The authors provide both the polymer/materials science student and practicing materials engineer a means of understanding the differences in behaviors/properties of materials made from chemically distinct polymers. This knowledge can assist them in designing polymers with chemical structures that lead to their desired material behaviors and properties. The reader will learn how the detailed chemical structures of polymers can be characterized, how their microstructural depenedent conformational preferences can be evaluated , and how these conformational preferences can by connected to the behaviors and properties of their materials.