Special Reports

December 22, 2008

Cover Story: Chemical Year In Review 2008

A dozen stories reprise chemists' major achievements this year.

Government & Policy: Bush's Legacy At EPA

Agency's close links to Bush yields a mixed bag of decisions, some of which may tie the hands of the next Administration.

Education: Women Now 16% Of Chemistry Faculty

C&EN's annual survey of chemistry departments reveals a little progress.

Science & Technology: Beetle Epidemic Escalates

Applying pheromones and injecting insecticides may help prevent bark beetles from decimating trees.

What's That Stuff? Frankincense And Myrrh

Culture and chemistry meet in fragrant plant-based incense.

December 15, 2008

Cover Story: Having A Ball With National Chemistry Week

Through hands-on activities, demonstrations, and competitions, kids connect chemistry to sports.

Business: Coloring Food, Naturally

The effort to eliminate synthetics gives chemists the blues.

Government & Policy: Nanomaterial Characterization

Grassroots effort aims to improve quality of nanotoxicology studies.

Insights: When Controversy Shouldn't Exist

The science shows no link between vaccines and autism, but the public is still skeptical.

December 8, 2008

Cover Story: Genes To Gasoline

Genomics strategies provide clues for unraveling cellulosic biomass.

Cover Story: Plant Biochemistry

Lignocellulose: a complex biomaterial.

Science & Technology: Improving Metal Detection In Drugs

New standards proposed by U.S. Pharmacopeia will change how drugmakers analyze and report metal impurities.

Career & Employment: Life After Big Pharma

Chemists downsized out of big drug companies are finding new careers with contract research organizations.

Career & Employment: Onshoring

New contract research firm sees business returning to the U.S.

December 1, 2008

Cover Story: Measured Metamorphosis

Drug firms have spent the year adopting new business models aimed at igniting innovation, protecting profitability.

Cover Story: Facing The Giants

Drug companies struggle to deflect generics competition, appease cautious regulators.

Point/Counterpoint: Providing Medicines For The Poor

Two views on how the pharmaceutical industry can best meet the medical needs of impoverished people around the globe.

November 24, 2008

Cover Story: Keeping Track

Laboratory management software takes on the data explosion in life sciences.

November 17, 2008

Cover Story: High–Performance Buildings

Green designs depend on materials that reduce the energy footprint.

Cover Story: Working In A Green Building

Clients and occupants say, 'Pay the money, honey, it's worth it'.

Cover Story: Report Cards For Green Materials

Without clear product information, assembling a green building is guess work.

November 10, 2008

Cover Story: The New Deal

Seeking closer ties, drug companies and universities shake up the model for research alliances.

Cover Story:New Models For New Technologies

Enlight uses financial backing from three pharma firms to pull breakthrough technologies out of academia.

Government & Policy: Energy Crisis DéJà Vu, Or Not

Climate change may be game changer that keeps U.S. on conservation path despite tumbling gasoline prices.

Science & Technology: Underground Science

Chemistry hobbyists face a labyrinth of local and state regulations.

Education: Into the Woods

Yale rain forest expedition and lab course gives undergraduates a career-defining appetite for research.

Education: Built To Last

A question of ownership.

November 3, 2008

Special Issue: Employment Outlook

Thinking Creatively About Work

Economic turmoil points to a hazy outlook; a little imagination can open up job opportunities.

A Tough Job Market Looms

It's business as usual for now; the future is less certain.

Human Capital

Talent management is critical to recruiting.

Entrepreneurial Trailblazers

Women build businesses around their passion for science.

Extreme Chemistry

Chemists working in extreme environments mix science with adventure. With Video

International Internships

Research opportunities abroad offer students unique opportunities for career development, personal growth, and intercultural exchange.

Cultural Confusion

Working abroad is fraught with difficulties, but it is also rewarding.

Science & Technology: Seeking An Eternal Solution

Fluorinated fluid is the protagonist of an ongoing experiment in preserving biological specimens.

October 27, 2008

Cover Story: Sensitizing NMR

Dynamic nuclear polarization opens up new ways to illuminate biochemical processes.

Government & Policy: Methyl Iodide Saga Continues

EPA gives green light to soil fumigant, but California is still assessing risks.

October 20, 2008

Cover Story: Superconductivity Rekindles

Recent discovery of new high-temperature superconductors revitalizes search for practical materials.

Education: Podcasts Gain A Science Audience

Appealing, informal, and free, these digital programs connect with science groups' members and the public.

Education: Constructive Criticism

Science radio show host offers opinion about ACS's podcasts.

October 13, 2008

Cover Story: Outfitting Asian Labs

Confronted with surging demand in China and India, instrument makers are boosting local sales and service capabilities.

