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Unlike its name, Bicycle Day is not a holiday honoring your favorite two-wheeled, environmentally friendly vehicle. This holiday celebrates the day chemist Albert Hofmann first discovered the psychedelic effects of lysergic acid diethylamide,…

When you hear the name "Hubble," you might think of the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. But, decades before this telescope was built, Dr. Edwin Powell Hubble revolutionized the field of astronomy. This video looks at the life and work of…

Is gluten good for you, or is gluten bad for you? This video breaks down the chemistry and science behind this controversial food ingredient. Credit: Reactions/American Chemical Society

This animation reviews ways in which certain medications function as treatments for specific viral infections.

People have turned to “vaping” with electronic cigarettes as an alternative to puffing on the real thing. But is the vapor they’re inhaling any safer than smoking a cigarette? This video examines what we know, and what we don’t know, about…

In nature, living things die, decompose, and eventually become nutrients for other life. Yet humans use embalming, coffin-based burial, or cremation in typical after-death practices, which may interfere with this “circle of life.” This video…

Neuroengineer Nima Mesgarani is using a form of artificial intelligence called neural network models to a develop improved hearing aids. If successful, hearing impaired individuals will be better able to identify and focus on a speaker of…

Toxin-producing strains of C. difficile bacteria can be a source of aggravated diarrhea, and—if unchecked—may ultimately lead to kidney failure and death. What’s worse is that antibiotics can make the situation even more life-threatening.…

An estimated 133 billion pounds of food gets thrown away every year in the United States. Understanding when your food goes bad is important to help reduce waste. Unfortunately, consumers can’t just check the expiration date on the packaging,…

Opioids are powerful, yet highly addictive, painkillers. This video explores whether we will ever have as strong painkillers as opioids without the risks of addiction and overdose. Credit: Reactions/American Chemical Society

Every medicine we buy has an expiration date printed on it, but does that pill or tablet actually go bad? This video explains the chemistry of drug expiration dates. Credit: Reactions/American Chemical Society

Researchers at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, popularly known as Virginia Tech, helped prove that lead levels were dangerously high in Flint, Michigan tap water, even when government officials denied the problem. This…

This video explores the chemistry of, and pain response to, pepper spray. Watch for some important tips on what to do if you accidentally spray yourself with this debilitating substance. Credit: Reactions/American Chemical Society

When winter holidays come around, feasts and festivities cause many people to gain weight. But did you know that freezing-cold weather during those winter months can actually help people lose weight? This video talks about fat, and whether or…

This animation explains what a comet is and shows the different graphical distinctions of a comet with respect to its distance from the Sun

This animation describes several ways to make vaccines: with killed or inactivated pathogens, with live attentuated pathogens, with subunits of pathogens, and with recombinant DNA technology.

This animation describes several ways to make vaccines: with killed or inactivated pathogens, with live attentuated pathogens, with subunits of pathogens, and with recombinant DNA technology.

This video explores the chemistry behind whether using cannabidiol (CBD)—a non-psychoactive compound produced by the marijuana plant—could make you fail a drug test. Credit: Reactions/American Chemical Society

Some science-fiction fans have already caught a glimpse of a world with super-powered humans secretly living among us, capable of physical feats far beyond the norm. Now, with the CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing system, are we looking at a future…

Yes, you read that correctly. Comets may have helped seed life on Earth. Far out, right? Sarah Everts of C&EN has the chemical clues that back up this out-of-this-world hypothesis. Credit: Reactions/American Chemical Society

Could lead toxicity have produced behavioral changes in Ancient Rome’s population and caused the collapse of the Roman Empire? This video explores the use of lead by the ancient Romans, archaeological findings supporting high levels of lead…

This video explores what we can learn through the transits of exoplanets. It also tells us what we have learned from these transits with the help of the Hubble Space Telescope and which discoveries we can expect with the NASA/ESA/CSA James…

This video explores how diseases may have spawned the folklore of vampires as far back as the 18th century. Pale skin, sensitivity to light, weakness, and other vampire-like characteristics are symptoms mostly related to rare blood disorders.…

Would you like a younger, more perfect-looking you? Young skin is firm and stretchy because of protein fibers, called collagen and elastin, in the tissue beneath the surface. As we age, environmental factors, such as smoking or ultraviolet…

How do astronauts survive the deadly radiation of deep space? NASA is still figuring out how to protect astronauts from cosmic radiation using plastic shielding and magnetic deflectors. Credit: Reactions/American Chemical Society

