In recent years, the Syrian community in Romania grew due to the ongoing civil war. They say they like Romania. They have their school there. But still, the refugees wish to eventually return home, they told EURACTIV.ro.

We met some of them at the Tichrin Arabic School. They came from Syria, some of them years ago, others just recently. They are professors and teach the Arab children English, mathematics, Romanian language, chemistry, physics and other disciplines.

They did not come locked in a truck, they did not cross the sea in an inflatable boat along with dozens of other people. Still, the ones that came, in the recent years, had the same reason for which tens of thousands risk their lives on the road: the conflict in Syria.

They are part of the intellectual class of Syria. At home, they had everything they needed. They had status. Even if they support the Assad regime, the consequences of the conflict are the same for them. ISIS and the absurd rules they had to obey forced them to leave. Romania has become a second home for them.

Some years ago, an ambitious Kurd from a village in northern Syria won a scholarship to study abroad. He ended up in Havana, where he learned Spanish. Elias later returned to Syria, where he became a translator at the state news agency, SANA. EURACTIV Romania reports.

They remember what they went through in Syria, the way they lost their relatives or how they cheated death by choosing to leave. Still, they hope that the conflicts will end and that they will be able to return home. Until then, they have found a purpose in Romania.

Amal, the English teacher

My husband is a dentist. He has studied in Romania 20 years ago. When armed groups occupied the area where we lived, we thought that the best idea would be to come here in Romania. At first, I didnt want to leave and we waited more than we should have. I can still remember how my child used to put his fingers into his ears not to hear the gunshots around. He said I do not want to die! I do not want to die! Why are the armed groups attacking?

I remember something that affected me badly. One day, when I was taking my child to an exam, some masked men came before us. Why are you walking like that? Why are you dressed like that? they asked. Where are you going? Later you will not be able to do what you want anymore. We will be able to do anything. Something like that What is more, explosions were everywhere, all day and all night long. After that, we came here.

We decided we should come to Romania because my husband had been here before, and we could come legally.

I am not sure if there is an intact wall left of our house.

We left everything in Syria. My husband had a factory, a medical cabinet. We believe that if Syria will become peaceful again, we will surely return there. In Syria, in our country, people are peaceful. It is very strange what happened there.

In Romania, I work as an English teacher at Arabic School.

I know nothing of what is happening back home. The whole family left from there.

I just returned from Syria a week ago. There are entire areas destroyed, where the terrorists are located. I lived in Romania. My parents came many years ago. I went to school here, I worked here, but I want to go back to Syria, to do something there too. I mean, I did something here and now I wanted to do something there as well.

I am born in Romania, but I seriously think of doing something in Syria, just like other young people, to implement in Syria everything that we have learned.

Salman Assad, the manager of the Syrian Arabic School

In Damascus, it was totally safe up until problems started to appear. The boutiques and stores were left open when their owners had to leave for somewhere. They used to put a chair in front of the door, and nobody entered. The stores remained open. Who would come to steal? Nobody would.

You stop your car, leave the window open, the car open You have your bag there I am not exaggerating. I am telling the truth, sir. You return to your car 2, 3, 4 hours later. It is perfect, as you left it. To be perfectly fair, something can happen, but it is 1 in 100 cases. That is normal. But in general, that is Syria.

For us, Romania is the second country. I am a Syrian, and now Im also Romanian. I went to school here, and afterwards, I returned to Syria, after my PhD. I came back to serve in the army. I did not run from the army. That is the truth. I came back. I served. I worked. Then, I returned here (to Romania) without planning to live here. I came and after a while, I started to think that I want to help my child to learn. Darin was in the first grade. Her mother was in charge with education and she wanted to teach the children, so she did a class at home a school at home. This is where the idea to create a school was born.

Romania has a long history with Syria. If Romanian considers Syria It is logical We are brothers. Romanians get along very well with Syrians. It is a great thing and thats why I like Romania so much.

If you would say to me Go to Switzerland, the biggest villa, the biggest car, the largest salary. Live there in Geneva or live here in Bucharest. Honestly, I prefer to leave here, pure and simple, without even thinking about it.

The Romanian from Homs

My father is Syrian. I am a Syrian and a Romanian as well. My mother is a Romanian. I was born in Romania. Then, in 1999, we went back to Syria. I stayed there until 2016. We had the possibility to come back to Romania anytime we wanted.

In Homs, the bombings began in 2012. The city was freed from terrorists and placed again under the government rule.

We held together. We fled to Damascus, where we stayed for a year. Afterwards, we returned home, but we did not manage to escape the danger. Our house was destroyed after two explosions and I could not take it anymore. Ive lost my house and two cousins in the explosion. We came back to Romania temporarily. After everything is finished, I will go back to Homs, to the ruins that I left behind and rebuild our home.

I teach chemistry. In Deir ez-Zor, for example, they banned chemistry for heresy. What does that mean, chemistry is heresy? The Islamic State, these terrorists banned chemistry because they said it is from the devil. Biology was banned as well. They say that trying to understand the science of creation meddles with the science of God It should be prohibited. They banned biology and chemistry. They are not normal people. In reality, Islam encourages science, it is not against it, Islam encourages education. The Islamic State is not Islam. We are Muslims and we know that.

View original post here:
Syrian refugee in Romania: ISIS banned chemistry and biology - EURACTIV

The focus of man's impact on nature is often based on live interaction, however, our decomposing corpses also alter the delicate chemical balance in the soil after death, scientists warned on Wednesday.

Whether our bodies are buried or cremated, they leach iron, zinc, sulfur, calcium and phosphorus into ground that may later be used in farms, forests or parks.

While essential as general nutrients, human funerary practices mean the elements are being concentrated in cemeteries instead of being dispersed evenly throughout nature, according to new research.

As a result, in some places the nutrients are overly concentrated for optimal absorption by plants and creatures, while deficient in others.

Furthermore, human bodies also contain more sinister elements, such as mercury from dental fillings.

"Chemical traces of decomposed bodies can frequently be very well distinguished in soil," said Ladislav Smejda of the Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague, who took part in the unusual probe.

