Jeremy Lin flirted with a triple double but the New York Knicks struggled to find the right chemistry with the return of Carmelo Anthony, losing 100-92 to the New Jersey Nets on Monday.

"I need to come out with more energy and the team needs to come out with more energy. That is why we lost," said Lin. "We are not in panic mode. We are going to have to work through some struggles but as long as we are all committed and buy in, we will be fine."

It marked just the second loss since Lin's amazing run began February 4 against the Nets when he blitzed New Jersey's defence for 25 points.

The Knicks have eight wins and two losses since the NBA legend of Lin was born with that 99-92 win over the Nets.

Lin finished with a team-high 21 points, nine assists and seven rebounds as all five Knicks starters reached double figures in scoring in Monday's loss.

"Jeremy still got 21 and nine and he still had a great game, a good game," said Knicks coach Mike D'Antoni. "Our energy wasn't right the whole night. We got some sorting out to do."

Lin's incredible season began when the former benchwarmer was called up with two starters missing and answered with the most points of any NBA player in his first five starts since the NBA and ABA merged in 1976.

The fairy-tale rise of Lin, the first American-born NBA player of Taiwanese and Chinese heritage, is all the more remarkable considering he was cut by two clubs before joining the Knicks.

But the Knicks had no answer on Monday to Nets point guard Deron Williams who finished with a season-high 38 points.

Williams also scored a career-high eight three-pointers for the Nets who snapped a five-game losing streak to the Knicks.

Kris Humphries had a double-double with 14 points and 14 rebounds for New Jersey.

The Knicks welcomed superstar Anthony back into the lineup from injury Monday but he struggled to find a role in their revamped offence.

Anthony shot just four-of-11 from the field and had 11 points, well below his season average of 22.3.

Anthony had missed the team's last seven games with a groin strain and point guard Baron Davis also made his season debut against the Nets.

But D'Antoni refused to single out a player for blame, instead insisting the whole team was at fault for the loss.

"When a guy comes back others guys stand around and watch what he is doing," D'Antoni said. "It was the whole team's fault.

"Two or three guys were new in there and we weren't rolling."

Amare Stoudemire (17), Tyson Chandler (14) and Landry Fields (10) also reached double figures for the Knicks.

D'Antoni said they hope to use the upcoming All-Star break to better identify the role of each player on the team.

"We got some things to sort out and figure out what identity we have to have. We need to retool a little bit and see what we can do."

Lin has been running the Knicks' offence since Anthony got hurt. Lin believes the two will eventually find their roles under D'Antoni's system.

"We both make plays and we need to find a good balance," said Lin who makes $17 million a season less than Anthony.

"It is tough right now with no practice time and then you throw in J.R. Smith and Baron Davis. There will be an adjustment time and things to talk about."

Lin said it is frustrating to beat the defending champion Dallas Mavericks one night then lose to a last-place team the next.

"This is definitely a gut check," Lin said. "We have to look inside ourselves and come with the same energy and passion against teams with poorer records than the defending champions or the Los Angeles Lakers."

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Lin's Knicks fail to find chemistry in loss to Nets

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Jets players such as offensive guard Matt Slauson (68) and quarterback Mark Sanchez (6) should be more focused on what they need to do to win, instead of worrying about team chemistry and coming up with ideas such as bowling outings.ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published: 2:00 AM - 02/19/12

Points to ponder while wondering if the Jets think they can just decide, "Hey, lets build us some chemistry for next season!''

Chemistry isn't something you mandate, not something you cross off a checklist. Chemistry must be developed. A team must have the right pieces in place to have chemistry. It must have the right leadership inside the locker room and on the sideline.

Chemistry isn't something developed from team bowling nights or other so-called bonding activities being looked into by Jets offensive lineman Matt Slauson. It is, best put, something that is developed from a culture in which 53 guys possess the same goal.

That goal is winning.

When every single guy in the locker room places winning above personal achievement, there is chemistry. Of course bonding should be stressed. But you don't need 53 guys getting along like frat brothers. You need 53 guys sacrificing for the common cause: winning.

Did you once hear Hakeem Nicks or Mario Manningham or Jake Ballard complain about a lack of touches? Did you see a Giants player quit on his team during a game? Was there an occasion when players griped about coaches, at least publicly? Not that I can remember.

Oh sure, more than one Giants player found defensive coordinator Perry Fewell's schemes hard to grasp at different points in the season. You can bet they expressed their frustration from time to time. But they handled it in-house. They communicated. They worked through it. And guess what? Because they dealt with it like men, unlike the Jets, Fewell and his guys discovered the formula that helped the Giants win the Super Bowl.

Safety Antrel Rolle had the biggest outburst, complaining after the late-season loss to Washington that teammates needed to practice through relatively minor injuries. Seemed a little harsh at the time. But players responded, saying Rolle's rant represented a much-needed kick. In the end, teammates knew that Rolle, if a bit chatty in the press, cared only about one thing: winning.

The Jets can hold all the pizza-and-wing nights they want. They can hit the local bowling alley until the skin peels off their kegling thumbs. That doesn't make chemistry.

Chemistry arrives when Santonio Holmes cares more about winning than catching footballs. Chemistry arrives when teammates support teammates through difficult times. Chemistry arrives when every player believes in every coach, and when the head coach earns the respect of every player in the locker room.

Here's a team-bonding activity for Slauson. Have every teammate over your house whenever possible during the offseason, and each week during the season. Make it a two-hour meeting with the same topic: What can each player in the room do to make the team better? Discuss your feelings. Hash out issues.

Communicate.

And you won't have to wear those creepy bowling shoes.

Wanted: A 35-year-old receiver who sat out last season, totaled 28 receptions for three teams in 2010 and has a long history of minimizing his effort.

What, no takers for Randy Moss?

Gee, can't understand it.

For fans of the United States Military Academy, and I am one, Tampa Bay's offense (Mike Sullivan) and defense (Bill Sheridan) will be run not only by former Giants assistants, but by former Army assistants.

