According to Henry Scowcroft of Cancer Research UK writing in The Guardian: “Large studies have repeatedly shown that, with the possible exception of vitamin D, antioxidant supplements have negligible positive effect on healthy people, at least in terms of important things such as preventing people getting cancer or dying prematurely. And some supplements – notably […]
environment
Finding sustainable alternatives to fossil fuels that would both solve the problem of dwindling supplies of oil and cut the net carbon dioxide emissions from vehicles running on hydrocarbon fuels is a cause high on the environmental agenda. The use of biomass as a source for fuels compounds has benefits, but the setting aside of […]
US researchers have developed a sensitive and simple technique for identifying the dyes used to colour textile artefacts. Their approach will not only help understand the composition of heritage materials for conservation purposes but could offer new insights into the technological relationship ancient peoples had with their environment. more: Chemists are dying to uncover historic […]
At last, astronomers have added molecular oxygen, common-or-garden dioxygen, the stuff we get from the air around us, in space. More on the Beeb’s site here: Oxygen finally spotted in space.
Emilie Bigorgne of the Université Paul Verlaine - Metz and colleagues suggest that the increasing production of nanomaterials will in turn increase the release of nanosized by-products to the environment. Whether or not these particles will accumulate or be degraded and whether or not they pose an ecological risk depends on the chemical and physical […]
Potato genome sequenced by international team - An international team has uncovered the full DNA sequence of the potato for the first time, the journal Nature reports. Chemist and writer Robert Slinn gives us his Slinn Pickings from the world of chemistry.