All articles by Ada McVean
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ResearchWaste chlorine upcycled into valuable materials using simple resin
Polystyrene-based resin could capture chlorine lost in industrial waste streams
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CareersHow to write thesis acknowledgements
Tips for deciding who and how to thank those who have supported you through your PhD or dissertation
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ResearchStudy points to ammonia contamination in water microdroplets saga
Replication effort attributes mass spectrometry peaks to ammonium not hydroxyl species
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ResearchWater-based membrane waves through carbon dioxide, blocks other gases
Technology could be simpler, greener way to capture carbon dioxide or separate biogas
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BusinessHow to choose reactor materials and test for compatibility
Merck & Co team describes simple testing strategies and criteria for decision-making
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ResearchLiquid metal nanoparticles enable ultrafast fire detection
MXenes and liquid metal nanoparticles create fireproof system that can sound the alarm in seconds
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OpinionAs a first-generation student, I didn’t have a clue what I was doing
And that brought challenges and unexpected opportunites
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BusinessNew reagents take the burn out of butyllithium
Merck KGaA’s non-pyrophoric butyllithium in poly(α-olefin) oil make BuLi stable to air and water
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ResearchPrehistoric humans hunted with poisoned arrows thousands of years earlier than thought
Deadly plant alkaloids discovered on 60,000-year-old arrowheads
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ResearchThianthrenium reagent captures elusive protein interactions in living cells
Reagent creates short, stable protein crosslinks, enabling researchers to identify previously unknown protein–protein interactions
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OpinionOdile Eisenstein: ‘Some of the most important advice is to be persistent’
The pioneering theoretical chemist on teaching herself programming and the importance of freedom
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OpinionNora de Leeuw: ‘Some of my best PhD students weren’t that great at passing exams’
The computational chemist on perspectives from outside academia and the importance of inquisitiveness
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ResearchLichen sunscreen blocks extreme UV radiation and might enhance cosmetics, materials
Discovery also suggests that photosynthetic life might survive on planets circling powerful stars
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ResearchMammoth task of identifying legal ivory made simpler and cheaper by isotope analysis
Technique could help authorities tell legal mammoth ivory from poached elephant ivory
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NewsExplainer: Why is the UK banning disposable vapes?
Prior to the ban, almost seventy million single-use e-cigarettes were being discarded each year in the UK – containing enough lithium for a thousand electric vehicle batteries
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ResearchSnuff tube residues push back date of oldest hallucinogen use in Peruvian Andes
Chemical analysis reveals traces of a number of psychoactive compounds thought to have been used to secure leaders’ status
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ResearchMiso fermented on the International Space Station is out of this world
Space paste had a nuttier taste than its earthly counterparts thanks to speedier chemistry
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ResearchForbidden electrocyclic reactions can be more allowed than previously thought
Study suggests such reactions should instead be described as either ‘Woodward–Hoffmann favoured’ or ‘Woodward–Hoffmann disfavoured’
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ResearchAncient Vesuvius victim’s brain contains first natural organic glass ever seen
Extreme heating followed by rapid cooling formed unique material in a Herculaneum man
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ResearchMystery of how polar bears keep their coats ice free unravelled
Analysis of fur sebum could inspire new icephobic coatings