I wish Jeremy Lin would just go and take care of this global warming mess before the playoffs tip off.

The following is not fair, but then, sports and life aren't always fair. I can only make one prediction very strongly this baseball season:

A.J. Burnett is going to win 15 games.

It won't be fair to those forced to sit through that long-running tragicomedy at Yankee Stadium known as "The Worst of A.J. Burnett.'' It won't be fair to manager Joe Girardi, who watched Burnett stink up the joint almost every fifth day for two seasons, who stood by Burnett when almost everybody wanted him banished to the bullpen or, better, Siberia, and in response heard Burnett grumble about quick hooks.

Now Burnett's in Pittsburgh, right about where he belongs, way off the beaten baseball path in a super low-pressure hardball environment. It's precisely the scenario in which Burnett, his crucial flaws from the neck up, can and probably will thrive.

What do you know, Floyd Mayweather Jr., became the only person on planet Earth to diss Jeremy Lin.

Lin's a good player, Mayweather said, "but all the hype is because he's Asian. Black players do what he does every night and don't get the same praise.''

This, folks, is an example of why bigotry and ignorance go hand in hand.

I for one am anxious to see what Nicki Minaj has up her sleeve for the NBA All-Star game after that nutty Grammys bit of hers.

kgleason@th-record.com

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Gleason's Sporting World: Wins solve chemistry, not bowling outings

Jennifer Aniston says her “chemistry” with Paul Rudd has “always been there”.

The Hollywood pair have maintained a good working relationship over the years, appearing in films including The Object of My Affection and more recently Wanderlust.

Both actors have a great on-screen chemistry, which Jennifer admits is very natural.

“I just think it’s something that has been there. I mean, it’s grown – because we’ve grown, but I think that that chemistry has always been there,” she told Access Hollywood.

Jennifer and Paul engage in a few semi-naked scenes in the comedy film, including one with a prosthetic penis.

Jennifer says the experience was a totally new one for her.

“That’s a first – that’s an absolute first,” Jennifer insisted before Paul pondered about the question. “That’s not your first?” Jennifer laughed.

Wanderlust is produced by famed comedy director Judd Apatow and tells the story of a married Manhattan couple who move to a rural commune after facing sudden unemployment. The film also stars Jennifer’s partner Justin Theroux.

The actress says the relaxed script allowed for the cast to improvise throughout.

“There would be the scene as written, then there would be a Judd Apatow touch where he would have these alternate lines written, so we would try version one, version two, version three. They were all hilarious, I don’t know how they decided what to put together,” Jennifer said.

“Then there were also times when we would keep rolling and see what happened,” Paul added.

The pair admit that the final edit was made appropriate for the big screen.

“There was so much that was naughty that got cut,” Jennifer exclaimed before Paul laughed: “There is only so much disgusting stuff the audience is gonna handle!”

© Cover Media

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Jennifer Aniston proud of Rudd chemistry

Next fall, one of my closest friends at Ohio State will begin the long and arduous task of earning a doctorate in something chemistry related. Another will begin pursuing his in biological anthropology. My younger sister's favorite part of the school day? Her AP Chemistry class.

Me? Well, I am a perfectly content and successful student in communication. In March, I will receive my diploma and journey out into the real world with no foreseeable plans to do anything related to science. And yet, in my very last quarter, I am enrolled in Chemistry 101 and I kind of love it.

The hallmark of a true liberal arts education is the requirement that students take courses from a breadth of disciplines. For the most part, I appreciate it. I took an incredible course on civil liberties. I got to channel my inner Aaron Sorkin in a second writing course called "Criticizing Television." Fulfillment of the foreign language requirement inspired me to complete a minor in Spanish. The liberal arts have been good to me. But I have been dreading my lab science, which is why it is not so surprising that I put it off until I couldn't any longer.

On the first day of chemistry, my lecturer told all 275 of us that this would be the hardest class we ever take. If she was trying to weed me out, it was working. Then she said something that included the phrase, "All of you freshmen." How embarrassing. Far removed from my high school chemistry class, I sat there wide-eyed and dumbfounded as every single voice in the lecture hall except my own recited in unison the three states of matter. I was thoroughly panicked.

The first chemistry lab was stressful. The first homework assignment impossible. But there was something about the delight in my sister's voice as she walked me through the steps of dimensional analysis (a personal favorite of hers) that made it all seem just slightly more bearable. I started finding success in the class. And then it got fun. Certainly not because of the 8:30 a.m. lectures, but because of the labs spent observing chemical reactions and solving for the missing piece of the puzzle. And because of the opportunity to become even closer to my sister as she tutors me and shares her pure joy for the science while I inspire some jealousy because she thinks my labs are so much cooler than hers.

My chemistry friend and I have never wanted for conversation, but now we have even more to talk about. I can make lame jokes about supersaturated resumes and he daydreams about an odd alternate reality in which I discover my chemistry "talents" early enough to become his study buddy.

So, liberal arts gods, listen up. I don't say this often, but I was wrong and you were very much right. I can't say what practical good it will do me that I have hand-crafted tin oxide, but I do know that my undergraduate education and my life are fuller for it.

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Liberal arts curriculum brought out surprising chemistry with science

Day two at the AAAS meeting brought more interesting debate and discussion. Bright and early first thing in the morning Greg Scholes, from the University of Toronto, Canada, filling in for Graham Fleming, from the University California, Berkeley, who was ill, said that we have to learn lessons from nature on solar light harvesting.

A great venue with a gloomy backdrop!

He describes himself as a quantum biologist – someone who probes natural structures on the quantum scale to try to understand what makes them tick – and says that we have to learn from millions of years of evolution to improve the ways in which we capture light energy. He points to green sulfur bacteria that live in the Black Sea at a depth of 80m that can still survive by harvesting what little light there is down there. By probing these sorts of light harvesting complexes using ultra-short laser pulses scientists can learn how to more efficiently gather light energy and transfer it to where it is needed.

