The History of Chemistry
Chemistry is everywhere, and involves everything. But how did chemistry get to be what it is? I'm Steve Cohen, a chemist and writer, bringing you The History of Chemistry. This podcast explores the development of chemistry from prehistoric times to the present, including the people and societies who made chemistry what it is today. The History of Chemistry is for you, whether you hated chemistry in high school, or got a PhD in inorganic chemistry. We'll explore how chemistry affected art, music, language, politics and vice-versa. Whether it's ancient Greek philosophers, medieval alchemists, or modern laboratory apparatus, it's all here. Don't forget to support my series at https://www.patreon.com/thehistoryofchemistry !
Episodes
152 episodes
149: It's the Kosher Thing
In this episode we touch on how chemistry has directly influenced religion. Our example is how knowledge of chemistry affected a rabbi's decision to allow a certain brand of carbonated beverage to claim that it is kosher, that is, fit to be ing...
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Episode 149
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21:25
148: The New Electronics
What if we could make flexible electronics for clothing or medical sensors? We examine the history of this quest from the 1990s onward, focusing on liquid-metal electronics. We explore what that means, the pros and cons, and how it might work. ...
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Episode 148
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22:27
147: Good to the Last Drop
The history of chemistry in water microdroplets is discussed. We start with the observation by R. Graham Cooks that certain chemical reactions went faster inside ultra-small droplets of liquid relative to beaker-sized amounts. We examine the ye...
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Episode 147
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22:31
146: Electrical Switch
In this episode we examine the history of non-lithium batteries. We talk of changing the anode material and cathode material, whether separately or together. This involves changing the graphite anode to silicon, changing to sulfur anodes, air-b...
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Episode 146
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23:16
145: State of the Art
In which we learn about the beginnings of chemistry applied to art conservation, from the initial attempts by Edward Forbes, but especially when he hired Rutherford John Gettens. We discuss Harvard University's Pigment Collection, plus various ...
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Episode 145
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22:38
Break Time
Dear Listener,I have been posting episodes weekly for two and a half years. I need a short break. I promise I will be back very soon. I have many more episodes already written and recorded for you. Please stay tuned. Until then….brave t...
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0:23
144: Rare as Hens' Teeth
Here we explore the history of unusual and uncommon isotopes of known elements on the periodic table. We discuss the (almost) true statement that all isotopes of an element react the same. Then we reach inside the atomic nucleus and hear of the...
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Episode 144
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25:07
143: Queer as a Clockwork Orange
In which I give a brief history of queer chemists. We talk of the rise of queer scientific associations, and the slog to acceptance of the Gay and Transgender Chemists and their Allies in the American Chemical Society, some current queer chemis...
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Episode 143
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20:08
142: Molecular Valves
Science-fiction writers (and scientists) have been promoting molecular transistors since the 1950s, and we explore the history of why that hasn't happened yet. We start with the parallel sci-fi writer (and biochemist) Isaac Asimov's "molecular ...
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Episode 142
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21:53
141: Chemical Communications
In this episode, I have a conversation with Professor David Perlmutter in the Communications Department at Texas Tech University, on the public's impressions of chemistry, and what value chemistry brings to the wider world.
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Episode 141
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36:53
140: Chemical Paranoia
We start with the first chemical conspiracy theory from 1996, "chemtrails." Then we move to another popular chemical hoax, "alkaline water" somehow being healthy for you. Related to that are the bizarre "hexagonal water" and water memory ideas....
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Episode 140
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24:08
139: To the Max
A new material, the MXene, discovered in 2010, is the topic of this episode. We hear of its creation and derivation at Drexel University in Philadelphia. Then we learn of ways to create single layers, variations in materials, and new methods of...
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Episode 139
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21:36
138: Smells Like Teen Spirit
We finally get to discuss what the term "aromatic compound" means in chemistry, from Michael Faraday's report in 1825 of a new organic compound (we call it benzene), to von Hofmann's first use in 1856 (without defining it) of the term "aromatic...
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Episode 138
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27:42
137: Light My Fire
Aerogels, those feather-weight materials, have a century-old history. We begin with Samuel Kistler, the inventor of the first aerogels, and move forward through time with loss of interest in them, then revival of interest in the 1970s. We learn...
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Episode 137
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21:04
136: AI, Robot
Artificial intelligence, or AI, can be applied to chemistry, too. Here we discuss a brief history of AI, especially for chemistry, beginning with Djerassi's DENDRAL program. We talk of the current problems in chemistry to which AI is being appl...
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Episode 136
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22:23
135: Bond, Chemical Bond
In which we consider what, really, is a chemical bond. Lewis and Langmuir promoted the idea that bonding was sharing of electron pairs. Then we hear about Slater, Hellman, and Ruedenberg's discussion of how covalent bonding works. Kossel and Le...
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Episode 135
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22:42
134: Atto-boy!
In which we talk about the fastest spectroscopy yet, attosecond spectroscopy, which can resolve electrons moving around atoms. The topic begins with Christian Spielmann in 1997, working to get shorter and shorter laser pulses, and continues wit...
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Episode 134
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19:27
133: A Horse of a Different Color
Instead of molecules that absorb light based on their molecular orbitals, this episode talks of nanostructures and their materials that refract light based on interference of light waves. We start with Robert Hooke who described this process in...
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Episode 133
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20:51
132: Name Dropping
This episode concerns the phenomenon in organic chemistry of classifying a set of similar reactions by a single umbrella name. Most named reactions honor a person, but not always. We discuss the early history of named reactions from the 1870s o...
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Episode 132
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22:09
131: From Fluor to Ceiling
Polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, seem to be ubiquitous now in the environment and the news. In this episode I delve into why chemists found these compounds so fascinating and useful. Then I discuss some history of how the world finally lear...
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Episode 131
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22:23
130: I Have an Axe to Grind
Mechanochemistry, using purely mechanical processes to run a reaction, is much less known in the chemical world, but has been around since the ancient Greek Theophrastus described a mechanochemical process. We describe the history of mechanoche...
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Episode 130
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22:05
129: Sheets and Giggles
In which we learn of the history of graphite, its molecular structure, and electrical properties. Then we discuss the isolation of thinner and thinner layers of graphite through the mid-to-late 20th century. The first isolation of a single atom...
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Episode 129
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21:17
128: Heavy, Man, Heavy!
With this episode, we complete our history of the discovery of the elements (up through writing this episode). We talk of elements 110 through 118, completing that row of the Periodic Table, and the various experiments that the major heavy-ion ...
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Episode 128
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31:19