The purpose of this investigation is to study the Birch reduction products of [2.2lparacyclophane and of [2.2]paracyclophane- 2-carboxylic acid. The tetrahydro Birch reduction product of [2.2]paracyclophane is shown to be dl stereoisomer, with the olefins of the upper deck only partially overlapping with the olefins of the lower deck. This stereochemical elucidation is accomplished by means of a complete proton nmr analysis of the tetraepoxide derivative. A proposed mechanism supported by VB (valence bond) and MO (molecular orbital) theories for this Birch reduction process is presented.

The purpose of the present work is to study the bonding interactions between the substituents and the ring π system for a series of ortho and para MeₙH₃₋ₙM (M = C or Si, n = 0-3) substituted N,N-dimethylaniline . Both ground and excited-state interactions were studied and their magnitudes determined. The experimental data were then used in conjunction with molecular orbital calculations to differentiate among inductive, hyperconjugative, and d-pπ interactions on the ground and excited states. Overall, the study indicates that d orbital involvement in the interactions of organosilicon substituents with unsaturated systems is much less significant than is generally held. The importance of pₛᵢ⁻π and pₛᵢ⁻π* hyperconjugative interactions between silicon σ* orbitals and π system in producing the effects of silicon substitution on unsaturated systems has become more apparent.