Chemistry For Your Life

Latest Episodes:

How can sunlight turn into electricity? Dec 12, 2019

Show notes

#021

This week, Melissa and Jam explore the chemistry of solar energy. How do we capture energy from the sun and turn it into electricity? Is it as super insanely cool as it seems? Are we living in the future already?

References from this episode

Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming - Paul Hawken
Melissa's Prior Knowledge and Thesis
Beyond the Messy Truth- Van Jones

Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife. Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/

Thanks to our monthly supporters

Ciara Linville
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Erica Bee
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Letila
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Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
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Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon

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Why does water form droplets? Dec 05, 2019

Show notes

#020

This week Melissa and Jam explore the chemistry of water and intermolecular forces. Why does it form into droplets? Why can you fill a glass of water just above the rim and it not spill over? How are some things water proof or water resistant?

References from this episode

General Chemistry: Principles, Patterns, and Applications - Saylor foundation
Chemistry, Edition 2 - Flowers, Theopold, Langley, Robinson
Lotus Leaf Inspires Waterproofing Scheme, Scientific American - Laura Wright
Melissa's Previous Knowledge

Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife. Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/

Thanks to our monthly supporters

Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon

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What happens to water in space (and other questions)? Nov 28, 2019

Show notes

Question and Response #03

This week Melissa and Jam do the last Question and Response episode. We'll continue to do Questions and Responses every month, but after asking listeners for their preference, Q&Rs will now air as bonuses, rather than in place of a standard episode. Tune in this week as we tackle some fun questions about water in space, boiling water in a microwave, sugar on freezing roads (instead of salt), and using stainless steel to curb the smell of garlic.

References

Sugar On Roads Article

Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife. Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/

Thanks to our monthly supporters

Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon

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What’s up with foil? Nov 21, 2019

Show notes

#018

This week Melissa and Jam explore the chemistry of aluminum foil. Why doesn’t it feel hot when we take it out of the oven? How does it cool down so quickly? We harken back to a previous episode about specific heat a few times in this episode, listen to that one by clicking here.

References from this episode

http://scienceline.ucsb.edu/getkey.php?key=703
Dr. Weber PhD in Physical Chemistry, University of North Texas
Chemistry, Edition 1 - Julia Burdge
Melissa's Previous Knowledge

Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife. Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/

Thanks to our monthly supporters

Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

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Why do foods brown when we cook them? Nov 14, 2019

Show notes

#017

This week Melissa and Jam explore some of the chemistry behind cooking. What happens when you sear a steak? What's going on when you toast toast? Why do so many foods turn golden-brown when cooking? Let's dig in.

References from this episode

Control of Maillard Reactions in Foods: Strategies and Chemical Mechanisms - Marianne N. Lund, and Colin A. Ray
https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2012/10/10/162636059/100-years-ago-maillard-taught-us-why-our-food-tastes-better-cooked
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/maillard-reaction
R.V. Hedegaard, L.H. Skibsted, in Handbook of Food Powders, 2013 Baking, Ageing, Diabetes: A Short History of the Maillard Reaction, Michael Hellwig and Thomas Henle

Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife. Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/

Thanks to our monthly supporters

Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

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Why do onions make you cry? Nov 07, 2019

Show notes

#016

This week Melissa and Jam explore the chemistry of onion tears, the emotional reaction we all have, against our will, when cutting onions. Grab some tissues, this one's gonna burn.

References from this episode

Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife. Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/

Thanks to our monthly supporters

Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Green fire?! Oct 31, 2019

Show notes

#015

This week Melissa and Jam explore a Halloween-themed topic, perfectly-timed for the fact that our episode air date happened to land on Halloween exactly! Can you change the color of fire using only chemistry, safety, personal protection equipment, and no magic? Listen to find out. And check us out on any of our social media accounts to see the experiment take place!

References from this episode

Melissa's Previous Knowledge
ACS.org
ThoughtCo.com

Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife. Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/

Thanks to our monthly supporters

Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

What makes artificial sweeteners artificial? Oct 24, 2019

Show notes

This week Melissa and Jam explore the chemistry of artificial/alternative sweeteners. What are artificial sweeteners? How can something be sweet but not packed with calories? Are we cheating? Did we hack nature when we made them? Is nature going to get back at us some day? Are we doomed?

References from this episode

Organic Chemistry Textbook, Edition 11 - T.W. Graham Solomons
Melissa's prior knowledge 🤔

Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife. Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/

Thanks to our monthly supporters

Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

What even is sunscreen and how does it screen the sun? Oct 17, 2019

Show notes

This week Melissa and Jam explore the chemistry of not being burned by the big, ominous, flaming ball of radioactive insanity that lights up our skies each day. Did you know that to some people, radiation burns are no big deal? ¯_(ツ)_/¯ It's actually a very big deal and the sun is constantly trying to kill us all. Save yourselves.

References from this episode

Organic Chemistry Textbook, Edition 11 - T.W. Graham Solomons
Chemistry, Edition 2, Openstax - Paul Flowers, Klaus Theopold, Richard Langley, and William R. Robinson
Wikipedia references for SPF
American Academy of Dermatology FAQs

Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife. Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/

Thanks to our monthly supporters

Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

How do geckos stick to walls? Oct 10, 2019

Show notes

This week Melissa and Jam continue in the category of "sticky" things by exploring how geckos stick to walls. How do they do it? Is it magic? Is it like spider-man? Is it intermolecular forces?

References from this episode

Organic Chemistry Textbook, Edition 11 - T.W. Graham Solomons
Chemistry, Edition 2 - Paul Flowers, Clause Theopold, Richard Langley, and William R. Robinson
Ologies Podcast - Episode 99 Saurology with Earyn McGee - Alie Ward

Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife. Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/

Thanks to our monthly supporters

Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon

★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

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