"These traces persist for a very long time, often for centuries to millennia," explained Smejda.

"The effects will become more pronounced as more and more dead bodies are laid to rest," Smejda said in Vienna, where he unveiled the research at a meeting of the European Geosciences Union.

"What we do today with our dead will affect the environment for a very, very long time," he said.

"Maybe it is not a huge problem in our current perspective, but with an increasing global population, it might become a pressing problem in the future."

Smejda and a team used X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy to analyze soil chemicals in graves and ash "scattering gardens."

Pushing up daisies

Using animal carcasses, they also measured the theoretical impact of an ancient practice called "excarnation," where the dead are left out in the open for nature to take its course.

In all three cases, the ground contained "significantly" higher concentrations of chemicals compared to its surroundings, Smejda said.

If cemeteries did not exist, human remains, like those of animals, would be distributed randomly and the nutrients they release would be reused "again and again, everywhere," the researcher told AFP.

"[But concentrating them in certain places] is something that can be regarded as not natural. It's human impact, and we are changing natural levels," he said.

Now the question is: "Can we come up with a better idea [of] how to distribute these necessary elements across wider landscapes?" Smejda added.

"Certainly it is potentially possible to invent, develop and put into practice ... new methods of human burial or new treatments that could be more environmentally friendly, more ecological," he added.

He conceded this was a "taboo" topic for many with funerary customs deeply rooted in culture and religion.

"It's a very complex matter, and we are only at the beginning of this discussion, I think," he said.

See the original post here:
Humans alter Earth's chemistry from beyond grave - Daily Sabah

PEKIN As a kindergartner used her weight in an attempt to crush a liquid-filled bottle, her fellow students looked on as it was unscathed.

The lesson, one of many during a Bradley University chemistry demonstration, proved that liquids could not be compressed. The bottles counterpart, however, was filled with air and crumbled when the petite student stepped on it.

For the last part of a school day in February at L.E. Starke Primary School, students and teachers had a visit from the Bradley University Chemistry Club Demo Crew led by professor Dean Campbell.

Students also saw how liquid nitrogen could freeze a racquetball, making it as fragile as glass, and then saw it shatter after being thrown against a wall.

A simpler demonstration was then held showing that household items such as Alka-Seltzer and water could be combined in a film canister to make miniature rockets. The carbon dioxide gas resulting from the chemical reaction of the two created pressure within the canister, separating it from its lid and blasting it more than 10 feet in the air.

We try and get to educate the community on different aspects of science get them excited about science. Some people use the word edutainment, Campbell said, adding: We dont want it to be scary. We want it to be accessible to people in the safest way as we possibly can.

Campbell, who teaches chemistry and biochemstry, was accompanied by four Bradley students for the visit.

Before the demonstration, students in Marj Oeshs second-grade class were researching and preparing science experiments of their own.

Just as the carbon dioxide and water combination created pressure in the film canisters, Claire Schaefer and Addison Johnson had a similar project of their own answering the question of what happens when a Mentos mint is dropped into soda.

Once the two are combined, there will be an explosion, the girls said.

Our question is how much soda will we have left in the bottle after we add five Mentos, Schaefer said.

We predict the Coca-Cola will have less [liquid] in the bottle, Johnson replied.

Bradley graduate student Dannielle Wentzel said making chemistry less threatening at a young age will hopefully get kids more interested in the field.

I think of what we try to do ... is use things that are accessible for a teacher or a parent, Wentzel said. Personally, I always like to talk about what you encounter on your day-to-day life that is chemistry.

An added bonus for Wentzel, she said, was getting the girls involved in the STEM fields of study.

I want to be out there as much as I can, because seeing that we have three girls doing this demo, its something that they could do, Wentzel said.

Even today, I had a girl tell me, I want to be a science person, and she was in kindergarten.

To end the excitement of seeing chemistry in action, the Demo Crew ended it with a boom. A balloon with air was popped, creating a pop heard throughout the gymnasium. The next two balloons, however, were filled with hydrogen gas, and when lit, gave off a louder explosion with a bright yellow flame.

Campbell said the Demo Crew has been doing these community events since 2007 and has done more than 200 of them at various locations in the Peoria area.

___

Source: (Peoria) Journal Star, http://bit.ly/2lEJCXY

___

Information from: Journal Star, http://pjstar.com

This is an AP-Illinois Exchange story offered by the (Peoria) Journal Star.

The rest is here:
Chemistry demonstration ends with a 'boom' | Northwest Herald - Northwest Herald

FRISCO, Texas -- A recurring theme from the Dallas Cowboys' success in 2016 was their chemistry.

Whether the winning led to the chemistry or the chemistry led to the winning is an unanswerable question, but the Cowboys clearly believed in it.

On Monday, the Cowboys officially start their offseason program at The Star, but for the better part of a month a number of players have been at the facility for unofficial captains' practices.

Phase 1 of the offseason program is really no different than what the players have been going through, except now there can be official contact with the strength and conditioning coaches. Players can go through strength and conditioning work as well as rehab for two weeks.

Phase 2 lasts three weeks with players and coaches interacting for the first time in teaching sessions on the field, but the offense and defense cannot work against each other.

The Cowboys will begin Phase 3 of the program on May 23 and have three weeks of organized team activities (10 practices total) followed by the only mandatory event of the offseason: the June veteran minicamp. There is no contact or pads, but the offense and defense can go through one-on-one, seven-on-seven and 11-on-11 drills.

A year ago the Cowboys credited their offseason work for their camaraderie that led them through difficult times in the season. Head coach Jason Garrett believes players who work together will stick together. The Cowboys dealt with injuries beyond the compression fracture suffered by Tony Romo in the preseason last year and still succeeded. Left tackle Tyron Smith, wide receiver Dez Bryant, cornerbacks Orlando Scandrick and Morris Claiborne and left guard La'el Collins missed significant time last year, but the Cowboys felt the work put in through May and June served them well from September on.

While a lot of the Cowboys' free-agent signings have been at The Star for the captains' workouts, the start of the offseason program allows players like Nolan Carroll II, Stephen Paea, Damontre Moore and Byron Bell to get used to how the Cowboys do business in an official way.

