Bitterness & Genetics

There’s one vegetable at the Christmas dinner table that’s always bound to elicit strong and contrary opinions: brussels sprouts. Much like marmite, they seem to conjure up a ‘love it or hate it’ sentiment; however, if you fall into the latter camp, there may actually be a chemical and genetic ...

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The Chemistry of Rhubarb

Field-grown rhubarb will shortly be coming into season and appearing in supermarkets in the UK, so it seems like a good time to take a look at the chemistry behind this odd-looking vegetable. It’s mostly used in pies and desserts, but it’s only the stalks of the plant that we eat – and there’s a ...

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Colour, Aroma, & Explosions

Watermelons are a popular, refreshing summer fruit. There’s also a lot of intriguing chemistry behind them, from the colour of their flesh and the complexity of their aroma, to the tales of explodingwatermelons in China, and even the claims that they can have a viagra-like effect. This post ...

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Components, Structure, & Flavour

Ice cream is a mainstay of summer – for many, a trip to the beach would be incomplete without one. Despite its seeming simplicity, ice cream is a prime example of some fairly complex chemistry. This graphic takes a look at some of the ingredients that go into ice cream, and the important role ...

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The Chemistry of Blackcurrants

Blackcurrants and cat urine. Two things you probably wouldn’t expect to have a whole lot in common, if anything. However, to some, blackcurrants and blackcurrant bushes can have a distinct smell of cat urine, and the chemistry behind this strange phenomenon reveals an unexpected link between our ...

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Fett ist ein wichtiger Nährstoff in unserer Ernährung, es wird aber viel über verschiedene Arten von Fetten gesprochen und darüber, ob diese für unsere Gesundheit nützlich oder schädlich sind. Diese unterschiedlichen Fettklassifikationen haben ihre Wurzeln in der Chemie - und auch die Chemie kann ...

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The Chemistry of Bread-Making

Though chemistry teachers might have to regularly field questions about the chemistry of ‘Breaking Bad’ these days, baking bread is probably more likely to figure on a list of their recreational activities. Bread-making is a process that seems simple, essentially involving the mixing of just four ...

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The creaminess of camembert is bested by few other cheeses – but it also has a strong smell to rival blue cheeses that reminds you of its presence in your fridge! Additionally, unlike many other cheeses, as it’s left for longer its insides start to become more gooey. Here we take a look at some ...

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Most people probably know that citric acid is the source of a lemon’s sourness and acidity. However, it’s not the only acid found in fruits, or even in lemons. In fact, there are a whole range of different acids, with the particular ones present varying from fruit to fruit. This graphic takes a ...

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in C&EN

This month’s C&EN graphic takes a brief look at dark, milk, and white chocolate, and the chemical differences between them. You can view the full graphic over on the C&EN site. There’s also more on chocolate chemistry in this older post from the site archives, and more on chocolate polymorphs and ...

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