While M&Ms melt in your mouth but not in your hands, the mysterious element, gallium, does both. It has some rather unique and interesting properties. If you find you're playing Final Jeopardy, and the topic is "Stuff About Gallium," this could come in awfully handy. Otherwise, not so much. But it's still cool.
Chemicals & Chemistry
"Lying" is considered one of those words civilized people should never say. That's why politicians never use it. Instead, their opponents are "misinformed" or "misspeaking" or "using alternative facts."
Well, the time for civility is over. Journalist -- if we can actually call him that -- Danny Hakim is lying to you. And it's not his first rodeo, either. He's built quite a track record for himself at the New York Times, publishing distorted information about GMOs and comparing agricultural pesticides to "Nazi-made sarin gas."
Why are strawberries, spinach, and 10 other nutritious fruits and vegetables killing us? Because of pesticides, says the clueless Environmental Working Group, whose mission is scaring you about perfectly safe and healthy food.
Here's a new study that answered a question for which no answer was needed. Do people pee in pools? How about bears? To find out, you'll have to waste three minutes of your time.
Are bees facing extinction as many environmental advocacy groups and some scientists claim. And are neonicotinoid pesticides the key reason behind their health problems, as many activists, and some news reports suggest?
No matter the evidence, some people always will refuse to accept it. Some of those people are university professors, like Joel Moskowitz, who is on a crusade to prove that California is secretly hiding data that shows cell phones are giving people cancer.
The Maryland State Children’s Environmental Health and Protection Advisory Council wants WiFi restricted in state schools because of cancer concerns. Just two problems with that: (1) Officials have no idea what they're talking about, and (2) officials have no idea what they're talking about.
The amount of plastic garbage floating our oceans is staggering. Once its there, it's just about impossible to remove. The key is to prevent it from getting to the ocean in the first place. Dell Computer has initiated a pilot program that identifies areas where plastic is most likely to be discharged, collects it, and uses the material for shipping its products. Good for them.
Do you want to know how to make VX gas? Ask a chemist. Or look online. Just don't try it because a variety of things will happen—all bad.
Last week we asked the question "What Really Killed Kim Jong-Nam?" Today's news says it was the nerve gas VX. Maybe, maybe not.
Initial reports suggest that Kim Jong-Nam, the estranged half-brother of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un, was murdered with VX, a type of agent used in chemical warfare. What is it, and how does it work?
VX is an organophosphate, a generic name for any molecular compound that contains carbon and phosphate (i.e., ions made of phosphorus and oxygen atoms). Organophosphates are found everywhere. Life-giving molecules like DNA are organophosphates, but so are some pesticides and nerve agents. Given the structure of VX (which includes a sulfur atom), it is more specifically a phosphonothioate. (See image on right.)
It's a headline perfectly befitting The Onion. Unlike stories found in the satirical newspaper, however, this one is absolutely true.
The Dakota Access Pipeline, which has replaced Keystone XL as the cause célèbre of the environmental movement, has united Native Americans and political activists in opposition. The merits (or lack thereof) of this infrastructure project are not relevant for this discussion. Instead, let's focus on the activists' incredibly bizarre and destructive behavior.