Carbon is an amazing element. It is able to form millions of different compounds, so many in fact, that it has its own branch of chemistry. Organic chemistry is the chemistry of carbon. Carbon can form four bonds and can catenate (form long chains with itself). The bonds of carbon are kinetically stable (so don't easily react) but thermodynamically unstable (so contain a lot of energy). This makes it the ideal basis for complex forms of life.

Periodic table

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