This video tackles the fad that never dies—low-carbohydrate diets. There's a lot of science that goes with the keto diet and cutting out carbs. Low-carb diets were a thing in the late 1990s and they are still a thing now. But why does this…

You may have seen them in late-night commercials or at your local pharmacy: little pills that claim to cure your cold, help you wake up, or maybe help you lose weight. Vitamin and mineral supplements are everywhere, generating billions of…

What do you do when you have a bad cough? If you reach for the cough syrup, you're not alone. Every year, people spend billions of dollars on cough medicines. But do any of them actually work? This video explains the chemistry behind those…

Homeopathic remedies have been used for nearly 200 years, but science has progressed much over that time. That progress has shown us that the foundations of homeopathy are bunk. Watch this video to find out more about this unscientific…

Those who have diabetes have excessive levels of sugar glucose in their bloodstream. This video explores the various types of diabetes as well as the roles of sugar and obesity in leading to insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes. Credit:…

Chemists have found potential drugs and other useful compounds in some truly bizarre places in nature. Who would have thought that blood from the Komodo dragon could have a secret inside of it that could possibly save your life? This video…

This animation explains how seasons depend on the Earth's orbit and explains how the Earth's orbital distance and axial tilt give rise to seasons.

This animation shows how eclipses occur when the Sun's rays are blocked.

This video explores some of the many things you could do with your body after you die, including embalming and burial, cremation, composting, and donation to a medical school, among others. Credit: Reactions/American Chemical Society

Centuries after the discovery of the simple microscope, biomedical engineer Elizabeth Hillman has developed a cutting-edge microscope that can “see” inside the brains of living organisms and create 3D movies that answer fundamental questions…

This video explores what ringworm is, how to avoid contracting the infection, and—if you do—how to get rid of it. Credit: Reactions/American Chemical Society

Cute or not, these five venomous animals—slow loris, blue-ringed octopus, duck-billed platypus, box jellyfish, and pufferfish—could potentially kill you. This video explores the chemistry and physiological responses behind the toxins these…

A bar of chocolate contains hundreds of compounds, many with beneficial properties. This video explores a list of five chemical facts about why chocolate, in moderation, may be good for you. [Credit: Reactions/American Chemical Society…

We all want to be healthy, but some food myths can actually get in the way of good nutritional decisions. Some people say that eating frozen vegetables means losing some nutritional value. But are those people right? [Credit:…

With all the hard hits and tough tackles in the sport of football come concerns about safety. In the U.S., every professional player is required to wear a helmet, but the helmets of today are a far cry from the leather creations from decades…

This animation depicts how the solar system formed from a spinning disk of interstellar gas.

When used properly, household cleaners are perfectly safe. If mixed together, however, the chemicals in household cleaners can quickly lead to disaster. This video shows how being wise about chemistry can prevent potential hazards during…

Born in 1868, Henrietta Leavitt was an astronomer ahead of her time, whose work helped to revolutionize our understanding of the universe. While working at Harvard Observatory, Leavitt began to study stars of fluctuating brightness. This…

This animation describes a classic experiment conducted by two leading biologists in 1952, which demonstrated that DNA is the genetic material.

These days, more attention is being paid to the transgender community. A big part of gender transition is hormone replacement therapy, or HRT. This video talks about the chemistry of HRT, and what happens when the body undergoes major shifts…

Each October 16, World Anesthesia Day celebrates the anniversary of the first successful demonstration of surgical anesthesia. Prior to then, surgery was really unpleasant, to put it mildly. Surgeons turned to alcohol, narcotics and even…

One thing everyone on Earth has in common is that we all stink sometimes. Fortunately, we have deodorants and antiperspirants to help us deal with that fact, but chemically speaking, how do these products actually work? This video looks at…

Hand-sanitizer labels may claim they kill 99.99 percent of germs, but does the science back this up? This video takes a closer look at the chemistry of what this goo is made of, and just how effective it really is against viruses and…

More than 25 million people rely on Adderall™ and other similar drugs to help treat narcolepsy, depression and attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). But how does amphetamine, the active ingredient in Adderall™, work? This video…

This video looks at the the chemistry and science of how chemotherapy and other cancer treatments work on breast cancer. Breast cancer is the second most commonly diagnosed cancer in women. Fortunately, the rate at which we are learning about…