The workouts will also allow players coming back from missing last season, like Jaylon Smith and Charles Tapper, to get on the field away from the rehab process. Players like DeMarcus Lawrence (back) Tyrone Crawford (shoulder), who are coming back from offseason surgeries, should be able to step up their work.

The Cowboys will also be on the lookout for new leaders to emerge.

The Cowboys have lost Romo, Barry Church and Brandon Carr to either the CBS Sports booth or free agency. Those three played significant roles and also had solid leadership voices that will be missed.

Jason Witten and Sean Lee have the largest voices on either side of the ball, but Dak Prescott and Bryant will have the opportunity to grow into larger roles, as well as third-year safety Byron Jones. The type of leader Garrett believes is best are those who lead by example. It's not about how much weight is lifted or how fast they run, but how dedicated they are to the process.

Monday officially starts the process.

If the Cowboys can follow up their 2016 success with as much or more success in 2017, they will point back to the work they put in during March, April and May.

See more here:
With offseason program starting, Cowboys begin chemistry test - ESPN (blog)

Daniele Carotenuto/Getty Images Earth

Whether our bodies are buried or cremated, they leach iron, zinc, sulfur, calcium, and phosphorus into soil that might later be used as farms, forests, or parks.

It's not only in life that humans leave their mark on nature. In death, our decomposing corpses alter the chemistry of precious soil, scientists warned on Wednesday.

Whether our bodies are buried or cremated, they leach iron, zinc, sulfur, calcium, and phosphorus into ground that might later be used as farms, forests, or parks.

They are essential nutrients, but human funerary practices mean they are being concentrated in cemeteries instead of being dispersed evenly throughout nature, according to new research.

This means that in some places the nutrients may be over-concentrated for optimal absorption by plants and creatures, while lacking in others.

Furthermore, human bodies also contain more sinister elements, such as mercury from dental fillings.

Chemical traces of decomposed bodies can frequently be very well distinguished in soil, said Ladislav Smejda of the Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague, who took part in the unusual probe. These traces persist for a very long time, for centuries to millennia.

RELATED: Life Continues Within the Body After Death, Evidence Shows

The effects will become more pronounced as more and more dead bodies are laid to rest, Smejda said in Vienna, where he unveiled the research at a meeting of the European Geosciences Union.

What we do today with our dead will affect the environment for a very, very long time, he said. Maybe it isnot such a problem in our current perspective but with an increasing population globally it might become a pressing problem in the future.

Smejda and a team used X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy to analyze soil chemicals in graves and ash scattering gardens.

Pushing up daisies Using animal carcasses, they also measured the theoretical impact of an ancient practice called excarnation, whereby the dead are left out in the open for nature to take its course.

In all three cases, Smejda said, the ground contained significantly higher concentrations of chemicals compared to the surrounding areas.

If there had been no cemeteries, human remains, like those of animals, would be distributed randomly for the nutrients they release to be reused again and again, everywhere, the researcher told AFP.

RELATED: Rare Coffin Birth' Found in Black Death Burial Site

But concentrating them in certain places, he said, is something that can be regarded as not natural. It's a human impact, we are changing natural levels.

Now the question, he added, is: Can we come up with a better idea [of] how to distribute these necessary elements across wider landscapes?

Certainly there is a potential to invent, to develop and to put into practice... new ways of human burial or new treatments that could be more environmentally friendly, more ecological.

Smejda conceded that this is a taboo topic for many, with funerary customs deeply rooted in culture and religion.

It's a very complex matter, he noted, and we are just at the start of this discussion, I think.

WATCH: What Does Death Smell Like?

Excerpt from:
Our Decomposing Bodies Are Altering Earth's Chemistry - Seeker - Seeker

KODAK As the minor league baseball playoffs drew to a close last season, the Chicago Cubs Single-A affiliate, Myrtle Beach, found itself in an 0-1 hole after one game of the Mills Cup Championship Series, a five-game series between the top two teams of the Carolina League.

That was the last loss of the season for the Pelicans, who rattled off three straight wins over Lynchburg to claim the Cup in four games, winning the title for a second straight year.

The core of that team is still together, but its wearing a different uniform this season, as six starting position players and two starting pitchers from the Pelicans find themselves on the Tennessee Smokies opening-day roster.

I think it can carry over, Smokies manager Mark Johnson said at the teams media day on Wednesday. It does excite me, but its a new year. Just like for the big league team, 2016 was 2016. We have to turn the page and move on. We have to start for today, and see how good we can get for today.

The new year comes with talented new pieces to build around, starting with David Bote. The infielder was named the Carolina League postseason MVP after hitting .341 with six home runs and 41 RBIs in 72 games with the Pelicans last season.

The Longmont, Colo., native was 10 for 15 with four RBIs in the championship series, including a 2-for-4 performance in the deciding game. Hes now hoping he, and his teammates, can translate that success to Double-A. Hes off to a good start, hitting .355 with four RBIs through eight games.

There are really good guys on this team, Bote said. A lot of us have played together for the last three years. A lot of us were in Myrtle Beach last year. We play hard, and we play the game right. Its just a really good group.

Bote isnt the only Pelican star to make his way to the Smokies. Charcer Burks, Ian Rice, Jeffrey Baez, Andrew Ely and Erick Castillo played key roles for Myrtle Beach in the field last season, while Trevor Clifton and James Pugliese picked up wins on the mound in the championship series.

Clifton (No. 7) and game four starter Preston Morrison (No. 29) are ranked as top-30 prospects in the Chicago Cubs organization. Burks has taken over the lead-off spot for the Smokies, a place where the Houston native thrived last season. Burks hit .247 with a .356 on base percentage for the Pelicans. He hit 11 home runs and had 43 RBIs.

Hes off to a hot start this season for the Smokies, hitting .281 with an on base percentage of .361 early in the year.

The team chemistry with all these guys right now is awesome, Burks said. We still have that same mentality of whatever it takes to win games. Right now, were just getting a feel for this league. Everybody is still getting adjusted, but as far as clubhouse feel, its just awesome.