We were up in the clouds next, as Ravi Ravishankara, director of the chemical sciences divison of the earth system research laboratory of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration in the US, took us on a whirlwind tour of aerosols. Unfortunately, the effect of aerosols on the climate is still something of a black box, he explains, and we’re missing quite a bit of the information we need. The net effect of aerosols on the climate is thought to be roughly the same as carbon dioxide, thanks to aerosols like black carbon, which can absorb heat, or others which can damage the ozone layer. Vikki Grassian, from the University of Iowa, US, says that the error bars in our understanding of how atomspheric aerosols affect climate are big. She says the problem is complex as aerosols come from so many sources, have different lifetimes, undergo different chemistry, so atmospheric chemists are trying to build a database. Obviously, trying to cover all the aerosols and their reactions would be a sisyphean task. ‘You try to study the most important reactions, you try to use chemical intuition,’ she adds, ‘I’m not going to study methane, it’s not going to do anything, it’s pretty inactive.’ It’s up to chemists, she says, to use their box of analytical tools to work out which reactions are going on and take this to the modellers so they can plug the effects into their models.

Up in the press room we were given a lesson in improving on what Mother Nature has already given us – food crops.

The view from the press room. Chemistry is everywhere!

We all know more food will be needed in the coming decades to feed a growing global population with increasingly eclectic tastes. Howard Griffiths, professor of plant ecology at the University of Cambridge, UK, is one of the scientists at the forefront of this huge challenge. He’s attempting to ‘turbocharge’ plants to improve yields and is looking at a number of ways to do this. One of the principal ways he’s trying to do this is by changing crop plants like potatoes and wheat to harness carbon dioxide using the C4 pathway – to produce a four carbon organic acid – rather than the less efficient C3 pathway they currently use. This change could increase light harvesting efficiency from 4% to 6% and, although that might not sound like much, is huge if that increase could be carried over into crop yields. He’s also looking at other ways to improve the enzyme Rubisco, which fixes carbon dioxide into sugars, using strategies such as parking it in subcellular components where it can be suffused in more carbon dioxide.

Richard Cogdell at the University of Glasgow, UK, is pursuing a different strategy and is trying to learn from photosynthesis to make synthetic fuels. They’re trying to use electricity to drive fuel production by harnessing synthetic biology technology. In his group they’re trying to take carbon dioxide and turn it into terpenes – energy dense organic compounds already produced by many plants. They also have the advantage of being immiscible with water, which should make them much easier to harvest than other biofuels such as ethanol. Cogdell describes this type of work as ‘one of the grand challenges mankind faces’ and says that young researchers need to be enthused and sold this opportunity to shape the future of the world. I think we can all agree with those sentiments.

Patrick Walter

                  

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The American Association for the Advancement of Science conference has kicked off in Vancouver, Canada, under the theme of flattening the world – not Hulk like destruction, more about sharing knowledge evenly across the globe. There’s going to be plenty of talk on how electronic communications can help spread information around the world that can help people address the myriad challenges they face in feeding themselves, providing clean water and sustainable development. But for now Thursday was a low key start, building to a very busy next three days.

Flattening the world in Vancouver

So what’s out and about? Well we have another theory on what Stonehenge is all about. Steven Waller studies archaeoacoustics – looking at the role sound may have played in ancient cultures. He thinks Stonehenge and other similar circles – sometimes called piper rings or the giant’s dance – are laid out according to patterns of acoustic interference. It’s an odd one I’ll admit and I only mention it as everyone’s heard all the different theories about the site being some kind of cosmic calendar, or an ancient hospital or a landing site for UFOs.

He dreamed up this idea after noticing that interference patterns can create regular deadening of sound. He found that blindfolded volunteers who were walked around two flutes playing a continuous note in the middle of a field described ‘obstructions’ in the sounds they heard – just like something was in the way. This deadening is down to destructive interference between the sound waves, but ancient cultures would have had no knowledge of this. He theorises that they spotted these patterns, but they appeared ‘magical’ to them, as if there was something hiding in plain sight. He thinks that they went on to design their circles on these patterns. You can listen to him here.

Meanwhile, researchers from the energy institute at the University of Texas, Austin, have been looking into hydraulic fracturing, better known as fracking to try to help policy makers separate fact from fiction. In a report, they conclude that fracking is no worse than any other oil or gas extraction process. The problem isn’t so much in forcing apart the shale to release the gas, it’s nearer the surface where faulty well casings and poor cement seals allow contaminated water to taint groundwater – much like other hydrocarbon extraction processes.

The day finished with the incoming AAAS president Nina Fedoroff giving a packed auditorium her inspirational life story. Growing up in a Russian family in the US she said she was given little encouragement to be the best she could be. But she persevered always going that extra mile and pushing for opportunities, until she joined Nobel laureate Barbara McClintock’s group. There she made a name for herself in genetics research, cloning and sequencing one of the first plant genes when others said that there was something about plant genes that made them inimical to being cloned. She shared with the delegates her fears for the future, with a rapidly growing world population, pressures on food, water and other resources. And she made the case that science holds the solution to tackling many of these problems, particularly genetic engineering of plants – an area she has some experience in herself. She decried the slow regulatory process for genetically modified organisms and said that it is a scandal that vitamin A enhanced rice – that could help ward off disease in millions – is still not on the market a decade after it was developed. A good start to the conference and there’s some interesting topics ahead – I’m looking forward to it.

Patrick Walter

                  

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It’s Valentine’s Day and here at the Chemistry World cabana, we want to make sure our readers have the best one yet. No doubt many of you will be spending the evening with a special someone and to make sure the conversation flows, you may share a glass or two of that most romantic of tipples – champagne. And what better accompaniment could there be to such a perfect evening than some champagne science trivia? Clearly none.

Now, as a veteran of a date, with a girl, I can say with some authority that nothing relieves the paralysing tension and awkwardness of a first date (or for that matter the wearisome banality and contemptuous familiarity of the umpteenth) like some well-selected items of trivia. No; nothing. It’s easy: if you haven’t got anything interesting to say, a useless fact or two is sure to give you a highbrow mien. Using nothing more than the rudiments of reading, you can borrow intelligence and assume intellect through the passive regurgitation of words and phrases. Just like Vernon Kay.

