Chemistry is Everywhere


Chemistry Newsbytes

Posted by Bethany Halford on July 4, 2008 in Chemistry is Everywhere

watermelon.jpgIf you indulge in a slice of watermelon this Fourth of July, be sure to be nice to your sweetheart. Science Daily

The revolution in flavor chemistry is already being waged in tomato juice. Gourmet

Listen to the sound of Jell-O wobbling. Telegraph

Canada Day bummer for the chemists at Simon Fraser University whose holiday was ruined when a hot water line busted and flooded their labs. The Province

Science of the Stradivarius sound: Is the difference in the density? Science News

Flat screen TVs could have a greater impact on global warming than coal-fired power plants. Guardian

For mosquitoes, attraction is all about chemistry. Newsweek

How Many People Does It Take To Make A Buckyball?

Posted by Carmen Drahl on July 2, 2008 in Chemistry is Everywhere

Although early reports would have you believe the answer is five (Nature 1985, 318, 162)*, these videos could muddy the waters somewhat.

They appear (along with several other videos) on a website from New York City’s Whitney Museum, which just this weekend opened a new exhibit on R. Buckminster Fuller, the geometric visionary/architect who is C60’s namesake.

Watch closely: Is the video of museum employees putting together a geodesic dome a stop-motion video (like claymation) or is it merely sped up? Also, that origami buckyball looks mind-bogglingly hard to fold. (It took me days to master paper-crane folding in second grade.) If there are any detailed instructions for how to fold it, though, we’d love to hear about it!

*What I love most about this classic paper is the elegant simplicity of Figure 1.

Chemistry Newsbytes

Posted by Bethany Halford and Lisa Jarvis on July 1, 2008 in Chemistry is Everywhere

blingh2o.jpgWater is the new wine. For $33.50 you can get a bottle of “concentrated water” from Hawaii. Washington Post

An epic tale of carbon dioxide and climate change from the world of weed research. NY Times Magazine

Grossly deformed homegrown veggies in the U.K. linked to aminopyralid-tainted manure. Guardian

Subjects of a hallucinogen study report meaningful and spiritual experiences. Baltimore Sun

A short, speedy history of amphetamines in the U.S. Chronicle of Higher Education

Hey kids, take a lesson from this chemistry student and remember to be careful with those homemade fireworks. Pioneer Press

Should students get extra credit for taking hard sciences? Some British curriculum experts seem to think so. Wired

Even all of Bill Gates’s money may not be enough to solve some of science’s biggest challenges. Crosscut Seattle

Chemistry Newsbytes

Posted by Bethany Halford on June 27, 2008 in Chemistry is Everywhere

mars-soil.jpg

Mud from Mars (the planet) could make a happy home for plants. C&EN

Scientists from Mars (the candy company) sequence the cacao genome, hoping to make genetically superior chocolate. Washington Post

Have you got a spare rotovap? Turn it into a flavor concentrator. CNET

Sea spray and tiny marine organisms are cleaning up greenhouse gases in the Caribbean. Guardian

In search of more accurate statistics on illicit drug use, chemists head for the sewers. LA Times

Don’t throw away your compact fluorescent light bulbs–they’ve got some mercury in them. Take the bulbs to Home Depot instead. NY Times

Deceased hobby chemist’s home chemical collection draws the attention of local news. Cincinnati Local 12

Forget Red Bull and vodka. Cocktail connoisseurs are getting hyped up on Agwa de Bolivia Coca Leaf Liqueur. (Can anybody out there take a mass spec of this stuff? We’re curious about which of this beverage’s compounds have people buzzing.) Phoenix New Times

Chemistry Newsbytes

Posted by Bethany Halford and Lisa Jarvis on June 24, 2008 in Chemistry is Everywhere

styrofoam-cup.jpgAre styrofoam cups really all that bad? A back-of-the-envelope calculation says no. SciGuy

Before you go crazy on the beer at the summertime BBQ, consider this study linking alcohol to mouth and throat cancer. Sciencebase

Could a molecule found in chickens be the key to future allergy treatments? BBC

Carbon dating reveals that we may grow and shrink, but our number of fat cells stays the same. In the Pipeline

An analytical chemist who once worked for the space shuttle program brings his chemical know-how to the kitchen. Orlando Sentinel

Smart girls eat fish. ScienceNOW

Microfluidics get to work sorting worms. NY Times

Have you got a spare high-pressure carbon dioxide gas system? This guy used his to make a toaster cannon. Gizmodo

Postcard From Estonia

Posted by Sarah Everts on June 23, 2008 in Chemistry is Everywhere, Where is C&EN?

