No exact definition of an “organic” substance has been agreed upon by the chemical community and textbook definitions vary substantially. The question of what exactly constitutes an “organic” substance is explored in this paper. Various carbon-containing substances that have been by some considered to be “inorganic” are examined in an attempt to ascertain whether carbon in these compounds display different chemical behavior than what is expected of carbon in an “organic” substance. Types of substances considered are carbon allotropes, carbides, carbonates and bicarbonates, cyanide and cyanate ions, carbido clusters, carbon oxides, and compounds without hydrogen.

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中文翻译：

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什么是有机物？

化学界尚未就“有机”物质的确切定义达成共识，教科书的定义也大相径庭。本文探讨了究竟是什么构成“有机”物质的问题。为了确定这些化合物中的碳是否表现出与预期的“有机”物质中的碳不同的化学行为，对某些被认为是“无机”的含碳物质进行了检查。所考虑的物质类型为碳同素异形体，碳化物，碳酸盐和碳酸氢盐，氰化物和氰酸盐离子，碳原子团，碳氧化物和不含氢的化合物。

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