And, of course, science trivia is the best of all.

So to it. We’ll be using Gerard Liger-Belair’s paper published today in the European Physical Journal ST, but you’re welcome to choose your own. Liger-Belair has compiled close to 100 pages on the topic of champagne bubbles (this is very nearly trivia in itself) and we’ve summarised some of the best bits below.

As a starter, last week, Patrick took us through Liger-Belair’s work on the appropriate champagne glassware and so you may wish to begin your trivia torrent with the myth of the coupe’s mammarian mimicry. Though men should be aware that this is a somewhat high-tariff manoeuvre and must be executed whilst maintaining constant eye-contact (assuming a typical finite simple group of order two enjoying gender dichotomy).

Thankfully, Liger-Belair’s bubble work provides plenty of safer option for the less adventurous trivia buff. Bubbles not only lend champagne an effervescent sparkle, they are also critical to the flavour and experience. As they rise, champagne bubbles carry volatile organic compounds to the liquid’s surface, and drag surfactant molecules along as they go. When they reach the surface and burst, they create a concentrated aerosol of sensory molecules, known as the ‘nose’. And once in the mouth, the bubbles continue to form and collapse and the CO₂ they release provides carbonic acid to excite nociceptors (involved in sensing pain), both of which contribute to champagne’s mouthfeel (a somewhat discomfiting compound word, though consider if you will handsmell, or eyeflavour and offer a prayer of thanks for their continued absence from the lexicon).

Your average 750ml bottle of champagne contains around 9g (5l) of dissolved CO₂, which roughly equates to some 10⁸ bubbles. Anyone who has held a glass of champagne will know that the bubbles rise in graceful columns from specific sites within the liquid. What you may not know is that these nucleation sites are not scratches or defects of the glass but are typically cellulose fibres adhering to the walls of the glass, deposited from the air or the cloth used to dry it. The gas bubbles already trapped within these fibres provide the perfect place for gaseous CO₂ to form. These cellulose fibres will occasionally detach from the glass wall and journey through the liquid, creating the trains of bubbles suspended within the liquid, charmingly referred to as ‘fliers’.

Liger-Belair also obtained some quite beautiful high-speed shots of bubbles forming and collapsing at the surface of champagne. So following these nuggets you may wish to use the hexagonal symmetry of the bubbled surface to lead into a discourse on tessellation with particular reference to examples from the natural world. Alternatively, the collapsing bubble and its ensuing jet of liquid provide ample opportunity to venture into fluid physics. In my experience, your dating partner will be so overawed at this display of information that they will say little to nothing for the remainder of the evening, leaving you free to talk at length.

Happy Valentine’s Day.

                  

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This week’s Chemistry in its element podcast comes straight from the heart to take your breath away. Brian Clegg takes us through the chemistry of haemoglobin – the compound that puts the red in blood red.

                  

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Germany’s highest court stated on Tuesday that thousands of professors in the country are being short changed, and ruled that their pay must be raised by the end of the year.

But how much should a professor be earning? The chemistry professor at the University of Marburg who filed the lawsuit earns a basic salary of approximately €3900 (£3240) per month – a sum that he and the court agree is inadequate compared with what other civil servants earn.

But is nearly £40,000 per year really too little? How does this compare with pay for professors where you are?

Nina Notman

                  

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LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - China's leader-in-waiting Xi Jinping on Friday swiped away fears that his country's economic growth could stumble, and turned to courting American companies and states hungry for a slice of that growth on the final day of his U.S. visit.

Vice President Xi and his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden suggested that Xi's five-day trip, with its mixture of diplomacy and folksy public displays, could pave the way for steadier ties between the world's two biggest economies.

Xi (pronounced like "shee") told a business forum in Los Angeles that China will continue to promote greater domestic demand and turn more to the United States as a source of imports and site for investment.

Despite recent economic slowing and persistent price pressures, Xi told the gathered business executives that China's economic momentum would not falter as some economists warn.

"China's economy will maintain stable growth," he said "There will be no so-called hard landing."

Xi is almost sure to succeed Hu Jintao as Chinese president in just over a year, and the final day of his tour of the United States featured commercial deals and reassuring talk intended to blunt American ire about the trade gap between the countries.

"We will further increase imports from other countries in the light of our economic and social development and consumer demand. We will actively expand imports from the United States," Xi later told a midday meeting in the city.

Biden, who accompanied Xi to Los Angeles, praised the Chinese leader-in-waiting's efforts to reach out to often wary Americans, but reminded him that rancor over trade imbalances and barriers had not evaporated in all the sunny goodwill.

"This is a little unusual for any foreign leader, particularly a Chinese leader, to want to expose himself as much to the American public," Biden told reporters, referring to Xi.

"The Vice President has been straightforward in the changes he'd like to see, and I have been equally as straightforward in the changes that we'd like to see in our trade and economic relationship," Biden told the midday reception for Xi.

"The crux of our discussion is that competition can only benefit everyone if the rules are fair and followed."

GETTING READY FOR THE NEXT DECADE

Xi is poised to become China's next leader after a decade in which it has grown to become the world's second-largest economy, while the United States has endured the deepest recession since the Great Depression.

He will most likely succeed Hu Jintao as Communist Party chief in late 2012 and as president in early 2013, and Xi's visit to the United States was intended to get both sides more familiar with each other for the decade Xi could be in power.

In that time, China's economic size and military capabilities are likely to grow closer to U.S. levels.

Washington and Beijing have often jostled over economic, political and foreign policy disputes from human rights to Taiwan and most recently Syria.

The U.S. trade deficit with China expanded to a record $295.5 billion in 2011 and many U.S. lawmakers complain China's yuan currency is significantly undervalued, giving its companies an unfair advantage.

The Obama administration has also accused Beijing of distorting trade flows by ignoring intellectual property theft, putting up barriers to foreign investors and creating rules that favor China's state-owned behemoths.