Science & Technology: Protein Aggregates Probed

Inclusion bodies may have more diverse structures than anticipated.

Employment: Investing In Employees

Four top companies to work for share their policies for attracting and retaining the best talent.

October 6, 2008

Cover Story: The Other Scarce Resource

Water treatment firms help industry close the water loop.

Cover Story: Everyday Products Carry A Hidden Global Cost

Consumers looking for the latest metric to understand their own deleterious effect on the planet can calculate their water footprint.

Cover Story: In New U.S. Initiative, Geologists And Planners Work Together To Avert Water Wars

Managing water supply and demand in the western U.S. is akin to managing a household's finances, only on a much more dramatic scale.

Government & Policy: Debating Science

Presidential candidates answer science policy questions.

Government & Policy: Get Ready For Nanotech Food

Nanoscale materials are hitting the U.S. market in a wide range of food products.

Employment: Networking Know-How

It's not just about finding a job, it's about building relationships.

September 29, 2008

Cover Story: Unraveling Breast Milk

Analytical scrutiny reveals how complex fluid nourishes infants and protects them from disease.

September 22, 2008

Cover Story: Resetting Priorities

The already challenging path to an HIV vaccine takes a hard turn after recent clinical trials.

Antiretroviral Agents May Help Avoid Infection

A vaccine may be the ultimate way to prevent HIV infection.

New Antiretrovirals

In recent years, new drugs have brought better options for controlling HIV.

September 15, 2008

Cover Story: Ion Mobility-Mass Spec Combo

Adding ion mobility to mass spectrometry brings new levels of separation and information to analyses.

Science & Technology: Rethinking Schizophrenia

Advances could spur treatments for more symptoms than current drugs address.

September 8, 2008

Cover Story: A Chemical Map Of The Mind

Targeted radiotracers help drugmakers navigate the neurological landscape by positron emission tomography.

Business: To Catch A Cheat

Clinical chemists battle products designed to fool workplace drug tests.

Education Supplements

Communities Of Practice

This year's education supplement looks at green chemistry curricula.

The Ivory Tower Goes Green

Green chemistry is transforming the curriculum.

Rocky Mountain Green

News from the sixth annual ACS Summer School on Sustainability & Green Chemistry.

Staying Alive

A cadre of scientists is trying to revitalize the nuclear and radiochemistry fields.

Small-Scale Chemistry

Primarily undergraduate institutions provide students with a quality chemistry education.

A Purposeful Break

Recharge your academic career—and your life—with a sabbatical.

September 1, 2008

Cover Story: Breathing Easier

Cystic fibrosis patients could soon benefit from breakthrough small-molecule drugs that treat their underlying disease instead of just their symptoms.

Government & Policy: Bringing Life To Deadly Accidents

Chemical safety board finds a powerful, popular tool in animated videos of chemical plant accidents. With Videos.

August 25, 2008

Cover Story: Heading To Market With MOFs

For Metal-Organic frameworks, lab-scale research is brisk as commercialization begins.

Special Issue: Sustainability

Converging Pathways

Chemical companies and environmentalists edge closer together in the pursuit of sustainability.

Accounting For Sustainability

International standards help companies talk about sustainability

Calling All Chemists

Chemists and chemical engineers will be providing the thousands of technologies needed to achieve a more sustainable world.

Biofuels, Batteries, And Solar Cells: The Future Of Driving

Plug-in hybrid vehicles offer the possibility of running on a combination of low carbon emissions and carbon-free electricity. Web Exclusive

The Haber-Bosch Reaction: An Early Chemical Impact On Sustainability

Ammonia production helped boost global agriculture but also led to unsustainable population growth. Web Exclusive

Sticks and Carrots

From individuals to international governmental bodies, moving toward sustainability requires policy.

It's In The Bag

The case of paper versus plastic.

Individual Effort

One famous man's drive toward personal sustainability.

» more Sustainability coverage...

August 18, 2008

Cover Story: Sustainability

Learning to live off the sun in real time.

August 11, 2008

Cover Story: Dow’s Dioxins

Saga of pollution, politics, and struggle over cleanup has nationwide implications.

August 4, 2008

Cover Story: Interaction Yields

Academia and industry work together to foster new routes to chiral compounds

July 28, 2008

Cover Story: Global Top 50

Sales and profits rise at most of the world's top chemical companies

July 21, 2008

Cover Story: Piece By Piece

More and more companies are using fragment-based lead design as a drug discovery strategy

July 14, 2008

Cover Story: Electronic Chemicals

New materials from chemical companies are helping the electronics industry advance solar power, semiconductors, and lighting.

The Sun Shines On Electronic Materials

Booming photovoltaic industry fuels demand for wider range and larger volume of materials.

