Manny I. Fox Morone

Nontoxic sprayable coating prevents fungus growth in 2 ways Food-safe fatty acids keep fungi off surfaces and kill them on contact

Researchers have developed a spray that can keep fungi at bay. The nontoxic solution forms an extremely hydrophobic surface coating that makes it harder for fungi to latch on to a surface and kills them if they do take root. cen.acs.org/materials/co... #chemsky 🧪

How magnetic stirrers could be reducing your yield From the lab that found impurities on your stir bar—your flask’s placement on a stirrer plate can mess with your reaction too

When you run 20 reactions on a stirrer plate, are they all *actually* stirring? Read @markpeplow.bsky.social's latest in C&EN:
cen.acs.org/research-int... @cenmag.bsky.social

Can new chemistry make EVs that charge in 5 min or less? Battery start-ups and larger labs scrutinize materials in every part of electric vehicle systems, especially anodes

This story will likely take you less time to read than it does to charge an EV. Check out @samlemonick.bsky.social's tech update in C&EN: cen.acs.org/materials/el... @cenmag.bsky.social

A new nitrogen allotrope has been created at last Chemists string 6 nitrogen atoms together to make hexanitrogen

Nitrogen allotropes are rare. A new one just dropped. Read about the work from Peter R. Schreiner, Artur Mardyukov, and Weiyu Qian in my latest piece for @cenmag.bsky.social

cen.acs.org/materials/in...

A molecular knot with three-way rotation symmetry. But where a usual knot would have a cross, this knot threads through smaller rings inside itself, as if the threads pass through each other rather than overlap.

When is a knot not a knot? Enter perplexanes, molecules my mind is not meant to understand.
Read @markpeplow.bsky.social's latest in ‬C&EN:
cen.acs.org/synthesis/Pe... @cenmag.bsky.social

See how @laureloldach.bsky.social covers the news LIVE for @cenmag.bsky.social 👀

In 2020, we hoped this wasn't going to become an "evergreen" story so soon.

C&EN's Trailblazers

Nominate a chemist with disabilities for C&EN's Trailblazers 2025!

Please tell us about your chemistry heroes, mentors, mentees, and inspirations—or nominate yourself.
👉 cenm.ag/nominatetrai...

#chemsky 🧪 #phdsky #academicsky #STEM #phdchat #academicchatter

Shaw Prize honors cryo-electron tomography innovator Max Planck Institute biochemist Wolfgang Baumeister will receive $1.2 million

Meanwhile in the rest of the world, they are celebrating scientific progress instead of dismantling it. (Hong Kong based prize for a Munich based researcher)

cen.acs.org/people/award...

US CDC drops COVID-19 vaccine recommendation for children and pregnant people Robert F. Kennedy Jr. sidesteps advisory committee in changing immunization schedule

I am grateful to @rowanwalrath.bsky.social, @helenbranswell.bsky.social, @melodyschreiber.com and all the other reporters covering this today for giving me a chance to book a CVS appointment today before the bottom falls out, which would leave my 3rd trimester unboosted

cen.acs.org/pharmaceutic...

Shadow the Hedgehog shrouded in darkness raises a green glowing fist. He appears ready to harness the power of the Chaos Force and show you his "real power."

That is an indirect reference to Sonic Adventure 2: Battle, yes.

Hot peppers have 3 chemicals that actually make them less spicy Farmers might be able to breed less-pungent chilis by boosting the levels of these compounds

Chili peppers are holding back their true power. Read
@samlemonick.bsky.social's latest in @cenmag.bsky.social: cen.acs.org/food/Hot-pep...

Sambuddha Misra spotted a doubling in the Indian Ocean’s lead levels The chemical oceanographer reconstructed a 24-year history of pollution

Here's a Q&A with chemical oceanographer Sambuddha Misra for Chemical & Engineering News @cenmag.bsky.social

cen.acs.org/environment/...

Nominate this year's @cenmag.bsky.social Trailblazers! We will be featuring the work of chemists with disabilities and highlighting how they make their workspaces accessible. Before June 4, use this form to tell us about who inspires you—maybe even yourself? :)
forms.office.com/Pages/Respon...

I'm helping lead @cenmag.bsky.social's Trailblazers 2025, and I want you 🫵 to nominate a chemist with disabilities for us to feature. Before June 4, fill out this form and recognize a chemist who inspires you: cenm.ag/nominatetrai...

This engineer drives a water-cleaning lab around the US Tzahi Cath's lab on wheels turns effluent from wastewater treatment plants into drinkable water

This engineer drives a water-cleaning lab around the US

Tzahi Cath's lab on wheels turns effluent from wastewater treatment plants into drinkable water
cen.acs.org/environment/...

