Jamie Durrani
After completing a PhD in asymmetric catalysis at the University of St Andrews, I started working at the Royal Society of Chemistry in 2015. Being passionate about science writing, I really enjoyed the opportunity to contribute articles to Chemistry World. I eventually managed to sneak into a full-time role on the magazine in September 2016.
FeatureHow organocatalysis won the Nobel prize
Jamie Durrani tells the story of how two young upstarts, Ben List and David MacMillan, created a whole new field of catalysis
- News
Asymmetric organocatalysis scoops 2021 chemistry Nobel prize
Benjamin List and David MacMillan recognised for research that makes chemistry greener
- News
How prizes contribute to the ‘extraordinary growth’ of a scientific field
Prize-winning topics produce more papers and retain more scientists than non-prizewinning areas
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Nobel prize in physics goes to research on complex physical systems
Syukuro Manabe, Klaus Hasselmann and Giorgio Parisi improved our understanding of everything from atoms to Earth’s climate
- Research
Marie Antoinette’s secret messages to Swedish count revealed by chemical analysis
Spectroscopy deciphers censored passages in 200-year-old letters between last French queen and the man rumoured to be her lover
- Information
Science behind sense of touch and temperature wins medicine Nobel prize
David Julius and Ardem Patapoutian honoured for discovery of ion channels activated by temperature and mechanical force
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UK to ease restrictions on gene editing in crops and livestock
Redefinition of genetically-modified organisms could see Crispr-edited foods brought to market
- Research
DNA robot controls live cells’ movement
Molecular machine walks across cell membrane to activate cellular migration
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First vortex beam made entirely of atoms
Twisting atoms’ quantum mechanical wave function into a helix could reveal insights into atom–matter interactions
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UK approves Europe’s first field trials of Crispr-edited wheat
Field trials will examine how low-asparagine plants fare in the field
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Ig Nobel for chemists who analysed the smell of cinema audiences
Meowsic, nose-unblocking orgasms and colliding pedestrians among other research topics recognised in annual award ceremony
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Isotope analysis of Vesuvius victims reveals how ancient Romans dined
Herculaneum’s men had greater access to fish, while women relied more on terrestrial animal products
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Leaded petrol is finally phased out worldwide
One-hundred years after it was first developed UN hails end of an era as heavy metal is banned in fuel in Algeria
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Australian Research Council’s ban on preprints in grants prompts outcry
Move derided as ‘hopelessly outdated’ and a setback for open science by researchers
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US National Labs reach name change agreement with scholarly publishers
Simplified process for researchers to update names on papers
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Reliability of researcher metric the h-index is in decline
Productivity and citation impact tool is no longer an effective measure of scientific reputation, according to new analysis
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China unveils new measures to boost the number of women in science
Government announces plans to remove the career barriers women face in research
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Switzerland loses associated country status in Horizon Europe programme
Decision sparks fears of long-term consequences for Swiss research
- Research
Molecular light switch speeds up tricky cyclodextrin synthesis
Reaction could lower cost of useful macrocycle
