Can an apple a day keep the bad science away?
CHEMFUSION
Did Eve eat an apple to have a better sex life with Adam? One might come to that conclusion after reading a paper published in the Archives of Gynecology and...
Read More >>Alberta oil sands column rankles ACCN reader
LETTER
I noted with astonishment the column “Oil sands phase-out may be Canada’s greatest contribution to the world” in the Sept-Oct, 2014 issue of the Canadian Chemical News (ACCN). Frankly, I am equally surprised by the call for a “phase-out” of the Canadian oil sands. Who are the scientists you claim to have concluded that “fossil fuels must remain in, or return to, the ground if we are to address global warming…?”
Read More >>Public embrace of hydrogen vital to its future
LETTER
I read with interest the Letter to the Editor by Nigel Bunce, “Hydrogen is an energy currency, not an energy source,” in the Sept-Oct issue of the Canadian Chemical News (ACCN).
Read More >>Marine natural products research threatened
ENVIRONMENTAL CHEMISTRY
The need for new biologically active compounds with applications as pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals and cosmeceuticals is undeniable. In the very near future, there is a serious risk that a significant number...
Read More >>Most innovations are potentially patentable
INTELLECTUAL MATTERS
In my prior column, I wrote how some businesses in Canada are failing to protect and extract value from the intellectual property they are generating. In fact, it’s possible that...
Read More >>Hydrogen is an energy currency, not an energy source
LETTER
I write in connection with the article “It’s a Heat Wave” in the July/August 2014 issue of the Canadian Chemical News (ACCN). The opening paragraphs of the article are reproduced...
Read More >>Oil sands phase-out may be Canada’s greatest contribution to the world
ENVIRONMENTAL CHEMISTRY
The occasion of writing this column prompted reflection on my engineering career, in particular three critical junctures. The first was in 1970, when my teacher pointed to Northern Alberta on...
Read More >>Scientists need to protect their discoveries with patents
INTELLECTUAL MATTERS
Recently, The Globe and Mail reported on a list of the world’s top researchers compiled by Thomson Reuters, a provider of solutions to the Canadian legal marketplace. The list, found...
Read More >>Then and Now
HISTORY
They say that nothing sells like celebrity, the proof being in the number of Hollywood stars hawking perfume, umbrellas, clothes and hair dye. But celebrity encompasses historical figures too, and...
Read More >>When no further testing is needed
CHEMFUSION
The gold standard in science is the randomized, controlled, double-blind trial. If you want to know whether Garcinia cambogia (also known as assam fruit) causes weight loss, or whether glucosamine...
Read More >>Recognition of “chemist” as a profession growing
COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS
On June 1 at the Canadian Chemistry Conference and Exhibition in Vancouver, the provincial chemistry associations of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia created a new national...
Read More >>Students should be taught to craft their own destiny
EDUCATION
The world has changed rapidly and many constants are being questioned, even the value of post-secondary education. The assertion that jobs and skills are of paramount importance and that universities...
Read More >>