Xi's stop in Los Angeles was choreographed to blunt those complaints and make China's case that its rapid growth presents the U.S. economy with opportunities, not threats.

Scores of executives from major U.S. and Chinese companies, from Intel to Microsoft, lined up to sign deals after Xi's address at the economic forum on Friday.

They included "Kung Fu Panda" studio Dreamworks Animation's venture to make films from Shanghai, and Chinese telecom giant Huawei's pledge to award $6 billion in contracts over three years to Qualcomm Inc, Broadcom Corp and Avago.

The Chinese trade delegation this week also signed deals to buy a record 13.4 million tonnes of U.S. soybeans, valued at $6.7 billion.

Xi said that he felt from his visit that "mainstream American opinion" supports stronger ties. "I can now say that my visit has been fully successful," he said.

"We've established a personal friendship and a healthy working relationship," he said of himself and Biden.

"MISSION IMPOSSIBLE" FAN

More than the current, publicly stiff Chinese President Hu Jintao, Xi has made an effort to put a friendlier public face on his government during his U.S. visit, including revisiting the small town of Muscatine in Iowa where he visited in 1985 and stayed two nights with a family.

The 58-year-old former Shanghai party secretary found time for less weighty matters, including a visit to the International Studies Learning School in South Gate -- an urban Los Angeles enclave of mainly Hispanics -- where some classes learn Chinese.

At the school, Xi recalled his first visit to Muscatine, and said: "They gave me the same impression that, like Chinese people, they are warm-hearted, friendly, honest and hard-working. Twenty-seven years have passed, but that remains my impression, and it has become a deeper one."

Xi also offered a glimpse of his personal life, telling the students he enjoyed swimming and watching sports, including American basketball, baseball and gridiron football.

Once again showing his familiarity with Hollywood fare, Xi said it was difficult to find time to relax. "It's like the name of that American movie -- 'Mission Impossible'."

After their visit to the school, Biden told reporters the talks with Xi had been very forthright, and was also intensely curious about the workings of the American political system.

"This is a guy who wants to feel it and taste it, and he's prepared to show another side of Chinese leadership," said Biden. He suggested the personal ties forged with Xi could make it easier for the two governments to manage conflict.

"He is intensely interested in understanding why we think the way we do, what our positions are, and the need to actually broaden this kind of understanding," said Biden.

Xi was due to watch part of an LA Lakers basketball game before he left for the next two countries of his current international tour, Ireland and then Turkey.

(Additional reporting by Paul Eckert in Washington; editing by Todd Eastham and Sanjeev Miglani)

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China's Xi sells U.S. trade elixir, personal chemistry

Protons. Neutrons. Cyclotron. Electrons. These were only a few words in 302 questions asked of 16 sixth- through eighth-grade students from two counties who participated in the eighth annual, You Be the Chemist Challenge this week at Seneca Grade School. Eight middle schools from Oglesby, Mazon, Minooka, Seneca, Morris and Coal City participated. By the time the regional competitions are over, about 12,000 students from 19 states will have participated.

Before the contest, Mark Biel, executive director of the Chemical Industry Council of Illinois, presented a check on behalf of Air Products and Chemicals to teacher Glen Flodstrom (Washington Junior High, Oglesby). His students have won many of the state's previous competitions.

The national competition will be Monday, June 25, at the Kimmel Center in Philadelphia. State winners will have the opportunity to visit the Franklin Institute and the National Constitution Center, an interactive history museum.

Fran Ogden, science teacher at Seneca High School, was the question reader for the evening. Accumulated each year by teams of scientists, graduate students and others who work through the national contest organizers (Chemical Educational Foundation), the questions are saved in question banks and not used again for five years.

"The banks get bigger and bigger each year as it gets harder to stump the students who come to this contest," the event's facilitator, Patricia Neff, said.

Five judges took turns asking the students questions. Once a question was asked, they had 15 seconds to raise their hands before holding up a multiple choice answer. There were 10 questions in each round.

Barium, one of the answers, provided some humor to the evening. "What do you do with a dead body?" Byrne asked the students and audience. "You Bar-i-um."

"This is a very big deal," Mazon-Verona-Kinsman science teacher Darcy Welsh said. "This event is a great way to recognize kids. The chemical industry is very big in Illinois and it's one of the major employers, so this is a very good way to generate interest in our kids."

First place was worth $500; second place, $250; and third place, $100. All contestants took home a $25 gift certificate and a bag of donated items from Aux Sable Liquids, Exelon-Dresden, Flint Hills Resources and Akzonobel.

"I hire a bus to take all the contestants and their fans to the state competition," Event Coordinator Patricia Neff said. "We'll be touring the UOP Research Complex (a petrochemical technology firm with headquarters in Des Plaines). They will probably visit their electron microscope room, glass blowing and knock labs. This is a great way for students to see research in progress."

Seneca Grade School South Campus Principal Shane Severson was proud of all the students.

"We are honored to host this event every year and always glad to help out Pat (Neff) and all of the event sponsors," he said. "We look forward to hosting future competitions that promote kids using their brains.

"Meet the Chemist is a wonderful way to promote academics. We're just very proud of all the efforts all the students made in this competition. We're looking forward to the school's students moving on to the April 3 state competition."

Second place regional competition and first place La Salle County: Lyle Marshall, Seneca Grade School, eighth grade.
First place regional competition and first place Grundy County: Conrad Goffinet, Minooka Junior High, eighth grade.
Third Place regional competition and second place La Salle County: Aaron Kamke, Waltham Elementary School, eighth grade.
Second Place Grundy County: Jared Roth, Saratoga Middle School, seventh grade.
Third Place Grundy County: Nick Micetich, Coal City Middle School, eighth grade.
Third Place La Salle County: Jakob Selquist, Parkside Junior High, eighth grade.
Alternate for Grundy County: Joey Rivera, Coal City Middle School, eighth grade.
Alternate for La Salle County: Grant Granby, Seneca Elementary, eighth grade.