When I arrived in Tallinn, Estonia, on a trip to visit some local chemists, I didn’t expect the city to be so wired. Here, even the green spaces have small signs that announce how to get connected.

estoniasign.jpg

For example, to access this park’s wireless password, you just need to send a text message. You’ll then get a response with the correct code. Paying for street parking or bus fare is also just a text message away. Even on a bus through the countryside, I snagged some of the free wireless that blankets most of the country, including the bucolic middle of nowhere.

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Chemistry Newsbytes

Posted by Bethany Halford on June 20, 2008 in Chemistry is Everywhere

tequila_bottle_with_worm_hg_wht.gifWait, was that worm wearing diamonds? Mexican team prepares diamond films from tequila. New Scientist

Port Arthur, Texas, braces itself for 40 million lb of PCBs. NY Times

Pennsylvania chemist turns in his lab coat to pursue his true passion: beer. WGAL

And these Wisconsin chemists are making wine. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Invasive moths spared from pesticide spray. NY Times

GM mosquitoes enlisted to fight malaria. Baltimore Sun

Yo! Photosynthesis rap. Thus Spake Zuska

Chemistry Newsbytes

Posted by Bethany Halford on June 17, 2008 in Chemistry is Everywhere

coffee.jpgGo ahead a pour yourself another cup of coffee. A new study shows java may be good for your heart. Washington Post

Ranking pharmaceutical companies on how accessible their products are to the third world. NY Times

Hollywood’s hottest new accessory: The hydrogen-powered car. LA Times

MIT’s Dan Nocera on why chemistry is the key to solving the energy crisis. Guardian

Nucleobases in space. ScienceNOW

Do-it-yourself chelation therapy is probably not such a great idea. LA Times

How science will give you superpowers. Cracked

The tale of Prince Algorino–Imagining “An Inconvenient Truth,” The Opera? NY Times

Chemistry Newsbytes

Posted by Bethany Halford on June 13, 2008 in Chemistry is Everywhere

shower-curtain.jpgAs if getting out of bed and going to work wasn’t hard enough, now you have to worry about your shower curtain. LA Times

Having trouble getting your work published? Perhaps you should have been working on the Mentos-Diet Coke reaction. New Scientist

Metal fires - it’s best to let them be. Popular Science

Replace your tired old bones with custom-made titanium implants. Guardian

Trees are just like us. They prefer the thermostat at 70 degrees too. NPR

“Molecular archeology” studies search for allergy relief. Telegraph

Sniffing out chemical and biological threats with SPAMS. (No, it’s not a Monty Python sketch). Reuters

My Own Genome

Posted by Britt Erickson on June 11, 2008 in Chemistry is Everywhere

As I left the National Press Club yesterday afternoon, I thought, wow, maybe now’s the time. For only $1,000, I could buy my personal genome. I had just attended a briefing sponsored by the Genetics & Public Policy Center and was lucky enough to have been invited to lunch with the speakers beforehand.

I went into the discussion with basically no knowledge of the issues. I had no idea so many companies were selling personal genomes. Where have I been? Blame it on the kids, the long commute, the fact that I focused only on environmental issues for the past two years. I’m familiar with the technology used to sequence the human genome from my days working as a reporter for the news section of Analytical Chemistry, so it wasn’t completely uncharted territory. I even know what SNPs (single nucleotide polymorphisms, pronounced snips) are.

As I sat there listening to the panelists talk candidly around the lunch table, I just couldn’t believe how fast the world is changing. I’ve always thought of myself as one of the younger ones, but when I hear things like 20 year olds are sharing their personal genomes with each other on social networking sites, I start feeling old. I’ve never even used a social networking site.

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