Using DNA evidence to picture suspects

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Forensic DNA phenotyping predicts people’s appearance and reveals their ancestry, finds Andy Extance, but has some significant challenges to overcome

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The drug developers fighting the antibiotic resistance problem

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Andy Extance talks to the researchers innovating across different drug classes in the hunt to develop new treatments 

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The liquid metals giving catalysis a new phase

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They’re not like solid metals or like other liquids, but scientists are starting to understand and exploit them. James Mitchell Crow reports

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Ammonia

Fixing nitrogen fixing

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Green ammonia promises a more sustainable future. Jamie Durrani talks to the researchers aiming to revolutionise the production of crucial fertiliser

Making the moon home

The race to build a base on the moon

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Nina Notman talks to scientists helping to return humans to the moon – for good this time

Battery research

Building better batteries

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The next generation of battery technologies might pack significantly more power into the electric cars and mobile devices of the future. James Mitchell Crow reports

Skeletal editing

Editing the structure of molecules

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Nina Notman meets the chemists expanding the toolbox of reactions capable of adding, deleting and switching single atoms in rings at the heart of organic molecules

Wood texture

The wonderful wizards of wood

2023-02-20T11:18:00+00:00By

Clever chemistry can turn humble timber into a sustainable material with many uses, Kit Chapman finds

Robot synthesis

The robots revolutionising chemistry

2023-02-06T10:00:00+00:00By

Researchers working with automated systems are pushing the boundaries of what chemists can achieve in the lab, reports James Mitchell Crow

Diamond

The diamond synthesisers

2022-12-05T15:28:00+00:00By

Nina Notman takes a whistle-stop tour of the synthetic diamond industry and learns about some of the applications its lab-grown diamonds are being used for

Unravelling the secrets of Ancient Egyptian chemistry

Unwrapping ancient Egyptian chemistry

2022-11-21T09:36:00+00:00By

From mummification to metallurgy, Rachel Brazil looks at the impressive chemistry used by this ancient civilisation

Nobel prize chemistry

How click conquered chemistry

2022-10-14T09:02:00+01:00By

Katrina Krämer tells the story of how click and bioorthogonal chemistry came to win the 2022 Nobel prize

House with covid particles coming out of the windows

Can we clean Covid from the air around us?

2022-09-26T08:28:00+01:00By

Nina Notman talks to the experts about what is needed to remove pollutants and even infectious diseases from the air inside our homes, schools and offices

The plant trade’s scientific secrets

2022-09-05T10:04:00+01:00By

Growers are using advanced techniques to mass-produce the next trendy houseplant. But Katrina Krämer finds that collectors’ demand for new varieties has also opened the door to deception and fraud

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Thunderstorm

A lightning burst of chemistry

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Trying to understand the chemistry that occurs around immensely powerful but short-lived lightning bolts is a feat in itself. James Mitchell Crow looks for a flash of inspiration

A seamstress fitting a pill-printed dress onto a woman using a DNA tape

Using genetics to personalise prescriptions

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We’ve known for a long time that different people respond to certain drugs to very different extents, but now cheap DNA testing could make these disparities a thing of the past, as Ian Le Guillou reports

Bioorthogonal chemistry

The bioorthogonal revolution

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A set of reactions operating silently inside live cells or whole animals are lighting up chemical biology and inspiring new medicines, James Mitchell Crow finds

Testing wastewater

The human health observatory in our sewers

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From tracking disease outbreaks to monitoring drug use, there’s a lot to be learned from the things we flush down the toilet, Katrina Krämer finds

Top view of cattle

Methane – the other greenhouse gas

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Bárbara Pinho looks at the problem of methane emissions and how scientists are trying to prevent them

Ship breakers

The toxic tide of ship breaking

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Kit Chapman explores the chemical cost of the most dangerous industry in the world