Continue reading here:
Chemistry challenge 'a wonderful way to promote academics'

— Graphene

Congratulations are in order for Karl Coleman the Chemistry World Entrepreneur of the year 2011. Not for winning our prize (which is great, of course, but we announced that back in July 2011 so it is old news really…) but for securing a significant amount of funding for his spin-off company Durham Graphene Science (DGS).

Coleman who is a reader in the chemistry department at Durham University, UK, and who received last year’s accolade for ‘his development of new intellectual property for the production of graphene ans its commercial exploitation’,  has just received the news that North East Technology fund, IP Group and Northstar Ventures have committed £1.2 million worth of investment money to DGS.

The company, which was founded less than 2 years ago in August 2010, is a spin out of Durham University and was created by Coleman  to commercialise the manufacture of graphene flakes using chemical vapour deposition. For those who may be interested, you can read all about it in the feature we wrote in September. My question for Dr Coleman is: how much closer does this bring us to be making graphene by the kilo?

Bibiana Campos-Seijo

                  

Source:
http://prospect.rsc.org/blogs/cw/?feed=rss2

By Michael Huckaby / movie reviews

Vivacious Rachel McAdams and “boy next door” Channing Tatum are perfectly cast for a serious romantic drama. But the dimpled McAdams and clean-cut Tatum chemistry can’t overcome a ridiculously contrived and cliché-ridden plot – a shallow groaner. They star as Leo and Paige, a couple whose marriage is torn asunder when a head injury gives her amnesia. However, her peculiar brain trauma is selective, conveniently wiping out only the most recent and happy years of her memory. Leo’s ill-advised but noble way of handling this five-year gap is the sputtering engine that drives the story.

The supporting cast is an underutilized asset, most notably Jessica Lange and Sam Neill as Paige’s self-centered parents Rita and Bill. Set in Chicago, the locales are interesting and the production values good. While the flashbacks provide the movie’s most engaging scenes, Leo’s narrative intros – philosophical attempts to be profound — are distracting.

The opening scene introduces Paige and Leo as they leave the old landmark Music Box movie house snuggling on a snowy evening. After scraping their car windows, they take off and – while being lovey-dovey at a stoplight — are rammed from behind by a snowplow. Paige goes flying (in slow motion) through the windshield. Knocked unconscious, Leo’s injuries are superficial.

What Paige remembers when she wakes up in the hospital is being the socialite daughter of a wealthy Lake Forest attorney. A law student at Northwestern, she is happily engaged to Jeremy (Scott Speedman). She mistakes her husband of four years for her surgeon. Nor does she remember being estranged from her parents, dropping out of law school, enrolling at the Chicago Art Institute and becoming a renowned sculptor with a commission backlog.

When Rita and Bill arrive at the hospital, Leo meets them for the first time. Aware of the extent of Paige’s amnesia, they take advantage of her memory loss and attempt to persuade her to come home. Convinced her memory will come back, Paige agrees to live chastely with Leo, the owner of a small recording studio.

Though Paige is put off by a welcome home party of friends she doesn’t remember, Leo convinces her they were happy, visiting their favorite romantic haunts and showing her photos of their unconventional wedding.

Cluttered with antiques, the charming Café Mnemonic provides the setting for one of the best romantic scenes. For dessert, they liked to split and sample a box of chocolates – another magic moment she doesn’t recall. As for their quirky art museum wedding, the museum was forbidden and the entire wedding party had to hightail it when a guard appeared.

Drawn to Lake Forest by the coming wedding of sister Gwen (Jessica McNamee), Paige identifies more with her childhood environment than the Bohemian lifestyle she has forgotten.

Meanwhile, Leo and his stalwart assistant (Tatiana Maslany) have a business to run. Always ready to make Paige his priority, Leo just looks on as her parents gain the upper hand – knowing but unwilling to tell her why she avoided her entire family for the last five years. Can the marriage be saved when Gwen slips and reveals the truth?

Inspired by a true story, only the outcome is comparable.

View original post here:
Chemistry not enough to overcome ‘Vow’ clichés

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/f490ba/future_french_clin) has announced the addition of the "Future French Clinical Chemistry and Immunodiagnostics Markets: Growth Opportunities and Business Expansion Strategies" report to their offering.

This report presents a comprehensive analysis of the French clinical chemistry and immunodiagnostics markets, including:

Major issues pertaining to the French clinical chemistry and immunodiagnostic laboratory practice, as well as key economic, regulatory, demographic, social and technological trends with significant market impact during the next ten years. Five- and ten-year volume and sales forecasts for over 100 clinical chemistry, TDM, endocrine, cancer, immunoprotein and abused drug assays performed in French hospitals and commercial laboratories, including controls, calibrators and consumables. Five- and ten-year volume forecasts for serum, whole blood, plasma, CFS, urine and other specimens. Five- and ten-year reagent and instrument sales forecasts. Review of current instrumentation technologies, and a feature comparison of 50 high-, medium-, and low-volume/POC analyzers. Sales and market shares of leading reagent and instrument suppliers. Review of current and emerging technologies and their potential market applications. Product development opportunities for clinical chemistry and immunodiagnostic instruments and consumables. Profiles of 25 current and emerging suppliers, including their sales, market shares, product portfolios, marketing tactics, technological know-how, new products in R&D, collaborative arrangements and business strategies. Market penetration strategies, entry barriers and risks.

The report contains 542 pages and 104 tables.

For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/f490ba/future_french_clin

Excerpt from:
Research and Markets: Future French Clinical Chemistry and Immunodiagnostics Markets: Growth Opportunities and ...

Feb. 16, 2012

Howard Zimmerman, a professor of chemistry from 1960 until his retirement in 2010, died on Saturday, Feb. 11 as a result of a fall.

Zimmerman

Zimmerman helped establish the field of organic photochemistry -- the study of how light affects and initiates chemical reactions.  By applying the theory of quantum mechanics to these reactions, he was able to develop predictive and explanatory theories. 

