All Feature articles – Page 22
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FeatureDiscovering iodine
From a chance discovery by a French saltpetre manufacturer, iodine celebrates 200 years of use in industry and medical science in 2011
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FeatureThe evolution of catalytic converters
From early smog problems to modern concerns about air pollution, catalysts pave the way in controlling the emissions from combustion engines
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FeatureSymmetry of buckminsterfullerene
Both Euler's formula and Descartes' theorem can be used to show how buckyballs are made from closed cages of carbon pentagons and hexagons
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FeatureBiomimetics
The next generation of functional materials will need to include aniostropic (directionally dependent) crystals. But how has nature been the source of inspiration for these?
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FeatureDiamond Light Source: illuminating chemistry
Synchrotron light allows chemists to see within structures and individual atoms, without disrupting samples
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FeatureForensic science and the case of Dr Mario Jascalevich
Forensic science is depicted in several television programmes as a near-perfect means of solving major crimes. In real life, forensics may sometimes point to guilt, but in the end be insufficient to prove it. This is the account of one such case
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FeatureChemical Bonding
A masterclass in teaching the topic of bonding, basing chemical explanation on physical forces
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FeatureVincent van Gogh, chemistry and absinthe
The consumption of absinthe was once banned due to its reputation as a mysterious psychoactive drink. What does it contain? Was it responsible for the death of Van Gogh?
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FeatureGiving fossil fuels the chop
Axe Valley Biodiesel - a case study on partnership between school, university and business
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FeatureGreener Chlorine
Chlorine is becoming greener; not in the colour, of course, but in the environmental impact of its manufacture
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FeatureFour Curie centennial elements
The four Curie elements provide us with an interesting tour of the bottom of the periodic table
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FeatureRadium - a key element in early cancer treatment
An early example of how blue skies research by Pierre and Marie Curie led to the treatment of previously incurable cancers
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FeatureA sinister side to a synthetic sex hormone
The story of the discovery, synthesis and prescription of a synthetic hormone, and the effects on those who took it and their descendants
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FeatureEntropy – a masterclass
The concept of entropy might seem abstract, but can be illustrated by a statistical interpretation
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FeatureReally cheesy chemistry
Stilton, camembert, limburger and cheddar - why, and how, does cheese come in such a variety of smells and tastes?
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FeatureFrom LCDs to medical materials
A green technology can be used to extract valuable chemicals and the recovered low-value plastic can be turned into higher-value materials for new and important applications
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FeatureElectronic voting systems in undergraduate teaching
Reminiscent of Who Wants to be a Millionaire voting systems, university lecturers can use electronic voting systems to monitor students' understanding and make learning more interactive for the students and the teacher
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FeatureThe curious story of toxic ice
In 1944 a fake article was submitted and published as a scientific paper. In the context of How Science Works, can a hoax have educational value?
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FeatureTwo-step bromine attack
An experiment for the classroom to show that bromine adds to an alkene by two-step electrophilic addition