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PODCAST

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,

science chemistry

All Episodes

25:51

164: Mirror, Mirror

The History of Chemistry ·

2025/03/30

In which we talk about how chirality, or handedness, has diffused through chemistry since its discovery in the 19th century, starting with Louis Pasteur. We look at work by Arnaldo Piutti and Emile Fischer. We discuss not only organic compounds, but amino acids, proteins, DNA, and inorganic chiral compounds. Ultimately we have to bring up the question of the biochemical handedness of life. Patreon supporters may download a supplemental sheet of some of the molecular structures mentioned in th...

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20:26

163: Basic Fuel

The History of Chemistry ·

2025/03/23

In which we talk about the history of using ammonia, the nitrogen analog of methane, as a fuel. We start two centuries ago with Goldsworthy Gurney, move to the mid-19th century when horseless carriages began to appear in Europe. World War II spurred necessary fuel adjustments to public transportation. We then examine post-war research. We tackle some pros and cons of using ammonia as fuel, as well as the ecological spectrum of ammonia sources. Support the show Support my podcast at https://w...

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26:03

162: The Game of Life

The History of Chemistry ·

2025/03/16

Here we talk about how chemists historically have viewed the way life began: as chemicals self-organizing. The earliest serious chemical views began in the 1870s, with synthesis of proteins. Ideas through the decades included warm ponds, auto-catalytic enzymes, genes (whatever they were), a primitive reducing atmosphere, lightning bolts, and DNA or RNA. Support the show Support my podcast at https://www.patreon.com/thehistoryofchemistry Tell me how your life relates to chemistry! E-mail me ...

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24:15

161: Political Science

The History of Chemistry ·

2025/03/09

Contrary to popular belief, chemists have always found involvement in politics. Herein are some examples of chemists getting involved politically, whether willingly or unwillingly, from the past 250 years, starting with Englishman Joseph Priestley. Support the show Support my podcast at https://www.patreon.com/thehistoryofchemistry Tell me how your life relates to chemistry! E-mail me at steve@historyofchem.com Get my book, O Mg! How Chemistry Came to Be, from World Scientific Publishing, h...

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22:19

160: Reuse It or Lose It

The History of Chemistry ·

2025/03/02

We look at the history of some recent problems in recycling materials. First we examine the history of wind farms, and how to recycle the fan blades. Second we talk about recent history and problems of recycling polyethylene terephthalate. Then we discuss the persistent and growing problem of electronics waste. Finally, we briefly touch on recycling of spent batteries. Support the show Support my podcast at https://www.patreon.com/thehistoryofchemistry Tell me how your life relates to chemi...

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27:02

159: Suck It Up, Buttercup!

The History of Chemistry ·

2025/02/23

Given the environmental catastrophe into which we now zombie-walk, here is a bit about the history of extracting greenhouse gases directly from the air. Extracting carbon dioxide from the atmosphere began in the 1930s, but proposals to do it environmentally only began about 25 years ago, with the first large-scale systems appearing in the 2020s. We also talk a little about pulling a worse gas, methane, from the atmosphere. Support the show Support my podcast at https://www.patreon.com/thehis...

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24:25

158: It's a Gas

The History of Chemistry ·

2025/02/16

We hear about the history of hydrogen gas as a fuel, starting in the early 1800s with François Isaac de Rivaz. We continue through the 19th and 20th centuries, with dual-burning vehicles, airplanes, and fuel-cells. We talk of advantages and disadvantages of such engines, and the ecological spectrum of hydrogen gas. Support the show Support my podcast at https://www.patreon.com/thehistoryofchemistry Tell me how your life relates to chemistry! E-mail me at steve@historyofchem.com Get my book,...

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20:27

157: Cain and Abel

The History of Chemistry ·

2025/02/09

In which we talk about the history of differently abled chemists, from around the year 1600 to the present. We mention some differently abled chemists, and how the American Chemical Society and Royal Society of Chemistry handle things, plus hope for continued improvement in the future. Support the show Support my podcast at https://www.patreon.com/thehistoryofchemistry Tell me how your life relates to chemistry! E-mail me at steve@historyofchem.com Get my book, O Mg! How Chemistry Came to B...

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20:19

156: Quantum Love

The History of Chemistry ·

2025/02/03

We hear about the recent history of quantum computing to do quantum calculations on molecules. First we briefly discuss different types of computers. Then we talk about the kinds of calculations chemists want to do with quantum computers. We also learn about some ways chemists currently use to simplify the mathematics for quantum calculations. Support the show Support my podcast at https://www.patreon.com/thehistoryofchemistry Tell me how your life relates to chemistry! E-mail me at steve@h...