“Howard was a major figure in photochemistry,” says Bassam Shakhashiri, professor of chemistry. “His research was renowned worldwide; the American Chemical Society gave him awards, and asked him to give short courses. He was very dedicated, sharply focused on his research.”

Hans Reich, a professor of chemistry at University of Wisconsin-Madison who had a neighboring lab in the chemistry department, remembers “a larger-than-life figure in chemistry. He was a member of the National Academy of Science for many years; he was a real pioneer in the study of photochemistry and published hundreds of papers. He was a pioneer in developing theories of how these reactions work and how you can predict reactions logically instead of having to do experiments.”

Which is not to say that Zimmerman disdained experiments, notes Patrick Mariano, who was a member of the “Z group” in the 1960s. “He said a good experiment trumps everything else, and it would last forever, but the interpretation may only last for a decade,” he says.

Richard Givens, professor emeritus of chemistry at the University of Kansas, recalls that Zimmerman “had a way of reducing complex problems to very understandable ones. For those of us who were 21 years old, he was able to take very complex ideas and concepts, and reduce them to an easily understood form that could be used to solve problems. He was interested in the fundamental aspects of organic reactions, he developed breakthroughs in understanding photochemistry, in how molecules are raised to the excited state and why.”

One of Zimmerman's papers on reactions used by numerous synthetic organic chemists, “must among the most cited papers in the history of organic chemistry,” says Mariano, a professor of chemistry and biochemistry at the University of New Mexico.

Mariano also remembers Zimmerman as an excellent mentor. “He was unique in the intensity of his concern that his people get the best positions possible. And it did not stop there. Throughout my professional career, he remained intensely interested in my progress.”

Other former students stressed that mentorship as well.

“He was tenacious in his problem-solving and supportive of his students,” says Givens, who studied with Zimmerman in the 1960s. “He was very attentive to what we were doing in the lab, would visit frequently and ask how it was going. He was definitely a hands-on professor, he worked hard with you try to get to the solution of the research problem, to understand a reaction or synthesize a new compound.”

Laren Tolbert, who received his Ph.D. in 1975, recalls exacting standards in the lab. "He was a stickler for detail, for accuracy in well-run experiments, for making sure the data was there to support your claim."

“He was not a warm-and-fuzzy guy, and some viewed him as a very difficult taskmaster,” says Tolbert, a professor of chemistry at Georgia Tech. “He believed in the students working extremely hard, had low tolerance for slacking off, and was proudest of the ‘silver spatula award,’ given to the students who worked on holidays. But he was also very loyal. Once you got a Ph.D. from him, he would support you to the ends of the earth.”

“There would not be a single person who would disagree that he an extremely good mentor,” agrees Mariano.

At a symposium in his honor in September, Zimmerman “was in such good spirits and good health, he was sharp minded and gave fantastic talk,” says Mariano. “His death was a such shock.”

Zimmerman is survived by his wife, Peggy, and by three sons from his first marriage.

The chemistry department has established a fund at the UW Foundation for donations in Howard's memory.  Memorials can be made payable to the UW Foundation–Howard E. Zimmerman Memorial Fund, US Bank Lockbox 78807, Milwaukee, WI  53278.

Continued here:
Howard Zimmerman, pioneer in organic chemistry, dies at 85

15-02-2012 03:55

Original post:
Chemistry between Virat and Manvi - Video

Updated Feb 16, 2012 10:31 PM ET

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP)

In the wake of some very ugly finger-pointing after the season, several New York Jets veterans are trying to find ways to improve team chemistry.

Starting left guard Matt Slauson recently learned about the possible team bonding activities while talking to members of the Jets' developmental department.

Slauson has not spoken to fellow players about the activities, but he welcomed anything that would help bring the team closer after the drama following an 8-8 season.

''Absolutely we are all focusing on next year now,'' Slauson said Thursday after attending a news conference to announce that WrestleMania would be held at MetLife Stadium in 2013. ''We're not worried about all of that drama that happened last year. We are focusing on next year and getting better and doing what we can to get in the Super Bowl.''

After reaching the AFC title game in 2009 and '10, the Jets were one of the preseason favorites to make the Super Bowl this season. However, the team was inconsistent and missed the playoffs for the first time in Rex Ryan's three seasons as coach.

It got ugly after that.

Fans and the media criticized quarterback Mark Sanchez, and then some teammates and members of the organization anonymously questioned Sanchez's work ethic and leadership abilities in a Daily News story in early January.

Veteran running back LaDainian Tomlinson later said the Jets' locker room was as troubled as any he'd ever seen, adding that the problems got ''out-of-hand toward the end of the season,'' and were created by the brash approach of Ryan and general manager Mike Tannenbaum.

It's a problem that needs mending if the Jets are to get back on track next season.

''I have been talking to some guys about if we are going to do some team-building stuff and there are guys brainstorming right now,'' Slauson said of his conversations with the guys in the developmental department. ''But there is nothing official now.''

Slauson also disclosed Thursday at a news conference at the home of the Giants and Jets that he played this past season with a torn labrum, rotator cuff and biceps in his left shoulder. He has had surgery to repair them and expects to be ready for the season despite a projected six-month rehabilitation period.

A sixth-round draft pick out of Nebraska in 2009, Slauson has been the starting guard the past two seasons. He believes he hurt his shoulder in December 2010 in a game against the Patriots.

''I thought it was no big deal, the fact that I could play and still lift, kind of, I didn't think it was a big deal or anything was wrong,'' he said.

Slauson attended the news conference with teammates Donald Strickland, Kyle Wilson and Muhammad Wilkerson, and owner Woody Johnson. The Super Bowl champion Giants were represented by co-owner John Mara, long snapper Zak DeOssie and tackle David Diehl.

Slauson said watching the cross-town rival Giants win the NFL title against the Jets' other major rival, the Patriots, was weird.

''That's the cost of things,'' he said. ''You don't play well throughout the entire year you are not going to make it there. The Giants did a phenomenal job. Every team's goal is, whether they say it or not, their goal is to be in the Super Bowl. That's our goal and we fell short, but we are all excited about next year.''

