The great beauty of chemistry

La grande bellezza, the Oscar-winning film by Paolo Sorrentino, tells the story of a Roman socialite who has lived his life superficially, never looking beneath the surface of the world around him. For Rocco Mazzeo at the University of Bologna in Italy, this is the way many of us treat our cultural heritage – it’s all around us at all times but we don’t take the time to appreciate it. But just as the lead in the film has a chance meeting that shakes him from his torpor, Mazzeo is part of a project that he hopes can reawaken people’s interest in their cultural heritage – particularly chemists.