Guest Work • Jul 24, 2017 •
Colin Hall, University of South Australia and Eric Charrault, University of South Australia For tens of thousands of years, humans have created colours through simple chemistry. At first we used dyes found in nature such as berries and charcoal. Later, new pigments were synthesised in the lab. By now, you might think scientists would have … Read More
Ken Perrott • Sep 03, 2016 •
Many anti-fluoride campaigners and their sympathisers use “filters” to remove fluoride from their tap water. Despite this, they will often claim the procedure is “too expensive” for the ordinary person – or that it is ineffective. Fluoride Free Nelson (FFN) combined both reasons in this exchange on their Facebook page. But she is wrong on both counts. Suitable … Read More
Ken Perrott • Mar 24, 2016 •
Here’s a thought – what if natural products came with a list of ingredients in the same way processed food does? James Kennedy, an Australian chemistry teacher, has put together some images to illustrate what this would be like. And the article What if natural products came with a list of ingredients? reproduces the detailed infographics which show even the … Read More
Ken Perrott • Jan 24, 2016 •
I often get comments about the chemistry of community water fluoridation which make clear the need for a simple explanation of some of the chemical concepts involved. Here is an article I wrote some time ago on this but, for the life of me, I cannot remember where I put it on-line. So, I might be repeating myself – but, at … Read More
Ken Perrott • Sep 10, 2015 •
Here are some of chemists’ pet peeves about discussion on social media and the internet in general. The list is from the article 5 simple chemistry facts that everyone should understand before talking about science posted on the blog The Logic of Science. Everyone who has attempted to discuss issues like vaccination or fluoridation with opponents will have come across these … Read More
Michael Edmonds • Jan 13, 2015 •
Although this clip is apparently 6 years old, I hadn’t seen it before today when someone put it on Facebook. Read More
Ken Perrott • Dec 16, 2014 •
I had to select this video on the element rutherfordium because of the New Zealand link of the scientist the element is named after. It’s an interesting short lesson on rutherfordium and there is more where it came from – … Continue reading → … Read More
Ken Perrott • Jul 24, 2014 •
Click image to enlarge. The chemical website Compound Interest, is producing a series of infograms to communicate some chemistry. Here is an excellent one they produced on fluoride. I think it would make a great poster. It is accompanied by … Continue reading → … Read More
Eric Crampton • Dec 09, 2013 •
The great Eli Dourado shows the way:What’s even more exciting is the next generation of disintermediating technologies. Bitcoin could displace some financial institutions—to varying degrees, banks, the Federal Reserve, Western Union, and credit card companies.Mesh networks could solve the last-mile problem of Internet service delivery, which tends to be monopolized or at least concentrated. 3D printers could disintermediate supply … Read More
Michael Edmonds • Jun 26, 2013 •
Synthetic chemists produce new compounds by reacting various starting materials and/or reagents together. In order to determine the structure of what she has made, the chemist must run a series of analyses, which not only prove the compound has the structure she claims to have made, but also that it is present in pure form. These analyses include mass spectrometry, … Read More