Chemistry

Chemistry

Bacterium grows with arsenic

A microbe appears to substitute a normally toxic element for a basic ingredient of life, raising intriguing questions about the limits of biochemistry.

Chemistry

Snot has the power to alter scents

Enzymes in mice's nasal mucus can alter certain odors before the nose can detect them, a new study finds.

Chemistry

The nitty-gritty of diamond polishing

Researchers figure out what happens at the atomic scale when jewelers polish the hardest substance known.

Tech

Newfound water risk: Lead-leaching valves

Hidden elements in drinking-water lines can shed large amounts of lead, a toxic heavy metal. And it's quite legal, even if it does skirt the intent of federal regulations.

Humans

Wine-trashing microbe identified

In finding the source of the off-tasting molecule MDMP, researchers hope to point the way to eliminating it.

Tech

BPA: EPA hasn’t identified a safer alternative for thermal paper

Some researchers and public interest groups have been arguing that BPAfree thermal receipts paper is a preferable alternative, at least from a health perspective. But is it really? That’s what Environmental Protection Agency scientists want to know. And to date, they maintain, the jury’s still out.

Humans

BPA induces sterility in roundworms

Bisphenol A does a real number on the genes responsible for successful reproduction in a 1-millimeter-long soil-dwelling roundworm. And that suggests BPA might pose similar risks to people because geneticists are finding that this tiny critter can be a remarkably useful “lab rat” — predicting impacts in mammals, including us.

Health & Medicine

Fructose poses gout risks even in women

Soft drinks are an even more potent source of the fat-generating sugar than had been thought, new research shows.

Tech

Seeing red: Next installment in BPA-paper saga

Consumers now have a way to identify cash register tape that is free of endocrine-disrupting chemical.

Humans

Building a better bomb sniffer

A new handheld device detects TATP, an explosive that is easy to make but hard to detect.

Tech

Plenty of foods harbor BPA, study finds

Some communities have banned the sale of plastic baby bottles and sippy cups that are manufactured using bisphenol A, a hormone-mimicking chemical. In a few grocery stores, cashiers have already begun donning gloves to avoid handling thermal receipt paper whose BPA-based surface coating may rub off on the fingers. But how’s a family to avoid exposure to this contaminant when it taints the food supply?

Chemistry

Skin is no barrier to BPA, study shows

The new finding suggests handling store receipts could be a significant source of internal exposure to the hormone-mimicking chemical.