Overscrupulous chemistry major here. Both Harry and Snape are wrong. By the Pauli exclusion principle an orbital can only host two electrons. But at the same time, there is no outermost orbital—valence shells are only oversimplified description of atom. Actually, so oversimplified that no one should bother writing it down.
Speaking of HOMOs of carbon atom (highest [in energy] occupied molecular orbitals), each has only one electron.
The notion that (neutral) Carbon has 4 electrons to share and prefers to have 4 electrons shared with it is so oversimplified that no one should bother writing it down?
Overscrupulous chemistry major here. Both Harry and Snape are wrong. By the Pauli exclusion principle an orbital can only host two electrons. But at the same time, there is no outermost orbital—valence shells are only oversimplified description of atom. Actually, so oversimplified that no one should bother writing it down. Speaking of HOMOs of carbon atom (highest [in energy] occupied molecular orbitals), each has only one electron.
The notion that (neutral) Carbon has 4 electrons to share and prefers to have 4 electrons shared with it is so oversimplified that no one should bother writing it down?
That is, umm, a surprising viewpoint to me.