Chemistry

A new chili pepper-shaped device that connect with a smartphone to reveal how much capsaicin is in a hot pepper.

This Chili-Shaped Smartphone Accessory Can Measure a Pepper's Spiciness

New device can measure concentrations of capsaicin, the compound that gives peppers their burning heat

Detail of a medical treatise from the Tebtunis temple library with headings marked in red ink

Why Did Ancient Egyptian Scribes Use Lead-Based Ink?

A new study uncovers the science behind ancient writing traditions

Plastics can take hundreds of years to naturally degrade in the environment, something this new combination of enzymes can accomplish in a matter of days.

Engineered 'Super Enzyme' Breaks Down Plastic

The new enzyme could allow for infinite recycling of common PET plastic used in water bottles and clothing

Historical pressings of seaweeds, such as this kelp, have proved to be a scientific boon for researchers.

Scientists Use Century-Old Seaweed to Solve a Marine Mystery

A treasure trove of data trapped in pressed seaweed helps explain the collapse of Monterey Bay's sardine fishery in the 1950s

Researchers prepared meals made out of maize, wheat and venison every week for a year.

Millennia-Old Cookware May Be the Key to Recreating Ancient Cuisine

A year-long experiment's ingredients, tools and cleaning techniques imitated early culinary practices as closely as possible

Some animals eat the leaves, but the venomous spines are certainly enough to discourage humans from getting too close.

How Venomous Australian Stinging Trees Cause So Much Pain

The trees may look fuzzy, but they’re covered in tiny needles that can cause months of pain

Prototype biodegradable flip-flops made using algae.

Researchers Use Algae to Make Biodegradable Flip-Flops

The shoes break down in about 18 weeks under the right conditions

Cars line up at a drive-in coronavirus testing site in Miami Gardens, Florida, in late June. Testing in many states has been hampered by bottlenecks and long delays, problems that could be eased by the rapid, simple tests scientists are now developing.

Scientists Are Racing to Develop Paper-Based Tests for Covid-19

Inexpensive—and potentially at-home—tools could take only minutes to tell if someone is infected

Excavations at this site in Israel's Negev Desert yielded evidence of olive oil soap manufacturing dating back roughly 1,200 years.

Archaeologists Find 1,200-Year-Old Soap Factory in Israel

To create the cleaning concoction, ancient workers mixed olive oil with ashes from saltwort plants

Allied freighters ablaze in the harbor of Bari, Italy, after the German attack.

How a Chemical Weapons Disaster in WWII Led to a U.S. Cover-Up—and a New Cancer Treatment

The physician who led the investigation into a deadly explosion in Italy found the truth, and some hope

Viburnum titus is a common landscaping plant in Europe and the United States, but its blue fruits hadn't been closely studied until now.

Structural Complexity Gives This Fruit Its Metallic Blue Color

The super blue viburnum fruit gets its hue not just from blue pigment, but from the structure of its fat

Hopefully the new repellents will smell better too!

The Secret Behind New Insect Repellent's Potent Punch Is Found in Grapefruit

The EPA just approved nootkatone, a chemical found in grapefruit and cedars that kills and repels ticks, mosquitoes and other insects

A clear shard of Roman glass found in northern Jordan. The purple highlights are iridescence caused by weathering.

Ancient Rome's Finest Glass Was Actually Made in Egypt

Researchers used chemical analysis to determine the origins of the empire's crystal-clear glass

Researchers used these five replica clay pipes to "smoke" tobacco and other native plants.

Early Residents of the Pacific Northwest Smoked Smooth Sumac

Researchers used a new technique to detect the chemical fingerprints of specific plant species in a 1,400-year-old pipe's residue

Nickelodon's slime in Space in the cupola of the International Space Station.

Astronauts Got Slimed in Space for Science

Nickelodeon teamed up with NASA to send packets of green slime into space to test its behavior in microgravity and to create a virtual field trip for kids

New research suggests that humidity is making the painting's yellow cadmium sulfide degrade into white.

Humidity Is a Nightmare for 'The Scream'

Moisture in the air—not light—has made the yellow pigments in Edvard Munch's masterpiece degrade

Folium was used to illustrate illuminated manuscripts—and color the rind of a popular Dutch cheese.

Researchers Follow a 15th-Century Recipe to Recreate Medieval Blue Ink

The purplish-blue pigment, derived from a Portuguese fruit, fell out of use by the 19th century

Fragments of a large early Neolithic vessel that was likely used to process meat stew

Traces of Millennia-Old Milk Help Date Pottery Fragments to Neolithic London

These dairy products are no longer edible, but they're still valuable to researchers

Now that's a big bubble.

Here’s How to Blow the Perfect Giant Soap Bubble, According to Physics

Sometimes, science really blows

Scientists filmed a pair of rhenium atoms (simulated here in green) as they bonded over a carbon nanotube (grey)

Watch First-Ever Footage of Atoms Forming and Breaking Bonds

The team used transmission electron microscopy to film the atoms dancing down a carbon nanotube

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