Philip Robinson
Deputy editor, Chemistry World
I graduated several times from the University of Edinburgh, eventually leaving with a PhD in NMR spectroscopy after spending a happy decade in and around the Joseph Black chemistry building. I’ve since worked in education, publishing and project management. Diverse roles, but all linked by communication and, of course, science – a (winding) thread that led to my interest in science writing and journalism.
At Chemistry World, my interest in spectroscopy has broadened to cover the whole ‘spectrum’ of physical chemistry. But much as I love leafing through Phys. Rev. Lett., I’m as interested in the people behind the papers as the science itself, and speaking with scientists about their work is both a pleasure and a privilege. I’m not a cheerleader for science; a good science story is a good story. However, the telling needs some skill, and at least a little knowledge, to do it well. I hope we manage that.
CareersTake a tour of the Diamond Light Source
The synchrotron researchers exploring the world in atomic detail
ResearchEnergy equals chemistry
Dan Nocera shares his thoughts on the future and discusses chemistry’s identity crisis
NewsPaper-based test picks out problem pills
A simple analytical tool can spot poor quality pharmaceuticals
NewsRoy David ‘Gus’ Guthrie AM CChem FRSC (1934–2013)
Former Secretary General of the RSC and founding fellow of two Australian universities died on 12 January
- Research
The truth about snake oil?
First analyses of elixirs, nostrums and other cures sold at the turn of the last century
- Research
Terahertz turns up fresco's hidden artwork
Concealed image in Louvre artifact revealed by terahertz spectroscopy, after other analytical techniques failed to do so
FeatureCapital chemistry
This year, the University of Edinburgh celebrates three centuries since the appointment of its first chemistry professor. Philip Robinson looks back in time
CareersBy royal appointment
The Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 brings UK science and industry together through its industrial fellowship scheme. Philip Robinson reports
