Chemistry
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ChemistryJanet’s chocolate mousse pie
The top two ingredients — dark chocolate and tofu — both have a reputation for being healthy. The good news for those who don’t like tofu: You can’t taste it in this pie. It just tastes like a very rich, thick chocolate mousse.
By Janet Raloff -
ChemistryScientists Say: Salt
Salts in chemistry are compounds made when a positively charged acid is combined with a negatively charged base. Table salt is one example.
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ChemistryChanging toothpastes? Change your toothbrush
Scientists have found that toothbrush bristles absorb triclosan, then release the potentially toxic chemical when users switch toothpastes.
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ChemistryScientists Say: Amino Acid
Amino acids are small molecules that make up proteins and serve as messengers in our cells.
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ChemistryTouching receipts can lead to lengthy pollutant exposures
The chemical BPA, which coats some cash-register receipts, may linger in the body for far longer than if someone had ingested it.
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ChemistryExplainer: Store receipts and BPA
The chemical BPA may become trapped in the skin, causing it to linger in the body for a week or more after touching receipt paper.
By Janet Raloff -
ChemistryKnowing what you don’t know can help your grades improve
Students who don’t know much tend to be overconfident. A new study shows how bursting their bubbles can help their grades.
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AnimalsScientists Say: Luminescence
Light and heat don’t always have to go together! Luminescence is what occurs when a substance emits light without making heat.
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ChemistryScience works to save a salty world treasure
Poland’s 700-year old salt mine, just outside Kraków, not only is a cultural art treasure, but also an active research site for geologists, chemists and more.
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ChemistryWhen bitter + bitter = sweet
Two artificial sweeteners lose their bitter aftertastes when combined together. Scientists have just figured out why.
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ChemistryScientists Say: Gradient
This is a word used to describe the rate that something changes over a distance or time. Examples include the strength of a smell or the steepness of a mountain.
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ChemistryU.S. Army is developing high-tech underwear
A new fabric could warm the skin of active soldiers in cold climates. At the same time, it could soak away sweat that might otherwise cause chills.