Chipping In For Chips

Through a series of semiconductor alliances, IBM taps the chemical industry's materials expertise.

The Bulb Is Flat

Organic light-emitting diodes are taking shots at incandescent and fluorescent light bulbs.

July 7, 2008

Cover Story: Introduction: Facts & Figures Of The Chemical Industry

The chemical industry began to feel the impact of a changing economy in 2007

Editor's Page: Facts & Figures

The most complete set of statistics on the chemical industry available anywhere for the cost of membership in the American Chemical Society.

Finances: Growth In Demand Mitigates Soaring

Profits decreased, but strong finances supported capital spending
Download FInances (PDF size: 412 KB)

Employment: Jobs Decrease In Most Regions

Japan was the only country to see major employment growth, U.S. continues decline
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Production: Gains In Chemical Output Decline

Production growth tapered in Europe but increased in Asia
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Trade: Export Patterns Shift With Falling Dollar

U.S.'s trade balance turned positive, and Europe's costly exports faded
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June 30, 2008

Cover Story: Pyrotechnics For The Planet

Chemists seek environmentally friendlier compounds and formulations for fireworks and flares

June 23, 2008

Cover Story: Devising Healthier Foods

Enhancing the good components and removing the unhealthy ones may prevent disease

Understanding Healthier Foods With Analytical Chemistry

Figuring out exactly what's in the food you eat calls for chemists and their analytical instrumentation

June 16, 2008

Cover Story: Contained Chemistry

Synthesizing highly potent compounds is a lucrative and growing niche for custom chemical manufacturers

Filling A Highly Potent Niche

Drug companies want to create conjugates of potent drugs and biological molecules, and custom manufacturers are complying

Drug Conjugates Advance In Clinical Trials

Many new therapies combining a highly potent drug compound and delivery molecule are targeting cancer

June 9, 2008

Cover Story: Communal Living

Scientists across academia and industry are making a concerted effort to understand and control bacteria that form biofilms

Exploiting Biofilms

BASF Explores Using Bacterial Surfaces To Its Advantage

June 2, 2008

Cover Story: Harnessing Helices

Chemical braces hold peptides in place, heralding a potential new class of therapeutics

Peptide Stabilization

There's More Than One Way To Steady A Helix

May 26, 2008

Cover Story: Up From Desktops

The leading suppliers of personal and business information technology—Microsoft, Google, Dell—are making a move in the life sciences laboratory

BASF Is Betting On The Farm

Spending on agriculture R&D nets a new herbicide and a biotech partnership

A Tsunami Of Electronic Waste

No high-tech solutions for the detritus of the Information Revolution

The Import Of Impact

New types of journal metrics grow more influential in the scientific community

House Cleaning

Coping with errors, ambiguity, and fudging in the realm of citations

May 19, 2008

Sourcing From China

Despite recent problems, Chinese suppliers remain an essential source of fine chemicals and pharmaceuticals

May 12, 2008

Cover Story: Seeking Sustainability

Ingredient makers strive to understand and satisfy cosmetic labeling promises

STANDARDS

Sorting Through The Confusion In Personal Care Certification

Analytical Chemistry Comes To The Fore

Testing is critical for preventing and detecting contamination of drugs, food

Heparin Undone

A consortium of scientists raced against the clock to identify the cause of adverse reactions

Anatomy Of A Pet Food Catastrophe

Investigators deployed an array of analytical tools while probing a wave of pet deaths in 2007

Agency Depends On In-House Forensic And Toxicological Expertise

FDA scientific units have compiled evidence needed for several high-profile cases

May 5, 2008

Cover Story: The Forever Waste

A long view of high-level radioactive waste raises ethical questions of intergenerational responsiblities

April 28, 2008

Cover Story: Chromatography In The Extreme

Smaller particles, higher pressures, and other unconventional conditions spur speed and efficiency in separations

April 21, 2008

Cover Story: Lab-To-Market Connection

Specialty chemical companiestry to ward off commoditization of their products with a mix of marketing, formulation, and basic R&D

Buzzword In The Engine

Sustainability push highlights the role of specialty products in consumer and industrial markets

April 14, 2008

Cover Story: An Uphill Battle

With short lives and uncertain profits, antibiotics are a unique development challenge for drug companies

Imminent Threat

As gram-negative bacteria become resistant to current antibiotics, the search for new drugs accelerates

The Ketek Effect

Biotechs worry that FDA has gotten tougher on approving new antibiotics

April 7, 2008

Cover Story: Surface Science's Sage

Priestley Medalist Gabor A. Somorjai has been advancing surface chemistry for nearly five decades

