Space is the place . . . for chemistry! ACS president-elect Chris Bodurow and three colleagues chat about the role of chemistry in space exploration and how they ended up working in such an exciting field. Luke Roberson, Ken Savin, and George Rodriguez highlight the expanding space industry, the technologies that chemistry has enabled in space, and how chemistry might change the industry in the future by, for instance, enabling long-term life-support systems. Across all conversations, one thi...
Jul 2
27 min
ACS president Rigoberto Hernandez invites colleagues to speak about mentorship, communication, and the human side of science. One of Rigoberto’s former students, Ashley Ringer McDonald, talks about the power of multi-directional mentorship and the importance of nurturing growth and confidence in students. Michelle Francl and Rigoberto discuss the evolving role of theoretical chemistry, the need to balance basic and applied research, and the importance of communicating science in accessible, e...
Jun 25
28 min
This episode of Chain Reaction launches a special series celebrating the American Chemical Society’s 150th anniversary. Immediate past president, Dorothy Phillips, interviews three chemists whose journeys emphasize resilience, representation, and inclusion. Cary Supalo, a blind chemist, describes overcoming barriers in education and research by developing collaborative techniques and accessible technologies that allow visually impaired scientists to participate fully in chemistry. Zemen Berhe...
Jun 18
30 min
In celebration of the 150th anniversary of the American Chemical Society, our upcoming miniseries features the past, present, and future presidents of ACS in conversation with colleagues about topics they’re passionate about, including mentorship, representation, and … space! Transcripts and episode sources at acs.org/chainreaction
Jun 11
2 min
In the inaugural “From the Cutting Room Floor” — where we take parts of interviews that didn’t quite fit in our regular episodes — we talk about anthrax. Well not exactly… we talk about what happens with the chemicals that we use to kill anthrax. In 2001, some high profile people like news anchors and senators received mail laced with anthrax — a spore-forming bacteria that can be deadly. Afterwards, there were many spaces that had to be decontaminated. And Richard Corsi was tapped to study t...
May 28
7 min
Pollution is only one way humans are altering our planet. There’s climate change, sea level rise, biodiversity loss, and much more. Earth system scientists, including biological oceanographer Katherine Richardson, developed the nine planetary boundaries, a framework to understand what Earth systems are critical for life, and what will happen if human-caused changes to our planet continue. Katherine unpacks these boundaries, revealing how chemistry sits at the heart of both the problems and so...
May 14
29 min
Water and air pollution may capture the headlines, but there’s another threat looming beneath our feet: soil. We farm on it, build cities on it, and pull water from it. But pollutants from industrial waste, mining, and trash settle in soil, wreaking havoc on existing ecosystems and threatening our food and water supply. Soil and environmental chemist Owen Duckworth shares how chemists study soil, the unique qualities of soil pollutants, and the role chemists play in protecting public health.&...
May 7
39 min
We live in a watery world; 71% of Earth is covered in water. But humans have polluted Earth’s water for decades with pollutants like plastic, oil, and drugs. Marine chemist Chris Reddy guides us through what happens to the ocean during human-caused spills – from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill to the X-Press Pearl plastic spill – and how the ocean recovers. But our oceans aren’t the only waters at risk of human-caused pollution. Analytical chemist Carrie McDonough transports us to the w...
Apr 30
37 min
In the first episode of our series on pollution, we’re turning to the very thing necessary for human life: air. Environmental engineer Pete DeCarlo introduces us first to the tools chemists use to study the air, including the early innovations by chemist Arnold Beckman. These tools alarmed us to the problem of air pollution and its impact on human health, from the smog derived from cars in Los Angeles to the gases escaping from factories in Louisiana, the home of Cancer Alley, an 85-mile indu...
Apr 23
36 min
In this miniseries, Chain Reaction takes listeners on a sweeping journey through the hidden chemistry of pollution—above us, around us, and beneath our feet. The series begins with the air we breathe, tracing how chemists developed tools to detect invisible pollutants and how those discoveries revealed major public health crises, from urban smog and industrial emissions to the often‑overlooked danger of polluted indoor air. From the sky, the story flows into water, where marine and analytical...
Apr 16
1 min
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