Katrina Krämer
After finishing my A-levels, I wanted to study arts or languages, but then decided that being a chemist in a white coat was definitely cooler.
So I went on and spent ten years studying chemistry in Germany, Spain and the UK, before realising that not working in a lab can also be fun. After one year in the Royal Society of Chemistry’s graduate trainee scheme, I joined Chemistry World first as editorial assistant and now as science correspondent.
My favourite CAS number is 102-54-5.
PodcastBook club – Vampirology by Kathryn Harkup
A scientific investigation of vampires’ lust for blood and weakness to garlic
- Research
Potassium’s electrons slowly transform into anions under pressure
Electride transition solves the mystery of how a liquid can be denser than a close-packed solid
- Research
Deepest ocean trenches hold vast amounts of mercury
Despite only comprising 1% of deep sea areas, sediments in Pacific Ocean trenches contain up to 30% of marine mercury
- News
Publishers grapple with an invisible foe as huge organised fraud hits scientific journals
Hundreds of fake research manuscripts from paper mills have flooded biochemical and biomedical journals in recent years. But how do you stop large-scale fraud barely anything is known about?
- Research
Bamboo bats could beat traditional willow at affordable cricket
While bamboo bats break cricket traditions, it might make the sport more accessible to its growing fanbase
- Research
First ever triply bridging phosphine glows in two colours when crushed
Copper triangle topped with μ3-bridging phosphorus ligand shows unusual colour-changing mechanochromic luminescence
- Podcast
Book club – The Disordered Cosmos by Chanda Prescod-Weinstein
Exposing how racism and sexism shapes science
- News
How Covid gave the world a lesson in tackling air pollution
The pandemic has given atmospheric chemists the opportunity to study pollution and carbon emissions like never before
- News
Bath becomes first UK university to sign green chemistry pledge
79 institutes around the world have now agreed to focus on green principles in chemistry education
- Research
A glimpse at alien volcanoes that spew metal
Hypothetical ferrovolcanoes explored with world’s only lava flow simulator
- News
UK science minister’s review aims to cut red tape for researchers
Report will identify solutions to free up researchers from unnecessary admin
- Research
Programmed cyclodextrin synthesis picks out specific molecule from 117,655 possibilities
Thioacetate orienting group allows for fine-tuned cyclodextrin functionalisation
- Research
Giant glowing fabric made into shirtsleeve display
Flexible textile woven from conductive polymer and luminescent fibres made into wearable display and keyboard device
- Podcast
Book club – Never Mind the B#ll*cks, Here’s the Science by Luke O’Neill
Serious punk rock science
- Research
Chemist whose father survived oil rig disaster inspired to swap slides for VR safety training
Training using virtual reality could help chemical manufacturing workers prepare for the worst
- News
UK’s £800m ‘blue skies’ research funder still has no clear purpose
House of Commons calls on government to find focus for Advanced Research Projects Agency
- Podcast
Book club – The Poison Trials by Alisha Rankin
Clinical trials have come a long way since the 16th century
- Research
Half the world’s supply of element 99 used to reveal its chemical secrets
Scientists explore einsteinium’s unusual chemistry using less than 200 nanograms of the precious and highly radioactive material
- Research
Holes cause sodium nitride to behave like a metal
Clathrate’s strange metallic nature caused by electronically active cavities
