Chemistry
-
Climate
Smoke from Australia’s intense fires in 2019 and 2020 damaged the ozone layer
Massive fires like those that raged in Australia in 2019–2020 can eat away at Earth’s protective ozone layer, researchers find.
-
Chemistry
Marie Maynard Daly was a trailblazing biochemist, but her full story may be lost
Marie Maynard Daly was the first African American woman to receive a Ph.D. in chemistry, but her own perspective on her research is missing from the historical record.
-
Chemistry
One forensic scientist is scraping bones for clues to time of death
The bones of more than 100 cadavers are shedding light on a more precise and reliable way to determine when someone died.
-
Chemistry
A disinfectant made from sawdust mows down deadly microbes
Antimicrobial molecules found in wood waste could be used to make more sustainable, greener disinfectants.
-
Planetary Science
Oxygen-rich exoplanets may be geologically active
Experiments show that rocks exposed to higher concentrations of oxygen have a lower melting temperature than rocks exposed to lower amounts.
By Shi En Kim -
Climate
Wildfire smoke may ramp up toxic ozone production in cities
A new study reveals how wildfire smoke produces toxic ozone and how urban air pollution could exacerbate the problem.
-
Chemistry
Here’s the chemistry behind marijuana’s skunky scent
Newly ID’d sulfur compounds in cannabis flowers give the plant its telltale odor. One, prenylthiol, is what also gives “skunked beer” its funky flavor.
-
Chemistry
This eco-friendly glitter gets its color from plants, not plastic
Using cellulose extracted from wood pulp, researchers have created a greener alternative to traditional glitter.
-
Materials Science
Lithium-ion batteries made with recycled materials can outlast newer counterparts
Batteries with recycled cathodes outperformed batteries with new cathodes, lasting for thousands more charging cycles before their capacity waned.
-
Chemistry
An easier, greener way to build molecules wins the chemistry Nobel Prize
Chemists Benjamin List and David MacMillan have sparked a whole new field that’s aided drug discovery and made chemistry more environmentally friendly.
-
Chemistry
Radiometric dating puts pieces of the past in context. Here’s how
Carbon dating and other techniques answer essential questions about human history, our planet and the solar system.
By Sid Perkins -
Chemistry
Ink analysis reveals Marie Antoinette’s letters’ hidden words and who censored them
Chemical analyses of letters written by Marie Antoinette solve a French Revolution mystery: Who censored the queen?