Which statement about the ground state of the species shown is correct?

AIt is linear with sp hybridisation and a filled p orbital.
BIt is a triplet with two unpaired electrons of parallel spin in different orbitals, and the H-C-H angle is about $13 5^{\circ}$ .
CIt is a singlet with one filled sp $^{2}$ orbital and one empty p orbital.
DIt is a carbanion with a lone pair and a negative charge.

Answer: B

The species shown is methylene,

: CH X_{2}

, the simplest carbene. With no stabilising substituents the triplet state, with one electron in each of two nearly degenerate orbitals and parallel spins, lies lower than the singlet by about 9 kcal/mol. The triplet is bent with an H-C-H angle near

13 5^{\circ}

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Which statement about the ground state of the species shown is correct?

Answer: B

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