Chemistry
- Chemistry
Chemist tackles complex problems with simplicity
Harvard chemist George Whitesides applies his unique problem-solving philosophy to creating new diagnostic devices for the developing world.
- Life
Cells make their move with their ‘skeletons’
A close look at exactly what makes cells move could lead to better defenses against the spread of cancer and improved wound healing.
- Tech
New microscope gives clear view inside cells
By splitting beams of light, a new microscopy technique can capture activity inside a cell.
- Chemistry
Crystallography celebrates centennial
Dubbed the international year of crystallography, 2014 marks the centennial of X-ray diffraction.
- Chemistry
Microscopy providing ‘window into the cell’ wins chemistry Nobel
Three scientists use fluorescence and lasers to see single molecules and other tiny objects.
- Tech
Microscopy techniques win Nobel Prize in chemistry
The award goes to three scientists who developed fluorescence microscopy, which allows researchers to see single molecules just a billionth of a meter across.
- Chemistry
Lasers wrest oxygen from carbon dioxide
By zapping oxygen molecules off carbon dioxide, an experiment hints that Earth may have had breathable air long before the dawn of plants.
- Chemistry
Interstellar chemical resembles building blocks of life
A molecule detected in the space between stars resembles amino acids, suggesting those building blocks of life share a similar origin.
- Tech
Solar cell powers water-to-hydrogen conversion
High efficiency could make perovskite solar cells useful for generating environmentally friendly fuel.
- Tech
Hydrogen made using sunlight, cheap materials
Photosynthesis-inspired fuel cell uses water to make hydrogen gas and could feature in next-generation cars.
- Planetary Science
Moon’s farside hints at violent volcanic explosions
The spread of the element thorium in the moon's Compton-Belkovich region suggests that silica volcanoes there once had violent explosions.
- Materials Science
Buckyballs, diamonds inspire new synthetic molecule
Hitching a hollow ball of carbon to a diamond-shaped lattice yields a useful piece of electrical circuitry.
