Periodic Tabloid

Inedible as the elements may be, the symbolism of the periodic table has proved just as irresistible to restaurateurs as it has to other borrowers of the genre. At the Miracle of Science Bar + Grill, which bills itself as “the leader in geek-chic”, the menu display uses Mendeleevian graphics almost exclusively.

When CHF learned that the June 21 episode of Jeopardy! would include a category devoted to IYC 2011 we were quite excited. Perhaps none more than I, a particularly avid fan of “America’s favorite quiz show.” I’m not kidding—the IBM Watson challenge was a high point of my year. But how would an IYC 2011 category play out?

Cooking, as you might know, is a science—chemistry, for the most part—and learning the reasons behind the techniques can up your confidence in the kitchen. That’s my hope, anyway; in “Kitchen 101,” an occasional series on Periodic Tabloid, I’ll learn and share the proper way to make simple foods that until this time have utterly stumped me.

Bonjour from beautiful Paris! A group of four CHF staff are in Paris this week for the Commission on the History of Modern Chemistry's symposium, "Renewing the Heritage of Chemistry in the 21st Century."

You might have thought that any chemical controversy about water was settled when Lavoisier definitively established its composition over two centuries ago. You would be wrong, of course, to assume such, even on a molecule as simple as H₂O.

Summer officially begins today across the northern hemisphere, so it's time to get serious about sunscreen. If last June’s bottle of SPF 100 gave you a smug feeling of superiority, be prepared: manufacturers can now only tout protection up to SPF 50. Nothing higher has demonstrated any increase in protection – protection that is provided by our friend titanium dioxide.

Father's Day this past weekend was a special treat. My youngest daughter Christi – expressing both her irrepressible inner artist and a connection to the old man – created a periodic table card for the occasion. What could be better?

Science is often a family business; there have been six Nobel Prize-winning fathers and sons in the award’s history – all in science disciplines. No one in my family has this kind of hardware decorating the mantel in the living room, I must admit. But I still look up to my pharmacist and former chemistry teacher dad.

At 88 years old, Dr. Tadeus Reichstein participated in a CHF oral history interview at his office in Basel, Switzerland. When asked for his secret to longevity, Reichstein replied, “There's no secret, but I think that as long as you are interested in life, and you can work, this is probably the best you can do for yourself.” Reichstein was living evidence of that credo.

"If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.” So said Steven Jay Gould. He was talking about schools, universities, and assorted other educational settings. But alas, ignorance is also in evidence when public policy is considered around scientific matters. The problem boils down to choice. What research has the most importance to the public good?