Stepping up the pace of protein design
BIOCHEMISTRY
Computer models based on molecular energy budgets have made it easier than ever to imagine the myriad ways a protein structure could be folded. Yet it has still been difficult...
Read More >>Green Skies Ahead
BIOCHEMISTRY
In one of several town-hall meetings held across the country early this year, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau sparked controversy by pointing to the need for Canada...
Read More >>The life-saving potential of the deadly carrot
PHARMACEUTICALS
Apoisonous plant’s value is in the eye of the beholder and Thapsia garganica has become highly prized by cancer specialists. In the wake of a recently published development by investigators...
Read More >>Putting proof back in the engineering curriculum
EDUCATION
Chemical engineers rely on a wide range of numerical methods to make sense of an otherwise messy physical world. But when these methods are taught to students, they are often presented in an already simplified format, without formal proofs and perhaps even embedded in the complex code of modelling software.
Read More >>Pilot plant to recharge battery manufacture
NANOMATERIALS
Over the past two decades we have become surrounded by lithium battery technology, some of it almost invisible but nevertheless essential to providing portable power storage that we now take for granted. But turning raw lithium into an appropriate medium for retaining and transferring an electrical charge is a complicated process.
Read More >>Safeguarding the central science
COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS
At the time of confederation in 1867, chemistry was already well on its way to becoming a mature and powerful scientific discipline that would usher in profound changes in our world,...
Read More >>New Prescription
PHARMACEUTICALS
Humanity’s search for medicinal agents undoubtedly extends into our prehistoric past. Only since the 19th century, however, has this endeavour taken on the full trappings of scientific investigation. While plenty...
Read More >>Innovative gel douses an entrepreneurial fire
BUSINESS
At first glance the YouTube video looks like yet another reminder that some people have too much time on their hands. And in this case one of those hands is covered in an opaque gel, while the other holds a blowtorch with the flame set directly on that hand for what seems like far too long.
Read More >>Alberta wells gush a different gold
PETROCHEMISTRY
Technology aimed at cleaning up the wastewater generated by oil and gas extraction could also transform Alberta into one of the world’s leading lithium producers. This element has become a...
Read More >>Peeking at pillowing in batteries
ENERGY
Amid concerns over the safety and quality of lithium ion batteries, these ubiquitous power sources surrender their secrets to the synchrotron.
Read More >>Chemical powerhouse gets a green light
BIOTECHNOLOGY
Southwestern Ontario spawned North America's petrochemical economy and now the research infrastructure that built this industry is contributing to the rise of a new generation of biochemical ventures.
Read More >>The New Switcheroo
GREEN CHEMISTRY
For most of human history, fresh water was wherever we could find it. Communities were set up on flood plains to take advantage of natural irrigation, along rivers that lent...
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