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Published: June 1st 2025
What is Chemistry? – Allison
When people think of chemistry, their mind usually relates it to mixing potions, making explosions, or other fun experiments However, chemistry also includes observing or creating substances, creating laws to define the patterns that scientists observed, or seeing the changes that the substance undergoes.
Chemistry is the science that helps us understand what everything is made of and how things change. It is often considered the basis of science. This is because everything in the world is made up of tiny building blocks called atoms. Atoms, the fundamental unit of matter, are the basic starting point of all substances we see in our daily lives. Humans are also made up of atoms! Atoms are so small that our eyes cannot see them without using super-strong microscopes (a science tool that helps us see tiny things up close). When atoms stick together, they form groups called molecules. These molecules are what make up everything that we see around us!
Chemistry is important because it helps us understand and create many aspects of our lives. Whether you realize it or not, we are constantly surrounded by chemistry in our everyday lives. If you’ve ever baked a cookie or played with bubbles, you are already becoming a chemist!
The Latest News! – Weiyu
On May 6th, 2025, at Rice University, along with other universities like Carnegie Mellon, thought of a new idea to destroy PFAS, which is also known as “forever chemical.” PFAS, which has a really long name, polyfluoroaklyl substances, is a compound used in things like firefighting foam, day to day cooking, and personal care items. But sadly, it also causes pollution and can be found in our daily drinking water, in our food, and even in the air we breathe.
The problem with PFAS is that it is really hard to destroy because it has a carbon-fluorine bond, which is one of the strongest bonds in chemistry, making them last for a long time in the environment. Bonds are basically different elements holding hands. A weak bond would basically be two weak people holding hands, really easy to break; while a strong bond would be two really strong people holding hands. The universities suggested that they could use Heterogeneous catalysis, which is using something that is in another state, like a solid, to speed up the process of destroying PFAS. But the problem with this heterogeneous catalysis is that it costs a lot of energy. So the universities proposed another idea of using homogeneous chemical reactions to treat PFAS before the heterogeneous catalysis. Homogeneous chemical reactions is a reaction in which the different elements that interact with each other and the results are all in the same state, like liquid, or solid. This way, it may help us get rid of the PFAS that are everywhere in our environment.
Fun Facts – Romero
Chemistry goes over plenty of topics, and as a result, there are a lot of interesting little facts to come out of it. Below are some fun facts about the study of the universe structure:
- There are only less than 30 grams of the rarest naturally occurring element in all of the Earth’s crust, astatine, because it decays quickly and becomes a different element
- Every hydrogen atom (which were the first atoms to be created before they started combining) is 13.5 billion years old because all of them were created at the beginning of the universe
- A single bucket of water has more atoms than all bucketfuls of water in the Atlantic
- Glass is actually a liquid because the molecules are still very slowly moving
- Mars is red because its soil is rich in iron combined with oxygen
- Tungsten is element with highest melting point at 3,422 degrees C, 6,192 F
- Apple seeds have amygdalin, which turns into cyanide
- The colors in fireworks come from different metal salts
History
The history of chemistry was developed with time, starting with Robert Boyle (1637-1691). Boyle started research on gases and how atomic things form molecules, like protons, neutrons, electrons, etc., allowing for them to later be studied mathematically. The field of chemistry itself really broadened in the 1700s when gases like oxygen (what you breathe), chlorine (used in pools), carbon monoxide (poisonous burning fuel), and nitrous oxide were being researched. Nitrous oxide was found to work as an anesthetic, and is now known more commonly as “laughing gas.”
In the 1800s, chemistry began to have a more compound and solid systematic foundation. Amadeo Avogadro took a quantity to physics by calculating particles given an amount of gas, and following the discovery of new chemical reactions, (such as chlorine and nitrogen) materials were soon produced. In 1807, John Dalton created the Atomic Theory, the natural theory that all matter is made up of atoms. As you can see, chemistry has evolved a lot from back then till today in the modern 2000s. We now know of things like photosynthesis (process of plants converting light to energy), and enzymes (biomolecules, insulin, DNA). All of this new information provides plenty of opportunity to explore not just chemistry but also chemistry combined with biology as well (Biochemistry).
Career – Claire
Have you ever thought about chemistry as a field of study? Well, if you haven’t, this section is for you! In terms of education requirements, a minimum bachelor’s degree (in chemistry or science) is needed to study chemistry. If you want an advanced spot in places like a research center, lab, or company, you may need a graduate in chemistry as well. In addition to education requirements, chemists also need a loadful of experience. This is so that it’s easier to apply for positions in labs, like a university lab intern. Internships are short, temporary opportunities for young students/graduates to gain hands-on experience with either an organization or company. It’s a great opportunity for you to learn how to work with other chemists and practice your other abilities aside from chemistry such as: analysis, note taking, communication, teamwork, leadership, organization, etc. Skills needed to be a chemist include: analysis (drawing conclusions), information technology (lab technology), research (evaluation skills), presentations (engaging and easy to understand), and data collection (being able to sort through loads of information).
With that being said, let’s list a few possible careers surrounding chemistry! Being a Chemical technician means working in the lab with other technicians, often setting up labs or cleaning them up. You may also be asked to assist in a lab, and a lot of teamwork is required. An Agricultural scientist is a type of food scientist, observing crops and livestock production. Their job is to study the changing environment, and, using chemistry, help with understanding agriculture (such as farming). A Forensic chemist works mostly in law enforcement, using their skills to analyze evidence from crime scenes. Then, an environmental scientist monitors the health of the environment and studies environmental factors, usually working onsite at the ecosystem being studied. Another career path for you could be a chemical engineer–someone who turns chemicals into usable products. They work mainly in the production company, and make things for the market that involve chemistry. Lastly, you can always be a chemistry teacher! Whether you’re teaching elementary, middle, or high school, teaching chemistry to students and exposing chemistry early to young minds is always a great thing to do.
No matter what you choose to do in the future, just know that there are plenty of choices when it comes to chemistry. And the subject you choose almost always has multiple career paths than you think, and it’s up to you to pick which one reflects not just your passion, but also who you are striving to be.
What Does this Have to Do With Me? – Romero
As established before, chemistry isn’t just explosions and slamming particles into each other. Its presence as the foundation for science means that it intertwines with our lives to an astronomical (giant) degree. We could even go to say that humanity wouldn’t have gotten where it is now without chemistry.
Consider metals, for example. Us humans found out how to pull metal out of ores to make new tools out of them and make alloys, a mixture of metals that acts a stronger, more durable one. Without using these chemical changes, we may have stayed using stone tools for a long time.
Take plastics: an everyday presence in our lives, wouldn’t have come about without chemistry and its introduction of polymers, of which plastic is the most prevalent one we know today. Things like dyes are nothing more than molecular messengers of color, and yet they were some of the most sought-out items during the 18th and 19th centuries through trade.
Even farming has been affected by chemistry in a positive way. Without the discovery of ammonia, more effective fertilizer wouldn’t have been made and an agricultural boom wouldn’t have occurred. Desalination, the process of salt water of its salt, provides water sources for countries where freshwater isn’t as accessible.
Technology in the health field utilizes chemical aspects as well. X-ray machines use radiation to analyze the bones of the body. MRI scanners use magnetic fields and radio waves to help us see inside the body too.
Chemistry explains the world around us, especially at the smallest scale. It shows how everything around us can change and for what reason, leading to some great things to come out of it. As the most fundamental science, it works with all the sciences to make everything in our lives work! Wherever you go, you’re bound to find a show of chemistry around you, so you may as well take a moment to observe this science at work!
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