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  Aquarium Chemistry—Life in the Balance

  From the smallest fishbowl to the biggest public aquarium display, keeping fish healthy takes patience, careful monitoring, and a good knowledge of chemistry.

  Issue Date | February 2002

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  ChemSumer | The Fizz-Keeper: Does It Really Keep the Fizz?

  You've seen them in supermarket beverage sections. Pump up the pressure and save the fizz. Does the Fizz-Keeper work? Try it for yourself.

  Issue Date | February 2002

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  Maple Syrup: Sweet Sap Boils Down to This

  Steaming pancakes with hot maple syrup—what better way to start a February morning? In New England, the sap is flowing and sugaring is underway.

  Issue Date | February 2002

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  Mighty Thermite—A Solid Hit!

  Can two solids react? You'd better believe it! Iron and aluminum get together for an exothermic display called thermite.

  Issue Date | February 2002

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  Pseudoscience-Too Good To Be True?

  Whether it's the Loch Ness monster or the Bermuda Triangle, these fantastic tales are fun to think about. But what happens when we apply the science?

  Issue Date | February 2002

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  Question from the Classroom | I Was Surfing the Web and Wound That There is a New Hydrogen Beer. Is it true?

  Do you believe everything you read on the Web? You can thank your chemistry teacher if you saw right through this one.

  Issue Date | February 2002

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  ChemSumer | How We Smell and Why We Stink

  Let's be blunt. Humans are among the smelliest creatures on the planet, a fact not lost on manufacturers, who turn out hundreds of products designed to keep our natural aromas in check.

  Issue Date | December 2001

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  Hypothermia—Surviving the Big Chill

  For cold that goes beyond a frosty morning, the human body resorts to some effective strategies to stay alive.

  Issue Date | December 2001

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  King Midas: Leftovers From his Last Feast

  No longer even remotely edible, these 2000-year-old leftovers presented analytical chemists with an interesting
  challenge. They not only figured out the ingredients, they even came up with the recipes.

  Issue Date | December 2001

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  MysteryMatters | Luminol—Casting a Revealing Light on Crime

  Sprayed with luminol, the suspicious stains glowed with an eerie blue luminescence. What once appeared as an ordinary home was now believed to be a crime scene.

  Issue Date | December 2001