purpose of this forum is just to put down people who make an incorrect suggestion and attempt to make them feel stupid for the sake of the higher member's ego, then i feel like i am in the wrong place, for i came here simply to extend my knowledge, not to be berated by arrogant know-it-alls

[Borek]

I agree it is better to get an answer with an explanation. Trick is, I don't always have time to explain what is wrong, and I can either signal something is wrong, or not answer at all (I can't guarantee to remember about the thread when it disappears from the first page). It is usually hard choice, as neither approach is the correct one.

I am locking the thread before it will get out of control. It got off topic long ago.