Accepting The Medal In His Own Words

Molecular Chemistry And Catalysis By Surfaces

Gabor A. Somorjai

'Father of Modern Surface Chemistry' Helped To Advance High-Tech Industries

March 31, 2008

Cover Story: Building Businesses

Turning university research into products takes time, money, and initiative as four nanotechnology companies' experiences show

Stock Market

Indexes Track Pool Of Public Nanotech Companies

March 24, 2008

Cover Story: Pittcon Returns To The 'Big Easy'

Annual instrument show convenes in partially recovered New Orleans

Moving From Bench To Bedside

Symposium emphasizes need to translate spectroscopic methods from the lab to the clinic

Clues At The Scene Of The Crime

Advances in forensics push the limits of trace analysis and raise public interest in science

New And Notable At Pittcon

Scientific Instrumentation And More

Pittcon Awards 2008

Researchers receive honors for achievements in analytical chemistry and spectroscopy

March 17, 2008

Cover Story: Coal: The New Black

Long eclipsed by oil and natural gas as a raw material for high-volume chemicals, coal is making a comeback

March 10, 2008

Cover Story: Pharma Outsourcing

Small U.S. biopharmaceutical companies scour the globe to find manufacturing partners that can best meet their needs

Closely Linked

CASE STUDY #1: A unique deal with Siegfried helps Arena Pharmaceuticals advance its first product.

Keeping Baby Home

CASE STUDY #2: Anthera finds stability and flexibility in Albemarle, its manufacturing partner for its most precious asset.

Repelling Radiation

CASE STUDY #3: Cleveland BioLabs and SynCo Bio Partners huddle on a second shot at a defense contract.

March 3, 2008

Cover Story: Max Planck Society Moves Stateside

Germany's prestigious research society sets up shop in Florida even as it faces criticism at home

Looking Back

Society Addresses Its Difficult Past.

Employment & Salary Survey

In 2007, job market for chemists continued to improve and salary gains held at recent level of close to 5%.

February 25, 2008

Cover Story: Side Effects

Pharmaceuticals have been finding their way into our environment for a long time, but just what are they doing there?

What To Do With Your Unused Pharmaceuticals

Open up any medicine cabinet and you'll probably see shelves crammed with expired and unused medications.

February 18, 2008

Cover Story: Future-Oriented Spending

Chemical firms plan an 8.6% capital spending increase in 2008 but forecast a more modest 6.0% rise in R&D

February 11, 2008

Cover Story: Personalized Medicine

Armed with the decoded human genome, drug researchers and clinicians are working to close the gap between patient and therapy.

NCI Leads Push To Standardize Management Of Biological Specimens

Personalized medicine starts with biological specimens.

Major Research Centers Launch Efforts In Personalized Medicine

As drug discovery scientists shift their focus to the molecular characterization of disease, two major cancer research institutes are gearing up with new facilities dedicated to such personalized medicine.

February 4, 2008

Cover Story: China's Pharma Leaps Into Discovery

With breathtaking speed, Chinese contract research organizations have developed drug discovery services that go far beyond basic synthesis.

WuXi PharmaTech

China's Leading CRO Helps Transform The Way Drugs Are Discovered

January 28, 2008

Cover Story: Entering The Tiger Cage

Consumer demand for environmentally friendly cleaning products has changed the game for chemical suppliers.

Reaching Common Ground, Globally

Regulatory oversight doesn't mirror the shifts taking place in drug ingredient manufacturing

Optimism Prevails In Fine Chemicals

Signs point to a brighter business outlook, but the glass could be half empty for some custom chemicals firms

January 21, 2008

Cover Story: Greener Cleaners

Consumer demand for environmentally friendly cleaning products has changed the game for chemical suppliers.

Energy Impact

Small Danish Firm Has Big Hit With Cold-Water Formula

Green Advantage

Cognis And Alco Benefit From Natural Chemistry Roots.

January 14, 2008

Cover Story: World Chemical Outlook

The subprime mortgage mess and $100-per-barrel oil are making the economic picture at the turn of the year look like a small white ball bouncing on a roulette wheel.

United States

Economic woes may impact chemical industry growth, but a major downturn is unlikely.

Canada

Despite mixed results, the industry is optimistic about the future.

Latin America

Chemical projects abound in the fast-growing region.

Europe

Chemical industry rides the crest of the business cycle but readies for possible slowdown.

Asia-Pacific

Although region is still going strong, outlook darkens.

January 7, 2008

Cover Story: The Centrality Of Chemistry: Our Challenges And Opportunities

Let's celebrate and communicate the centrality of chemistry and advocate for science education.

Enzyme Opens For Business

Transglutaminase 2 structure may pave new route to developing treatments for celiac disease.