While it's been nice enjoying the Super Bowl victory, DeOssie said the Giants realize that their offseason program starts in two months. He also noted that keeping the team together might not be possible.

''The reality is this is the NFL and guys move on and some guys stay,'' DeOssie said. ''I certainly do wish it's the exact same team, but I know that is not going to happen.''

Diehl came to the new conference with a bandage on his left hand. He had six screws inserted to fix a broken finger following the Super Bowl.

''I'll be all good,'' said Diehl, who started the first 10 games at left guard and the last 10 at left tackle after Will Beatty had surgery to repair a detached retina. ''I'm happy. This is the time to heal up and rest, anyway. I'm looking forward to getting started again and getting rolling here pretty soon.''

Go here to read the rest:
Jets aim to improve team chemistry

February 14, 2012

The innermost secrets of champagne bubbles are about to be unveiled in the Springer journal EPJ ST. This fascinating work is the brainchild of Gérard Liger-Belair, a scientist tackling champagne bubbles from both a physics and a chemistry perspective. Based at the University of Reims, in the heart of the region that gave champagne its name, the author is appropriately affiliated with the ‘effervescence team of the molecular and atmospheric spectrometry group’ and the ‘oenology and applied chemistry’ laboratory.

To understand what appears to be a harmless phenomenon such as the fizz in champagne, the author studied the role of the carbon dioxide (CO2) throughout its journey from the bottle to the glass. Precisely, Liger-Belair focused on the second fermentation stage, resulting in the CO2 dissolution into the wine – aided by the addition of yeast and sugar before sealing each champagne bottle – to the stage where the gas escapes through tiny bubbles popping on the surface of the wine in the glass.

Armed with a high-speed camera, the author produced a series of visually appealing close-up snapshots of the hidden life of these bubbles at every stage of their short existence to analyze the forces at play. He first explained the process underlying their birth through a process called nucleation, triggered by the tiny impurities inside the champagne glass. He then followed their rise and attributed their extinction when they burst on the surface of the liquid in the glass to the cohesive forces between molecules of the liquid called surface tension.

Understanding the source of fizz provides clues on how to fine tune champagne production. For example, the bubble size can be reduced by a factor that can be calculated by taking into account fermentation sugar levels. However, the method remains fundamentally the same as the one developed by the 17th century Benedictine monk Dom Pierre Pérignon.

Reference: Liger-Belair G.,The Physics behind the Fizz in Champagne and Sparkling Wines, European Physical Journal ST (EPJ ST) 201: 1, DOI 10.1140/epjst/e2012-01528-0

—

On the Net:

Source: Springer

Read more:
The Physics And Chemistry Of Champagne Bubbles

Scientists want to find a use for PageRank in the world beyond the web.

Chemistry is a science of links. Atomic units, made into more than they are by attractions and connections and bonds, all in a constant flurry of motion and change.

Sounds a little bit like the Web, doesn't it? 

Aurora Clark, an associate professor of Chemistry at Washington State University, thinks so. She noticed that there's a probabilistic nature to molecular links: Some are stronger, and more likely to materialize, than others. Which is, broadly, the logic that guides the guiding algorithm of Google search: PageRank. While the mathematical ingredients of Google's most-secret secret sauce are a closely guarded secret, the algorithm's broad approach -- the quantification and prioritization of links to determine a structure based on mutuality and relevance -- is ripe for the borrowing. 

moleculaRnetworks contains novel analysis algorithms and techniques unavailable elsewhere. These include graph theory-based analyses of network structure, including clustering of solvent molecules, and connectivity information such as PageRank (PR). PR, most famously used by Google to evaluate the importance of websites on the Internet, is used here as a descriptor of H-bonding structure and is unique to this toolkit. The scripts further use PR to instantaneously identify the geometric organization of the solvent about the solute, so that the dynamics of solvent shells can be monitored ....

Though the algorithm uses water as its test case, the molecule's ubiquity in living things means that moleculaRnetworks has potential uses beyond chemistry. The model could, Clark says, help scientists to understand how diseases spread in the human body -- and, therefore, to understand how medicines might be optimized to fight them. More broadly, the algorithm offers a nice lesson in the power of cross-pollination between technology and academia -- a link that Google, of course, has embodied from the start. 

Image: The Journal of Computational Chemistry.

More From The Atlantic

More here:
A Chemist Uses Google's Algorithm to Determine the Structure of Molecules

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/64caec/future_german_clin) has announced the addition of the "Future German Clinical Chemistry and Immunodiagnostics Markets: Growth Opportunities and Business Expansion Strategies" report to their offering.

This report presents a comprehensive analysis of the German clinical chemistry and immunodiagnostics markets, including:

Major issues pertaining to the German clinical chemistry and immunodiagnostic laboratory practice, as well as key economic, regulatory, demographic, social and technological trends with significant market impact during the next ten years. Five- and ten-year volume and sales forecasts for over 100 clinical chemistry, TDM, endocrine, cancer, immunoprotein and abused drug assays performed in German hospitals, commercial laboratories, and physician offices, including controls, calibrators and consumables. Five- and ten-year volume forecasts for serum, whole blood, plasma, CFS, urine and other specimens. Five- and ten-year reagent and instrument sales forecasts. Review of current instrumentation technologies, and a feature comparison of 50 high-, medium-, and low-volume/POC analyzers. Sales and market shares of leading reagent and instrument suppliers. Review of current and emerging technologies and their potential market applications Product development opportunities for clinical chemistry and immunodiagnostic instruments and consumables. Profiles of 25 current and emerging suppliers, including their sales, market shares, product portfolios, marketing tactics, technological know-how, new products in R&D, collaborative arrangements and business strategies. Market penetration strategies, entry barriers and risk.

The report contains 578 pages and 119 tables.

For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/64caec/future_german_clin

See original here:
Research and Markets: Future German Clinical Chemistry and Immunodiagnostics Markets: Growth Opportunities and ...