
Rachel Brazil
Rachel has been a freelance science writer for almost a decade.
Based in London, she writes for a variety of publications on scientific areas, including chemistry, materials science, biomedical and pharmaceutical science, and science and innovation policy.
Prior to this, she worked in a number of scientific organizations, including the RSC, the Royal Institution and the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts (Nesta). From 2006–2010 she ran Nesta's national researcher development programme, Crucible. Focused on encouraging creativity and stimulating interdisciplinary encounters between early career researchers, Crucible has now been adopted by a number of UK Universities.
Rachel herself has an interdisciplinary academic background, with degrees in chemistry and a PhD in archaeological conservation. She is also a trainer for the British Council’s Researcher Connect programme, teaching in China, Russia and Mexico.
- Feature
Science in microgravity
How does gravity affect chemistry and biology? More than you might think – and you don’t have to visit space to find out, as Rachel Brazil discovers
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Science, suffrage and misogyny
100 years after women could first vote in UK general elections, Rachel Brazil looks back at their fight for professional equality in chemistry
- Careers
The unsung heroes of the lab
Why technicians need more recognition for their essential role in science
- Careers
The art of crafting conferences
The benefits and challenges of three approaches to scientific meetings
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The nanocoatings holding back corrosion
Corrosion is an age-old problem, but some of the latest solutions are distinctly 21st century. Rachel Brazil reports
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How to form a research collaboration
Five tips for success when partnering up in the name of science
- Careers
How to get your research published
Writing your first paper can be daunting: here are five top tips
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Combining homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis
Can you make a catalyst that has the stability and recyclability of a heterogeneous one with the selectivity of a homogeneous one? Rachel Brazil talks to the scientists finding out
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How to work in another country
Five tips for getting the most out of moving to a lab in a new land
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Illuminating manuscript treasures
Rachel Brazil takes a look at the Fitzwilliam Museum’s illuminated manuscripts and learns their scientific stories
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Phase to phase
Chemists are finding fascinating phase-change phenomena, discovers Rachel Brazil
- Careers
Video games are enabling discovery
Gamification is harnessing an untapped army of citizen scientists