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20:55

155: Sci-fi Chemistry

The History of Chemistry ·

2025/01/27

In which we [cue theremin!] discuss how chemistry is presented in science-fiction stories. We start with Mary Shelley's "Frankenstein," move through Jules Verne and H.G. Wells, then to 20th-century writers like Isaac Asimov. Kurt Vonnegut, Fred Hoyle, H. Beam Piper, and many others. We talk of "Star Trek," "Battlestar Galactica," and David Foster Wallace.Support the show Support my podcast at https://www.patreon.com/thehistoryofchemistry Tell me how your life relates to chemistry! E-mail me ...

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21:50

154: Tile by Tile

The History of Chemistry ·

2025/01/20

We discuss the history of finding quasicrystals, those arrays of atoms that are like crystals--but aren't quite crystals. These are rarely talked about in undergraduate classes. We start with a purely mathematical question by David Hilbert, and move forward through the 1960s and 1970s, till actual quasicrystals were discovered in the 1980s. Then we reach the point where natural quasicrystals were found. Then we hear about some of their potential uses.Support the show Support my podcast at htt...

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18:26

153: Plastic Arts

The History of Chemistry ·

2025/01/13

We finally return to polymers, but in a more ecological way. We learn about using wood waste to make plastics. We hear of how to make plastic naturally degrade in the environment, whether with bacteria, sunlight, zapping it with ions, or heating up without oxygen. We also learn of new methods to mine plastics for hydrogen as fuel.Support the show Support my podcast at https://www.patreon.com/thehistoryofchemistry Tell me how your life relates to chemistry! E-mail me at steve@historyofchem.co...

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26:02

152: Built to Last

The History of Chemistry ·

2025/01/05

We give a "solid foundation" to chemistry by recounting the history of concrete, starting with the earliest architectural use of lime around 10,000 years ago. We continue through ancient history and modern times with Roman concrete, the loss of its recipe, and (partial) rediscovery in the Renaissance. We continue to the present and the likely complete rediscovery of Roman concrete in the 21st century. We talk of the chemical reactions to make and set concrete, and its ecological problems. Fin...

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19:47

151: No Bones about It

The History of Chemistry ·

2024/12/29

This episode relates the history of the new field of "skeletal editing" of molecules. While there have been a few known reactions of this type since the very late 1800s, the general system was unknown till the 21st century, beginning with Marcos Suero. We add to the mix Mark Levin and Guangbin Dong, talk of what precisely this type of chemistry does, and relate the wish-list of chemists of all the wonderful things that scientists would like in skeletal editing.Support the show Support my podc...

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25:02

150: The Medium is the Message

The History of Chemistry ·

2024/12/22

We reach the Big 1-5-0, in which I discuss the venerable history of mRNA vaccines, from the 1960s to the present, from a chemical point of view. We hear of transferring mRNA into cells, then transferring anti-viral mRNA into cells. There are a variety of mRNA vaccines under study--not merely COVID, but flu, RSV, and even cancer treatments. Patreon supporters may download a supplemental sheet with diagrams of some of the biochemical systems I describe.Support the show Support my podcast at htt...

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21:25

149: It's the Kosher Thing

The History of Chemistry ·

2024/12/15

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 ingested by Jews who follow traditional Jewish laws and customs regarding food.Support the show Support my podcast at https://www.patreon.com/thehistoryofchemistry Tell me how your life relates to chemistry! E-mail me at steve@historyofchem.com Get my boo...

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22:27

148: The New Electronics

The History of Chemistry ·

2024/12/08

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. Then we talk about creating electronic components using wood (really!), which began in the 2010s, ranging from wooden batteries to wooden transistors.Support the show Support my podcast at https://www.patreon.com/thehistoryofchemistry Tell me how your ...

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22:31

147: Good to the Last Drop

The History of Chemistry ·

2024/12/01

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 years-long arguments between Dick Zare and Himanshu Mishra over peroxide formation in microdroplets. We talk a bit about some reasons why reactions may go differently in tiny drops versus bulk amounts, and counter-arguments.Support the show Support my pod...

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23:16

146: Electrical Switch

The History of Chemistry ·

2024/11/24

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-based cathodes, different solvent molecules to assist transport of lithium ions, and even calcium batteries. Finally we discuss the flow battery, invented way back in the 19th century, but being revived for batteries that can be stationary.Support the sh...

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22:38

145: State of the Art

The History of Chemistry ·

2024/11/17

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 analytical tools chemists use to examine art, both light-based and non-light-based. We talk of several institutions with strong chemical applications for art conservation. Finally we examine the problems of modern products--polymers--that need to be pre...

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187 results

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