Chemistry
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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Chemistry
Hassium holds its place at the table
Researchers have performed the first ever chemical studies on the element hassium.
- Chemistry
Chemists make hard-to-catch molecules
Chemists have devised a new way to stabilize highly reactive molecules called carbenes.
- Chemistry
Molecular Chemistry Takes a New Twist
New calculations show that a basic tenet of chemistry is wrong: Ethane forms its most stable structure not due to so-called steric effects, but because of a quantum mechanical influence.
- Chemistry
Designer surface proves deadly to bacteria
Researchers have made a surface coating that kills bacteria on contact in a novel way.
- Chemistry
Cosmic Chemistry Gets Creative
By simulating extraterrestrial impacts on Earth, researchers are firing away at the question of how life started.
- Chemistry
Rocks May Have Given a Hand to Life
In a new twist to the puzzle of how life developed from only left-handed amino acids, researchers have found that the common mineral calcite can segregate the molecules into their left-handed and right-handed varieties.
- Chemistry
Liver cells thrive on novel silicon chips
Researchers have coaxed finicky liver cells to grow on porous silicon chips, a feat that could lead to new medical treatments.
- Chemistry
Leaden news for city neighborhoods
Researchers have identified more than 400 urban sites that may be highly contaminated with lead but had remained unknown to authorities for decades.
- Chemistry
Would you like wheat with that burger?
Researchers have used wheat to make a biodegradable hamburger carton.
- Chemistry
Research shows why water acts weird
A new technique shows a link between water's unusual physical properties and its abnormal molecular structure.
- Chemistry
New all-metal molecules ape organics
Researchers have stumbled upon the first all-metal, aromatic molecules.
- Chemistry
New solution for kitchen germs
Cooking will kill almost any microbe. But when it comes to serving raw foods, such as the vegetables in a garden salad, neutralizing germs with heat is not an option and washing the greens doesn’t reliably disinfect. Although raw produce can be sanitized in a bath of dilute bleach, a team of Georgia scientists is […]
By Janet Raloff