Chemistry is a fickle aspect of minor league baseball. Players are constantly moving up and down in an organization, meaning teammates come and go. On top of that, teammates are competing for a limited number of spots on a major league roster, making it difficult to balance camaraderie and a competitive edge.

As far as Double-A baseball goes, however, the Smokies are off to a good start when it comes to putting together a fluid team.

Absolutely, that does help, Johnson said of the continuity. A lot of these guys didnt just play together last year, but have played together for several years. Thats definitely a key component in having good chemistry.

Follow @Taylor_White94 on Twitter for more from sports writer Taylor White.

Follow this link:
Smokies hoping to continue Single-A chemistry | Sports ... - Maryville Daily Times

Pitcher Colin King tosses out a pitch during Horizons 53 home win over Mountain Ridge Wednesday, April 12. (Independent Newsmedia/Josh Martinez)

Most creations need time to set into place before they can reach their full potential and that is no different with the Horizon High School baseball team.

As of Friday, April 14, the Huskies are basking in a 2031 record and have recently drummed out a five-game winning streak to rank among some of the top teams in 6A. With all this success on his hands, head coach Eric Kibler said he thinks his team is enjoying the effects of many years of playing together.

These kids have played together since they were little kids, so that chemistry developed a long time ago and has increased, he said in an April 13 interview. They care for each other a lot, they pull for each other, theyre not willing to give anything up. I think that is the key, theyve played together for so much that they want it so much for each other.

This familiarity has led to a strong bulwark of team chemistry, one that pitcher Colin King said has pushed the team to a high level.

I just want to emphasize how good our team chemistry is this year, he said. I know everybody is enjoying the season. Even our role players are doing a good job coming off the bench, knowing their job and everybodys contributing.

King is part of a solid pitching rotation of which Coach Kibler said is one of the teams biggest strengths. As of Friday, April 14 morning, Horizon as a team has an earned run average of 3.05 and a total of 157 strikeouts, according to statistics on MaxPreps.com.

King has dialed up a 2.15 ERA and 43 strikeouts in 45 and two-thirds innings pitched to pace the rest of the rotation. King is one of three Husky pitchers with an ERA of 3.0 or lower and one of four pitchers with 20 or more strikeouts.

Horizon outfielder Sam Brown jogs to the dugout after an out during Horizons 53 home victory Wednesday, April 12 over Mountain Ridge High School. (Independent Newsmedia/Josh Martinez)

King said the key to the pitching crews success is an aggressive approach from the mound.

We like to get ahead early that way we get them to swing at maybe a breaking pitch or get a ground ball to get the out, he said.

Another aspect King said makes his job a lot easier is the trust he has for the defense behind him, especially in the outfield. King credits four-year starting centerfielder Evan Williams as being the anchor in the outfield. King was not the only one to notice and appreciate the outfields contributions.

Our defense out there is one of the best weve had here, Coach Kibler said. Thats really helped our pitchers, obviously. They have a lot more confidence that if a ball goes out there, its going to get caught.

While Coach Kibler doesnt see much wrong with his teams defensive and pitching efforts, he would like some improvements in the teams hitting. The team has a season batting average of .318 and have recorded an average of three runs per game over its past five.

Along with this, Coach Kibler said he would like to see his team play loose and have fun in the game over the rest of the regular season. The Huskies play their final regular season game Monday, April 24.

Through King and the rest of the team, it appears Coach Kiblers wish is becoming a reality.

This is the most fun Ive had in awhile playing baseball, King said. Its the best team chemistry Ive seen in the three years Ive been on varsity. Weve been playing together most of us since eighth grade, a lot of guys since little league. We play ping pong in the clubhouse before games. We do competitions at the end of practice every day. Its just been a lot of fun this year.

News Services Reporter Josh Martinez can be contacted at jmartinez@newszap.com or at 623-445-2738

Read the original post:
Horizon baseball uses solid team chemistry to formulate success - Scottsdale Independent

Teaching often means using creative ways to get through to students about complex subjects. For example, an assignment led one Marquette University undergrad to create a comic book about chemistry. WUWM's Chuck Quirmbach reports.

Teaching often means using creative ways to get through to students about complex subjects.For example, at Marquette University, an assignment has led one undergrad to create a children's comic book about chemistry.

Art has often been used to teach, including about science. Even very commercial art. For example, in the 1966 science fiction film Fantastic Voyage, a submarine crew was made tiny and sent inside a man. A trailer from the film boasted, "Off on a fantastic voyage, actually entering, inside, the human body, exploring an unknown universe! Unknown danger!"

About 30 years later, the cartoon The Magic School Bus shrunk the bus, teacher Ms. Frizzle and most of her students, and sent them inside a classmate named Arnold. "We're heeeere. Yay, we're back where we started. These are Arnold's skin cells. Cool!" the travelers exclaimed.

When Pouya Mirzaei was growing up, the first year Marquette University student was a fan of The Magic School Bus. He says that helped whenhis general chemistry professor asked their class last fall to create a children's book about chemistry.

Mirzaei eventually decided to shrink his characters, Danny and Noble, so Danny could get a better understanding of atoms.

"Specifically, it's atomic bonds, so how atoms interact with each other. It's one of the more basic principles of chemistry. So since this is targeted towards children, I thought the best principles to choose are the basic ones," Mirzaei recently told WUWM.

Mirzaei is majoring in biomedical sciences and hopes to go to medical school. But he decided he make his assignment a comic book because he's also had another ambition.

''Ever since I was a kid, I loved reading comic books. It was like one of my favorite pastimes. And one of my dreams, is to create a comic book when I am older. So, I thought this is a good chance to practice. It'll take me some extra time, but why not? Mirzaei said.

Stuck With Atomic Bonds is the title of the comic book. Mirzaei says he got a little stuck trying to finish the 12 pages of illustrations.

"Doing all that in a small, compact time, it takes a lot out of you," Mirzaei said.

Mirzaei says to finish the comic book and keep up in other classes required about 20 hours of work, including an all-nighter or two. But he says the effort was worth it, as Marquette University chemistry professor Llanie Nobile says Mirzaei got an A on the assignment.