#ChemistsCelebrateEarthWeek #CCEW #EarthDay2025 #EarthDay

Dire wolf debate raises concerns on scientific overhype Even de-extinction advocates say that Colossal Biosciences’ claims are misleading

This is the best-sourced reporting on what we should all call the Colossal Dire Wolf Debacle™️ from now on. Chapeau to @maxhenrybarnhart.bsky.social over at @cenmag.bsky.social for shedding some light on what went down...

#ExtinctionIsForever

cen.acs.org/biological-c...

Metalplant farms nickel instead of mining it The phytomining start-up is using plants to extract nickel from Albania’s soil

Diana Kruzman went to Albania to talk to the startup Metalplant. They're growing flowers instead of mining nickel that's crucial for #EV batteries! Read her profile:
cen.acs.org/business/sta... @cenmag.bsky.social

NIH cancels grants through flagship long COVID initiative Termination ‘a waste of the money we’ve spent already’

SCOOP: NIH abruptly canceled a slew of #LongCOVID studies funded through its RECOVER initiative this week, including 45 pathobiology studies designed to uncover how the disease works inside the body. @cenmag.bsky.social #chemsky #biosky cen.acs.org/policy/resea...

Antiviral unveiled that goes after multiple coronaviruses Open-science consortium discloses its lead candidate to fight SARS-CoV-2 and MERS-CoV

New pancoronavirus antiviral targets the main protease (Mpro) of the two different coronaviruses that cause Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) and COVID-19. Via @laurahowes.bsky.social @cenmag.bsky.social cen.acs.org/acs-news/acs...

Tomorrow will have been 5 years since WHO declared COVID-19 a pandemic.

Today, @cenmag.bsky.social is publishing a cover package we're ambitiously describing as The Next 5 Years of COVID-19. 🧵

Researchers tore down Tesla's and BYD's batteries They found a few surprises in the top electric carmakers’ battery materials and designs

To determine how Tesla and BYD's batteries stack up against each other, a team of engineers and materials scientists in Germany took apart one cell from each company’s battery pack, which contain dozens of cells. cen.acs.org/energy/energ... #chemsky🧪

Amid deletions and lawsuits, groups race to save federal data Data removal by US government agencies could significantly affect researchers. Librarians and scientists are working to save as much as possible

"This data purge by the federal government may cause ripples into the research of the future, resulting in less-robust studies or even a lack of studies on a subject with missing data."

Story by @leighkboerner.bsky.social on the race to save federal data: cen.acs.org/policy/Amid-...

Impacts of NSF firings come into focus as scientists weigh next steps Remaining National Science Foundation employees are strategizing ways to uphold the agency’s mission

The loss of staff “will severely impact research and innovation across the United States, especially for some of those topics where NSF is the majority of the funding,” one of the former program directors says.

More on the recent NSF layoffs from @cenmag.bsky.social: cen.acs.org/careers/Impa...

I'm still covering whatever the heck's happening to US federal science funding, especially at NSF and NIH.

Any insider info, insights into long-term impacts or just feeling the weight of all the uncertainty? DMs open. Signal: kvasquez.12

Priyanka Runwal Serving the chemical, life science, and laboratory worlds

If you work(ed) at DOE, Matt Blois is covering your department. cen.acs.org/staffDirecto...

If EPA, please hit up my colleague Fionna @fmorningstar.bsky.social.

CDC, Priyanka Runwal is all over cen.acs.org/staffDirecto...

Ugh I was so stressed out that I forgot to tag @kvasquez.bsky.social our amazing policy beat reporter. Talk to her about NSF! And any other government agencies. She covers them all for the magazine- the rest of us are just trying to help out as it’s clearly a job for a team

NSF says review panels scheduled for this week will be rescheduled to a future date. Unclear what that means for future panels.

I'm still following this story. If you were on a review panel that was canceled or can speak to how these cancelations impact research, reach out.

Contact info below ⬇️

Why Japan is winning the race to discover the next element After a breakdown in US-Russia relations, Riken finds itself ahead of its rivals. And Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory chases element 120

All the pieces are falling into place for Japan to discover its second ever chemical element—and they're extremely stoked.
Read @frogsandstars.bsky.social's story in this week's @cenmag.bsky.social.
cen.acs.org/physical-che...

Before the news cycle moves on, I had one last thing to say about the LA fires.

In this @cenmag.bsky.social editorial, I talk about how only focusing on the science of these types of disasters can make it easy to forget that real people are also being impacted by them.

cen.acs.org/environment/...