What are the limits of life?
In search of design principles that would apply to living systems evolved anywhere in the universe
My assistance dog gave me the confidence to start a PhD
When anxiety threatens, Phoenix is on hand to help
Langley’s bolometer and the importance of ‘stamp collecting’
Mapping a spectrum of developments
Chemistry will support India’s sustainability ambitions
Chemistry is central to addressing challenges across a range of sectors
Trump’s re-election could empower peddlers of some of the worst anti-science ideas
Vaccine opponent Robert F Kennedy is reportedly poised to oversee health in Trump administration
Why we need public analysts
As the Association of Public Analysts winds up, Duncan Campbell reflects on the continued importance of the profession
Celebrating the coffee break
One of the most surprisingly productive parts of the day
Proteins’ shape and function are two sides of the same coin
A new perspective on the relationship between chemistry and biology
Our columnists
Philip Ball is an award-winning journalist, author and broadcaster who explores the history and philosophy of chemistry
What are the limits of life?
In search of design principles that would apply to living systems evolved anywhere in the universe
Raychelle Burks is an associate professor in the US and an award-winning science communicator and broadcaster.
Does lysergic acid link the Salem witch trials and a Catholic saint?
A fungal factor may have been the common cause of witch hunts and St Anthony’s fire
Nessa Carson is a synthetic organic research chemist based in Macclesfield, UK
Working in the chemical industries, plural
Despite often being presented as a monolith, there’s a huge variety of activities, working practices and reaction scales across industrial research
Chemjobber is a US-based industry insider, telling tales of tank reactors and organic obstacles
The power of a printed chart
Even in this online era, some things are still best kept on paper
Derek Lowe is a medicinal chemist in the US, sharing wit and wisdom from a life spent in preclinical drug discovery
Large language models are great, but they don’t speak to me
AI has some made tremendous achievements, but some things mean more than words
Alice Motion is an associate professor in Australia interested in citizen science, public outreach and education
Cinematic science
Film screenings that celebrate science, cinema and art
Chris Nawrat (aka BRSM) is a process chemist at a major pharmaceutical company in the US
(–)-Scabrolide B (and friends)
An experimental confirmation with some extra surprises
Vanessa Seifert explores philosophical issues from the novel perspective of chemistry
Did AI just win the Nobel prizes in physics and chemistry?
The importance of the expert eye in scientific progress
Andrea Sella is a professor of inorganic chemistry in the UK with a passion for unravelling the unlikely origins of scientific kit
Langley’s bolometer and the importance of ‘stamp collecting’
Mapping a spectrum of developments
Research landscape
A holistic approach to success
Three activities that helped me to thrive in academia and beyond
How hoarding knowledge is hurting the industry in the long run
Sharing results that are not commercially viable would speed up research
Holes in the ‘holey graphyne’ story
The challenges – and importance – of questioning published results
Harnessing fear and greed for innovation
Many powerful emotions motivate us in the search for new knowledge
UK researchers need to know academic freedom is safe from political interference
The UK science secretary’s recent statements are causing alarm in the research community
Industry landscape
The chemical industry is falling short on supporting women
Unless barriers are broken down, the future of the industry is unsustainable
For chemistry to thrive, it needs to become less cliquey
We need to help more people break through the barriers of tight networks
When goodwill goes bad
Simple gestures can intensify workplace frustration
Trump’s re-election could empower peddlers of some of the worst anti-science ideas
Vaccine opponent Robert F Kennedy is reportedly poised to oversee health in Trump administration
Letters: October 2024
Readers celebrate an MSc course, manufacturing and multi-dimensional space
Profiles
Paul Anastas: ‘I’m proudest of being part of a global green chemistry community’
The father of green chemistry on his love of the environment, striving for unattainable perfection and breathing life into an old town library
Yvonne Perrie: ‘Good research culture is about being able to learn and fail without judgment’
The drug delivery expert and multidisciplinary researcher on the importance of learning from failure and how a summer in a margarine factory influenced her career
Teaching enzymes new reactions through genetic code expansion and directed evolution
Anthony Green’s research group at the University of Manchester, UK, reengineers enzymes to have catalytic functions beyond those found in nature
Teaching enzymes new reactions through genetic code expansion and directed evolution
Anthony Green’s research group at the University of Manchester, UK, reengineers enzymes to have catalytic functions beyond those found in nature
Carol Robinson: ‘I really wanted to wave the flag about technicians’
The mass spectrometry trailblazer on leaving school at 16 and waving the flag for technicians
Ijeoma Uchegbu: ‘My approach is always to be kind’
The innovative nanoscientist on the power of kindness and how she scrubbed eugenicists from campus buildings
Inspiration on a surfboard and in the chemistry classroom
Sarah Gerhardt’s curiosity connects her passions for science, teaching and surfing
Emmeline Edwards: ‘I connect the dots’
The Haitian-American neurochemist on her journey from Haiti to the US as a teenager, and her journey from chemistry to brain science
The chemical industry is falling short on supporting women
By Kasia Jankowska
Unless barriers are broken down, the future of the industry is unsustainable
Can the work of Professor R Obot be beautiful too?
By Dean Thomas
The rise of AI raises questions about how we judge results