The instructor only found out during our interview that the character Noble is named after her. Nobile says one of her goals was to see if her students picked up what she was teaching them, by having them explainit to others.

"Because I think it was Albert Einstein that said, 'If you can explain something simply, you understand it,' " she said.

That's also a skill useful for adults, Nobile adds.

"A lot of times, if we work with just other scientists, we can keep things pretty complicated. But when you look outside, when we're dealing with the media, or dealing with the business side, finances, for us to understand what we know on more layman's terms, is a bit challenging," Nobile said.

Keeping things simple, fun and creative are things many educators do every day. But Mirazaei says he'd like to see more of that.

"Anything that's not just beingtold facts. That seems like it would spark a lot more interest," Mirzaei said.

Mirazaei knows something about keeping things interesting. His comic book ends with the cliffhanger of characters Danny and Noble not knowing how to get back to normal size. Do they make it, eventually?

"We'll have to see," Mirzaei answered, adding that Stuck With Atomic Bonds may have a sequel.

Do you have a question about innovation in Wisconsin that you'd like WUWM's Chuck Quirmbach to explore? Submit it below.

_

See original here:
Chemistry Goes To The Comics Thanks To One Marquette University Student - WUWM

Texas A&M chemist Simon North officiated the Aug. 17, 2019 wedding of two of his former students, chemistry graduates Julia Santell 19 and Josiah Day 19.

Courtesy of Julia Santell-Day and Josiah Day

During his past two-plus decades as a college professor, Texas A&M University chemist Simon North has gotten his fair share of requests from students, ranging from help understanding a particular concept, for a curve on a recent test, advice on graduate schools and letters of recommendation.

Last spring he fielded his most unique request to date when two former students in his freshman chemistry course, Texas A&M senior chemistry majors Julia Santell 19 and Josiah Day 19, asked him to officiate at Aug. 17 wedding.

One of the benefits of an academic life is getting to know interesting young people and to watch them develop and grow and set out to make the world a better place, said North, head of theTexas A&M Department of Chemistry since 2016. The Class of 2019 is probably the most memorable class in my 22 years at Texas A&M.

The event featured multiple Texas A&M chemistry majors and several of Josiahs Corps of Cadets buddies in the wedding party, along with additional faculty members as honored guests. For his part beyond the traditional something new, old, borrowed and blue, North contributed the Texas-certified officiant status he earned online, as well as a powerful human touch.

North wrote his wedding-day remarks in a leather notebook gifted to him by the mother of another of his former students, 2004 Texas A&M chemistry graduate Dr. Matthew Rowan, who died in August 2016 along with his wife, Sunday Stewart Rowan, in a hot air balloon accident near Lockhart, Texas.

Fittingly, North gifted the notebook to the Days as a compelling keepsake and testament to enduring relationships that of husbands and wives, as well as that of student and teacher.

A marriage ceremony is a wonderful, joyous event a chance to celebrate publicly a lifetime commitment of two fantastic people. I have known Julia and Josiah since they were freshmen in my chemistry class in the fall of 2015. It is interesting that the first email I received from Julia asked about hypergolic propellants. For the non-chemists, these consist of two components which spontaneously ignite when they come into contact with each other. As a couple, Julia and Josiah are both inquisitive, interested and present. They are both kind, polite and respectful. They have both surrounded themselves with kind, supportive and loving friends. And they have excellent chemistry.

Julia and Joshia graduated from Texas A&M last May. To read more about their story, visit the College of Science website.

See the rest here:
Chemistry 101 - Texas A&M University

A third of early-career researchers have had their work harmed by the questionable research practices of colleagues based at their institution, an online survey of over 600 Australian researchers has found. That number is higher for women, with roughly four in 10 reporting being affected by the questionable research practices of colleagues at their institution.

The survey also found that a third of women and 29% of men also reported being affected by these practices by colleagues at other institutions. This was surprising, says study co-author Kate Christian, who studies higher education practices at Federation University Australia in Ballarat, Victoria. I can only surmise that those people are collaborators.

The study, published as a preprint, included 658 doctoral or postdoctoral researchers, around half of whom are working in the health or medical sciences. Over half the respondents said that their research had been hurt by a lack of support from institutional leaders, and over a quarter said they had suffered harassment from those in positions of power.

More than 15% of female respondents and around 11% of male respondents said they feel unsafe at work, the survey found. When asked what they would change about their work environment, more than half pointed to job insecurity.

Christian says she was told during interviews with some researchers that leadership at institutions typically know about many of the problems, but choose not to do anything about them. If they could be taught not to brush it under the carpet, to not tolerate the bullying and harassment, to improve the supervision and to generally tighten up looking after young researchers, life would be improved, she says.

The study follows another survey of over 4000 researchers released last month by the UK biomedical research charity Wellcome Trust, which reported widespread bullying and harassment, as well as long working days and pressure to publish papers.

The parallels to the Wellcome survey are striking, and thus I do think this study gives further evidence for the wide prevalence of such issues across academia globally, says Toma Susi, vice chair of Young Academy of Europe (YAE), a network of early-career researchers.

In a 2019 survey, YAE found that half of junior researchers work more than 50 hours a week. There is an increasing, and I think justified, concern that such interconnected problems with research culture and job security are leading to stress, burnout and mental health issues, as well as potentially undermining the integrity of research, Susi says.

Ferric Fang, a microbiologist at the University of Washington in Seattle who has investigated research misconduct, notes that the term used by the new survey questionable research practices is quite broad. It would be nice to have more details on specific practices, Fang says. Susi agrees.

For Fang, one thing is clear. The status quo is unacceptable, he says. We will not have a robust scientific enterprise if many of the most talented trainees become discouraged and choose other career paths.

Read more here:
Questionable research practices are hurting junior researchers | News - Chemistry World

It's a scene that's all too familiar to Houston residents.

Explosions, flames reaching into the sky, plumes of black smoke, calls to shelter in place, evacuations, injuries and deaths.

The explosion early Friday morning at a manufacturing plant was the latest deadly reminder of the potential danger posed by hazardous material facilities in the Houston area.

In 2019, there were at least five major chemical incidents in Southeast Texas.

