Chemistry World Blog

Chemistry in theatre – Insufficiency, phallacy or both is the title of Carl Djerassi’s latest book. 

— Carl Djerassi

He is someone we’ve mentioned before in this blog as I selected him for the My Hero series but of course he is best  known as the father of the contraceptive pill. He is also an accomplished and prolific writer, who’s published, among other works, nine plays, five novels and an autobiography. (more…)

We have just had the photos of the Chemistry World columnists turned into portraits by Australian artist Chelsea Gustafsson (you can see more of her work here). (more…)

A study reveals the presence of illegal drugs in the groundwater of the Catalan capital

What is going on in Barcelona’s water? Well, quite a lot! Besides the fact that it contains a variety of illegal drugs (including cocaine, amphetamine compounds, opioids, cannabinoids and so on) it also appears, according to a recent study published in Science of the total environment, that the type of drug found is closely related to the geographical location, a finding that allowed the researchers to draw a map of drug use in the city. (more…)

In my editorial for the April issue I asked the question: who is the living chemist you admire most and why? (more…)

— Interns wanted

We are looking for a student member to join us this summer for a science writing internship.  The selected candidate will gain experience as a science journalist on both Chemistry World and Education in Chemistry and will receive a hands-on introduction to the complete editorial process from picking what news to report, through writing and editing, right up to final web and print publication.

This eight-week position is supported by the Marriott Bequest Trust with a bursary of £1750. Applicants should have an interest in science communication, demonstrate an enthusiasm for writing and are also (probably) coming towards the end of a chemical science undergraduate degree or postgraduate course. Visit the RSC recruitment pages to find out more and/or apply.

Past interns Josh Howgego and Akshat Rathi have recently confirmed they’ll be heading for The Times Higher and The Economist for some work experience this summer so it really is a once in a life time opportunity. We are looking forward to hearing from you!

Bibiana Campos-Seijo

PS: The deadline is 25 May

Last week I attended the Bench to Boardroom event organised by OneNucleus at the Newmarket Racecourse. Under the slogan discover-learn-connect, there were opportunities during the day to explore these themes. We certainly learnt a lot from Prof Sir Christopher Evans, whose keynote speech (the first of the day) ’From bench to billions’ inspired and incited debate, something I have now learnt to expect from him. Described by many as the founding father of the Cambridge biotech cluster, he talked about many things (we’ll be publishing the interview I had with him within the next couple of weeks so keep an eye on the homepage), among them what makes a business successful. The essential ingredients in his view are: a good product, excellent people, an exciting business plan, money (plenty of it!), hard work and luck. It doesn’t look like rocket science but I guess the trick is getting all the elements of the equation right. (more…)

— Graphene

Congratulations are in order for Karl Coleman the Chemistry World Entrepreneur of the year 2011. Not for winning our prize (which is great, of course, but we announced that back in July 2011 so it is old news really…) but for securing a significant amount of funding for his spin-off company Durham Graphene Science (DGS).

Coleman who is a reader in the chemistry department at Durham University, UK, and who received last year’s accolade for ‘his development of new intellectual property for the production of graphene ans its commercial exploitation’,  has just received the news that North East Technology fund, IP Group and Northstar Ventures have committed £1.2 million worth of investment money to DGS.

The company, which was founded less than 2 years ago in August 2010, is a spin out of Durham University and was created by Coleman  to commercialise the manufacture of graphene flakes using chemical vapour deposition. For those who may be interested, you can read all about it in the feature we wrote in September. My question for Dr Coleman is: how much closer does this bring us to be making graphene by the kilo?

Bibiana Campos-Seijo

UPDATE: Due to the high demand we’ve experienced for this product we have extended the free trial period until the end of May. The username and password provided below will still be operational but members and e-members can now also use their personal login details to gain access.  

Did you get a new tablet for Christmas? Was Father Christmas so incredibly generous in these times of austerity that you are now the proud owner of a brand new iPad? Whether you were lucky enough to get one of the said gadgets or already had one, don’t miss out and make sure the new Chemistry World app is in your list to download.

We have just launched the iPad and Android apps for Chemistry World and these are now available completely free of charge on the App Store and Android Market, respectively, until 1 April. Indeed, until that date anyone interested in reading Chemistry World via an app will be able to download it following one of the links above (whichever is relevant for your device) and then access the content using the following login details:

Username – freetrial

Password – rscchemworld

Once logged in you will be able to view not only the latest issue of Chemistry World but also all the back issues going back to January 2011.

After 1 April, content will be once again restricted to members and e-members who will be able to gain access using their personal login details. So get downloading!  And, of course, let us know what you think. Please send any feedback to chemistryworld@rsc.org

Bibiana Campos-Seijo

NOTE: For those of you who own Android devices but can’t access Android Market, here is a link that allows the direct download of the Chemistry World app: www.chemistryworld.org/cwapp

This international  accolade recognises an individual’s contribution to the commercialisation of research. Awarded annually, the winner will be featured in Chemistry World and will also receive £4,000 and a trophy.

— He’ll be getting one of these…

So, without further ado… This year, the Chemistry World Entrepreneur of the Year award goes to…. Karl Coleman for his development of new intellectual property for the production of graphene and its commercial exploitation via his spin out company Durham Graphene Science Ltd. Congratulations.

Watch out for a whole feature article on Karl Coleman’s achievements and career to date in the September issue of Chemistry World.

Bibiana Campos Seijo

The nomination deadline for the Chemistry World Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2011 is drawing near. Only 10 days to go!!

This Award recognises an individual’s contribution to the commercialisation of research and the winner will be featured in Chemistry World, read by 50,000 people, therefore receiving valuable press coverage. On top of that, they will also receive £4,000 and a trophy. Nominations are welcome from both organisations and individuals, and candidates are permitted to nominate themselves so you’ve got no excuse….

Other RSC Industry & Technology related awards which may be of interest include:

Inspiration & Industry Award
Young Industrialist of the Year Award
Process Technology Award
Teamwork in Innovation Award

For more information about industry and technology related awards and to make a nomination please click here.

Prizes & Awards in other areas of the chemical sciences are also open for nomination but remember: the deadline is 31 January 2011. Good luck!

Bibiana Campos Seijo