Rub a ruler with a wool and hold it towards paper bits, then you’d find the ruler attracts papers. This may sound a common sense to you – the two surfaces have opposite charges.
But now, researchers find that not all materials behave the same and the reason is still a mystery.
Let’s take a look at the charges that challenges scientists!
Photocages: Using Light to Deliver Medicine
What will medicine look like 10 years from now? Well, your doctor might be shining a light on you to help target drug delivery in your body. Read more about drug delivery using molecules called photocages inside!
Separating Left- and Right-Handed Molecules With A Magnetic Field
Today’s Chembite looks at a remarkable new way of separating enantiomers – using a magnetic field.
Looking Deeper into the Chemistry of Flames
Researchers discover new formation pathways for oxygenated hydrocarbons in combustion.
Algal Blooms Impact Air Quality in Great Lake Regions
Algal blooms aren’t the most aesthetically pleasing plant in a lake region, but did you know their emissions can impact air quality and human health?
The shape of supercooled water
Water is a really special liquid: its characteristics allow the existence of life as it is. But It can still amaze us: a new form of liquid water has just been discovered at -80 °C.
Seeing the unseen – the first aromatic molecule identified in space!
Outer space has lots of radiation. But there’s one kind, a faint infrared glow, that has appeared as a mystery to many scientists.
By following this mysterious light, scientists have now made a great discovery – seeing an aromatic molecule for the first time in the galaxies!
Sniffing Sensors to Save Entrapped Humans
Human odors and skin oils can be detected by hand-held sensors in order to aid in urban search and rescue efforts.
Why are swaths of trees dying out across Western North America?
Mountain Pine beetles in western North American forests have killed many trees and these researchers have uncovered a new chemical signature of their spreading impact.
Halogen bonding with astatine: insights into a mysterious element.
How much do you look beyond the top few rows of elements in the periodic table? Prepare to do just that in today’s chembite as we explore some astatine chemistry!
Understanding the Molecular Movements of Water
Learn about the molecular dynamics occurring in bulk liquid water that allows it to be such a powerful material.
Targeting Cancer Cells with Different Drugs…in the Same Pill!
Tailoring treatment for a specific patient is the future of medicine. Let’s learn about making tiny pills that are “smart” enough to know where to dissolve in the body!
Household Chemical Products Contribute to Poor Air Quality
Is your deodorant contributing to air pollution and human health risks? Find out here!
Wine or Wine Not? An Examination of What Makes a Wine Smell
Have you ever wondered what you’re smelling when you stick your nose into a glass of wine? Read this chembite to find out!
Trap and Release the acetone in your breath: Portable Spectroscopy for Diabetes Diagnosis?
Ask someone what gases they would expect to find in our breath and oxygen, carbon dioxide and water may well be high on the list. But did you realize that acetone could be in there too? A npvel portable device for detecting acetone in breath has been reported.
Quantum Dot Lasers: Improving Efficiency with Perovskite Shells
Lasers are cool – everyone who’s seen a sci-fi movie knows that. But we still haven’t figured out how to use them to their full potential in real life. This paper explores some ways to improve the efficiency of quantum dot lasers, which have a myriad of applications in computers to cell imaging.
X-Rays and Art: What are colors made of?
What does 15th century art and 21st century X-rays have in common? Find out here!
Controlling Nano-Sized Machines to Deliver Drugs in the Body
Tiny machines fixing disease inside the body may not be science fiction for much longer! Let’s learn about making and controlling nanomotors that could one day deliver drugs from within!
What wristbands could tell you, not just fashion, but your chemical safety!
Wristbands may make you think about fashion. But now, it could link to your health! Let’s see how it can depict your chemical safety in daily life!
Eavesdropping On Intercellular Communication
For complexity to emerge in multi-cellular organisms, extensive intercelluar communication must occur.
Getting Rid of the Coffee Ring
Coffee has more to offer your brain than just yawn-free days! Transform your everyday experience with coffee and its stains to an understanding of the interesting phenomenon of coffee ring effect. Explore its implications and challenges in materials industry and learn about a simple approach to get rid of it.
Scratching the Surface: Subsurface Hydrogen Aids CO Hydrogenation to Methanol With Nickel
In today’s Chembite we appreciate and explore some remarkable mechanistic aspects of the hydrogenation of CO at a nickel surface. The paper covered gives the first account of catalytic methanol and formaldehyde production from CO by Ni. But to explain why we need to go deeper than the surface…
The Frustrations of Dihydrogen Activation
Dihydrogen stores a lot of energy. How can we control the release of energy so we can use dihydrogen as a fuel of the future? A little frustration can help.
3D Mass Spectrometry to Discover Novel ANTibiotics
Researchers have developed a novel technique to perform mass spectrometry “imaging” of 3D objects. This method is used to identify novel natural products on whole ants when exposed to a pathogen.
Efficient Water Splitting Brought to You by Nickel Foam
We’d love to run cars on hydrogen, spitting only water out of the tailpipe. To produce cheap hydrogen in a green way, these researchers have developed a surprising new material to split water into hydrogen and oxygen.