STAY INFORMED: Subscribe to the Houston Chronicle for complete local news coverage.

On March 16, a tube leak caused a fire at Exxon Mobile's Baytown facility. The fire sent thick clouds of dark smoke into the sky. The company reported releases of sulfur dioxide, hydrogen sulfide and benzene for more than a week after the blaze.

The next day, an equipment failure at International Terminal Company's chemical tank farm in Deer Park caused a fire that burned for three days. The fire shut down the Houston Ship Channel, released large amounts of pollution into the air and water and led to multiple shelter-in-place orders for the surrounding communities.

On April 2, a transfer line carrying isobutylene ignited at the KMCO chemical facility in Crosby. The resulting explosion killed one worker and injured more than 30 others. The explosion reduced the building at the epicenter of the blast to shrapnel.

'I WAS SHOOK': Residents recall hearing massive warehouse explosion in west Houston

Shortly before the Thanksgiving holiday, an enormous explosion at TPC Group's facility in Port Neches injured workers and damaged homes. Fires in the aftermath burned for a week and led to evacuations of thousands of residents. One fatality

The Houston area is home to more than 2,500 chemical facilities.A 2015 Houston Chronicle investigation found there was a major chemical incident in the greater Houston area every six weeks.The investigation found many facilities posed serious threats to the public but were unknown to most neighbors and largely unpoliced by government at all levels.

In November, the Trump administration rolled back a number of chemical safety regulations created in response to the 2013 West Fertilizer explosion that killed 15 and injured more than 200. A coalition of environmental groups sued to stop the rollback.

With those regulations off the books, companies will not have to complete third-party audits or a root-cause analysis after an incident. Companies also will not have to provide the public access to information about what type of chemicals are stored in these facilities either.

While the federal government weakened regulations, Harris County has taken a more aggressive stand with the petrochemical industry in recent months. The county brought civil lawsuits and criminal charges to multiple chemical companies after incidents in 2019. This has led to a race to the courts as the state and the county fight over taking the lead in penalizing polluters.

TRY THE APP: Get alerts, breaking news and in-depth coverage on what's happening in Houston for your mobile phone and tablet devices through our mobile apps on Google Play and the App Store.

Read the original:
Deadly Gessner explosion the latest in string of major chemical incidents for Houston area - Houston Chronicle

Chemical analysis of ancient crystals has revealed a meteorite strike in Australia 2.229 billion years ago is the oldest impact yet discovered.1

The meteorite hit when our planet was covered in ice, and researchers think a cloud of water vapour it threw into the atmosphere could have acted as a greenhouse gas to warm the entire planet.

The researchers studied crystals they sampled in 2014 at the Yarrabubba impact site in Western Australia, about 620km north-east of Perth.

The impact is thought to have been caused by a roughly 7km meteorite smashing into the Earth, but its heavily-eroded 70km crater is now only visible as a central anomaly in geophysical surveys, and almost nothing can be seen on the surface.You are right in the Australian bush, it is kind of what you imagine kangaroos and emus running past, a very flat, desert-like landscape, says study co-author Chris Kirkland, a geochronologist at Curtin University in Perth.

Kirkland and his colleagues imaged tiny grains of zircon and monazite, smaller than the width of a human hair, to see where their crystal structures were deformed by the meteorite impact. The individual grains are actually quite beautiful, he says. Theyve got a range of textures that can only be produced under extreme temperature and pressure conditions and the only way to get those extreme temperatures and pressures on Earth is to slam a large rock into another large rock.

Zircon and monazite contain traces of uranium, so the researchers used a narrow beam of oxygen ions to measure radioactive decay products in the parts of the grains deformed by the meteorite impact. By targeting the specific domains within the crystals that were reset by the impact event, we were able to get the age of the impact, explains lead author Timmons Erickson, a geochronologist at Nasas Johnson Space Center at Houston in the United States.

The impact 2.229 billion years ago is 200 million years older than the Vredefort Dome in South Africa, the next oldest-known meteorite crater.

It coincides with the end of a period of intense glaciation a so-called snowball Earth state and raises the possibility that the Yarrabubba meteorite was the reason it ended. The impact could have melted an ancient layer of ice and released up to 5 trillion tonnes of water into the atmosphere eventually tipping the chemistry of the earths atmosphere so it could sustain the warm conditions of today, Erickson says.

Kenneth Amor, a geochemist at the University of Oxford, says the dating of the impact by Erickson and colleagues looks believable. Amor was not involved in the research, but he recently led a team that discovered the largest meteorite to hit Britain a 1.2 billion year-old impact in Scotland.

The idea that a cloud of water vapour from Yarrabubba warmed the Earth is an interesting one, he says. But if the effects only lasted a few years it would be unlikely to result in a glacial thaw, unless that thaw was already underway.

While the study led by Erickson has identified the oldest-known meteorite impact, another study has found the worlds oldest substance inside a meteorite that fell in 1969.2 By measuring neon isotopes created by exposure to cosmic rays, the researchers determined some silicon carbide grains in Australias Murchison meteorite formed up to 7.5 billion years ago long before our sun and planets.

The international team thinks that the grains were part of the interstellar dust that coalesced to form our solar system about 5 billion years ago.

Visit link:
Crystals reveal the site of the world's oldest meteorite strike - Chemistry World

Even during OTAs, Aaron Rodgers and Jordy Nelson are capable of producing the wow play for the Green Bay Packers.

During a team drill on Tuesday, Rodgers and Nelson delivered one of those special plays with Rodgers threading the needle between two defenders and Nelson contorting his body to get two feet inbounds along the back of the end zone for the score.

The chemistry between Rodgers and Nelson remains inextinguishable.

We know each other on the field really well, Rodgers said on Tuesday. He understands when the balls coming out, where he needs to be in certain spots. Weve done so many things in practice over the years. Hes always seeing the game through the quarterbacks eyes. He knows timing and spacing and second and third reactions better than anybody thats ever been here.

Even after Nelson missed the entire 2015 season with a knee injury, the connection between quarterback and receiver never suffered. Rodgers found Nelson for 97 completions and 1,257 yards in 2017, with 14 of the connections ending in touchdowns. No other quarterback and receiver combined for more last season.

How do two players so in sync get better during a June practice? Rodgers said the key is always working to build the chemistry.

Its just continuing to try and stay on the same page with him, and build, Rodgers said. Every season hes been healthy, weve had some pretty big years.

The numbers are undeniable. Over his last five healthy seasons, Nelson has produced 397 catches, 6,098 yards and 57 touchdowns with the majority of the production coming from the right arm of Rodgers. He also has four seasons with at least 1,200 yards and three with 12 or more touchdowns.

Rodgers and Nelson will enter their ninth season together in 2017. The chemistry between quarterback and receiver remains as strong as ever.

View original post here:
Packers QB Aaron Rodgers explains chemistry with Jordy Nelson - Packers Wire

[+]Enlarge

Smart kid: Coloring an introduction to chemicals.

Credit: Neil Garg

When his daughter Kaylie was four, University of California, Los Angeles, chemistry professor Neil Garg noticed a disturbing trend: She was scared of chemicals.

I would give her something new, and she would say, Is that a chemical? Garg remembers.

So Garg set out to help Kaylie and her older sister, Elaina, understand that chemicals are vital to some of their favorite things. Because they love to color, he thought a coloring book might be the perfect vehicle to spread that message to his girls and other kids their age.

Garg involved Elaina and Kaylie in creating The Organic Coloring Book, starting with deciding which chemicals to present. We came up with the chemicals that they were curious about, he says.

The family started with a chemical question, such as Whats a chemical that makes soap so foamy? Then they determined the chemical answer, presented in the book as a structure. I really liked making the chemical questions. I thought that was fun, Elaina tells Newscripts. Coming up with the chemical answers was cool too.

Elainas favorite chemical is dimethylpyrazine, which is a vital part of bacons smell. Kaylies is the cyanidin that colors blueberries, one of her favorite foods.

Garg hired a graphic designer to draw the book based on structures provided by Garg and several of his graduate students. Although the structures are in two dimensions on the page, he has been happy with how well his kids and others understand what they are seeing. Its not too far from the creative imagination of a kid to understand what it looks like in 3-D, he says.

The designer came up with the idea of introducing an animal that guides readers through the book, named Cheesy the Mouse. Dressed in a lab coat, Cheesy introduces readers to the various chemical questions and answers. Kaylie chose a mouse guide because I like mice and they love cheese.

For 1-sulfinylpropane, Cheesy cries as she shows how the chemical in onions makes your eyes sting. Our eyes make tears to wash the chemical away, Cheesy explains.

The coloring book has sold about 100 copies via Amazon.com already, and the family has given them away at both girls schools.

The book should attract parents who are interested in teaching their kids about how the world works. Its really something for kids to at least get exposed to chemicals, Garg says.

Oscar Mayer oops: The meat maker is correcting this ad campaign that showed mistakes in several chemical structures.

Credit: Twitter

The advertising department at Oscar Mayer could have used a coloring bookor other guidance from chemistson its recent advertising campaign.

The company made the exciting announcement that it had removed all nitrites and nitrates from its hot dogs. But its television ad flipped the two structures, causing a minor uproar on Twitter. Hey @oscarmayer, if you have any chemists working for you, have them review your commercials before they air, @ChemMarketeer tweeted.

The ad features another chemical mistake just a few seconds later: A structure labeled artificial preservatives includes an aromatic ring with its double bonds in all the wrong places.

Spokesperson Lynne Galia of Kraft Heinz, which owns Oscar Mayer, tells Newscripts they are aware of the issue. The structures have been corrected and will be reflected in the ads on air soon, she says.

If they need more help, they might be able to call Elaina and Kaylie Garg.

Read the original:
The color of organic chemistry and a meaty structure mistake - Chemical & Engineering News

BOSTON -- Kemba Walker was cooking.

Its the type of cooking weve seen before. Its the type that destroyed the Celtics in Charlotte at the end of last season, erasing an 18 point fourth quarter Boston lead in a blink.

Its the type that earned him the nickname Cardiac Kemba.

With the Celtics down seven in the fourth quarter, he hit a pull up jumper.

30 seconds later, after a Toronto Raptors turnover, Walker hit a 3-pointer to cut it to two.

20 seconds later, after Pascal Siakam finally missed a shot, Jaylen Brown pulled up and missed from 18 feet.

Wait, what?

Everyone in the building knew at that moment it was the wrong shot to take. Brad Stevens was demonstrably upset. When Norm Powell drew a foul and went to the line to calmly stop the Walker onslaught, Brown looked at Walker to give him the my bad.

Walker didnt want to hear it.

He dont have to apologize to me. Hes not a bad guy, he works hard, Walker said after the game. He took a great shot, he just missed. I didnt want him to apologize. I wanted him to be confident.

Its a moment that might not have existed in a different time. Brown, standing in the lane as Powell shot, looked at Walker who was waving his arms like an NFL ref signaling an incomplete pass. The play, Walker was telling Brown, was over.

He told me I was good, Brown said after the game. Brad had an aneurysm and Kemba was like, Youre good, bro. Just keep playing.

And keep playing, he did.

As Kemba resumed ripping the hearts out of the Raptors, Brown pitched in with a monster weak-side block, a layup, and a gorgeous three-quarter court bounce pass to Gordon Hayward on the fast break. Hed later add another block and a 3-pointer to help seal the win.

I loved (Browns) reaction, Stevens said of the free throw line exchange. He knew. And I loved Kembas reaction. Both of those guys reacted great. Thats what its all about.

It really was a record scratch kind of moment. In a way, it was one of the first tests of the teams chemistry. We were finally getting to see if all the team building in China and rah-rah preseason positivity was real or just some fluffy storyline.

Here they were, in the home opener, one game after the teams new superstar laid an egg on the road. He was finally cooking. He was hearing it from the crowd, soaking it all in, leading a big comeback. And then a guy, one of last years young guys, in fact, took that shot.

It could have gone differently.

Its great for me just to know that he has your back because you dont always have that case or that scenario, Brown said after the game. Easily somebody could have said something or got upset or thrown a tantrum or whatever, but Kemba was like, No, youre good. Just play. It was the confidence I needed to make sure the next play was the right play.

Read this article:
In a test of Boston Celtics team chemistry, Kemba Walker & Jaylen Brown show just how different things are - MassLive.com

PEOPLE.com

MAFS' Anthony D'Amico on His 'Great Chemistry' with Ashley Petta: 'She's an Absolute Knockout' PEOPLE.com Married at First Sight is back! On season 5 of Kinetic Content's hit social experiment show, three couples meet for the first time at the altar just minutes before exchanging vows. The newlyweds (whose wedding portraits were taken by Mike Staff ...

Continued here:
MAFS' Anthony D'Amico on His 'Great Chemistry' with Ashley Petta: 'She's an Absolute Knockout' - PEOPLE.com

Researchers at Washington University in St Louis have examined cognitive differences in university students that may contribute to their high dropout rate from introductory undergraduate chemistry courses. They found that those who can make accurate extrapolation predictions based on concepts presented in class what they dub abstraction learners consistently outperformed so-called exemplar learners who have trouble doing so and instead depend on rote memorisation. These performance differences were even more pronounced for those enrolled in higher level organic chemistry courses.

The Washington University team studied more than 800 students taking chemistry courses over three semesters at a highly competitive US research university, roughly half of whom were classified as having difficulty bridging the gap between a concept and an illustrative example. The researchers used a learning assessment to determine how well these students understood abstract concepts presented during a fictional assignment that required them to learn the functional relation between two new elements associated with a new organism supposedly discovered on Mars.

The researchers found that active learning, at least in the form of a peer-led approach, helped a subset of the exemplar learners perform better. To determine whether these results are replicated in other introductory scientific courses and at other research institutions, the researchers are studying these effects in other science, technology, engineering and mathematics (Stem) classes and at different universities.

Tools to anticipate which students might have difficulty in chemistry and other science subjects are helpful as poor grades in these classes are a major contributor to undergraduates leaving Stem degrees. We know people who are rote learners struggle with science, and if we can identify them early, we can change the curriculum and put in supplemental support, study co-author Regina Frye tells Chemistry World. Since we have shown that their concept-building approach does predict their effective performance, now we are looking at what types of interventions you may use that could help these students.

Excerpt from:
Predicting which undergrads will succeed in chemistry - Chemistry World (subscription)

Share

Share

Email

Print

LAS VEGAS The love story of Tim McGraw and Faith Hill started on a tour two decades ago and that sparkling chemistry onstage has made them one of the genres biggest headliners.

The country couple with movie star glamour have sold more than 63 million albums in the U.S. between their two careers, earned two Grammys for duets they sang together, and have three children. This year, they are releasing their first-ever duet album together and started their third installment of their highly successful Soul2Soul World Tour (it launched last week).

Faith Hill, left, and Tim McGraw appear at the 52nd annual Academy of Country Music Awards in Las Vegas.

Invision Enlarge

I havent been on a stage like this in 10 years and that is no lie, Hill said of the tour. I can tell you right now I am fired up.

During an Associated Press interview with the couple, Hill and McGraw were giddy with anticipation.

Shes ready to turn it loose, McGraw said.

Age is not an issue, added Hill, who together with her husband will be turning 50 during the tour that runs through October, including stops in Cleveland, Columbus, and Detroit.

The Mississippi-born Hill and the Louisiana-born McGraw fell in love when she opened for him on his 1996 Spontaneous Combustion tour and they married that year.

In 2000, the first Soul2Soul tour grossed $48.8 million, making it the best grossing country tour in North Americathat year, according to Pollstar. The Soul2Soul II tour was even more successful, grossing $88.8 million in 2006, and made it the 3rd highest grossing North American tour that year.

McGraw credited their success on the road to the fact that they are very different singers who push each other to expand their ranges onstage.

Faith, I would say, is more of an R&B, sort of gospel-inspired singer, McGraw said. And I think I am more a 70s rock, arena rock, Merle Haggard meets arena rock kind of singer. She brings me a little bit more to the R&B side, and I bring her more to the arena rock side, and I think it creates a sort of magic.

Their first duet together, Its Your Love, was on McGraws 1997 Everywhere album, which was followed by Just to Hear You Say That You Love Me, from Hills multiplatinum album Faith. Since then, they have had several popular duets, including their latest, Speak to A Girl, which jumped into the Top 10 of Billboards Hot country songs chart after they performed it on the ACM Awards.

But they say they dont always agree in music, or in marriage, but McGraw said commitment is key.

Look, there is no secret, Hill said. Either you like one another or you dont. You want to stay married or you dont. You work at it, or you dont. Simple as that. It is not always easy and there are moments that are rocky.

See the article here:
Chemistry onstage makes Faith Hill and Tim McGraw a top tour - Toledo Blade

Saltalammachia received high praise from Saturday's batterymate, Marco Estrada, and the two have developed productive chemistry that could lead to more playing time for the catcher, Laura Armstrong of the Toronto Star reports.

Saltalamacchia, who signed with the Jays in the offseason, has started just two of the team's first 13 games while amassing a measly 10 at-bats. However, the door may be open to increased plate appearances after Estrada -- who struggled last time out -- pointed to the 31-year-old's influence as a key to the pitcher's seven scoreless innings. "It was the way Salty called the game. I was just trying to follow him, elevated a lot of fastballs and had them swinging at it," said the right-hander. As of now, Saltalamacchia is unworthy of a fantasy roster spot. But, if he settles in as Estrada's routine catcher, then the veteran could turn up as a nice value play in daily leagues on occasion.

Read the original post:
Blue Jays' Jarrod Saltalamacchia: Developing chemistry with Marco Estrada - CBSSports.com

Arizona State coach talks team chemistry for regionals Golf Channel Arizona State coach talks team chemistry for regionals. Arizona State women's golf head coach Missy Farr-Kaye and her team are excited to be the No. 2 seed in the Lubbock Regional for 2017 NCAA Division I Women's Golf Regionals. PlaylistTrending. and more »

More:
Arizona State coach talks team chemistry for regionals - Golf Channel