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May 31, 2007

National Medal Of Science

Chemistry professor Tobin Marks of Northwestern is among the eight laureates.

Shin-Etsu Will Boost Vinyl Intermediates

Japanese firm seeks greater control of raw materials for PVC.

Chevron, Texas A&M Will Research Biofuels

Partnership seeks conversion of nonfood crops into renewable transportation fuel.

U.S. Rejects G8 Climate Proposal

Declaration prepared by Germany's Merkel seen as crossing too many red lines.

Cells On A Bed Of Nails

Silicon nanowires allow DNA to be delivered into cells.

May 30, 2007

Chinese Drug Official Gets Death Sentence

Former regulator is found guilty of taking bribes to allow drugs on the market.

GSK Will Build Shanghai R&D Center

Firm says basic research facility will rank as one of its largest in the world.

May 28, 2007

Arenes Hook Up

Catalytic reaction selectively couples benzene and an indole.

Diabetes Drug Comes Under Fire

Safety questions about GSK’s Avandia may drive patients to alternative treatments.

Gene Deactivates Dicamba

Bacterial mechanism in broadleaf crops gives fighting chance against broadleaf weeds.

May 25, 2007

A Zinc Sensor For High Explosives

Direct fluorescence method selectively detects RDX and PETN.

Car Makers Versus California

Adversaries prepare for fight over limits on vehicle emissions.

Origin-Of-Life Researcher Dies

Chemist Stanley L. Miller showed that amino acids could have been synthesized on early Earth.

Polyvinyl Chloride Deal

Ineos will acquire PVC resin maker Kerling from Norsk Hydro for $913 million.

May 24, 2007

Nobelist Pierre-Gilles De Gennes Dies At 74

Physicist worked in areas of liquid crystals, physical chemistry of adhesives.

Rail Safety Bill Advances In House

Legislation aims to reduce railroad accidents by combating human error, crew fatigue.

AMRI Buys Two Indian Drug Plants

Purchase continues globalization of contract research firm.

May 23, 2007

Fingerprints May Divulge Drug Use, Disease

Antibody-based method shown to discriminate between smokers and nonsmokers.

May 22, 2007

Theoretical Chemists Win Welch Award

Foundation honors pair for their achievements in basic chemical research.

May 21, 2007

Biodiesel, Soap Makers Clash With Big Oil Over Tax Credit

Renewable fuel producers and oleochemical manufacturers urge Congress to close loophole that favors oil companies.

GE Plastics Will Be Sold To SABIC

Deal marks a grand entry for Saudi chemical giant into the high-end polymers business.

Pfizer's R&D Head Will Retire This Year

LaMattina leaves behind a $7 billion R&D organization.

Polymeric Quasicrystals

Organic materials broaden research vistas and could lead to new applications.

Chemical Security

Department of Homeland Security rule captures academic labs.

Keplerate Synthesis

Three simple ingredients from a complex metal cage structure with arresting symmetries.

Dow Joint Ventures

Two overseas projects are part of firm's overhaul of its commodity chemicals business.

May 18, 2007

Tracking Ancient Ocean 'Burps'

Sediment study links rise in atmospheric carbon dioxide at end of last ice age to abrupt releases from ocean.

Silicon-Based Spintronics

Study demonstrates flow of electron spin in workhorse materia.

May 17, 2007

Bush Will Curb Gas Use, Eventually

Four federal agencies will develop gas reduction plan.

Amine Synthesis Gains Utility

Reaction combines C–H functionalization of an amine with its addition to an olefin to form a new amine.

Methyl Bromide Inventory Shrinks

EPA says stocks of the fumigant are down more than 50% since 2003.

Clinton Foundation Orders AIDS Drugs

Indian companies will help provide $100 million worth of drugs for poor countries.

May 16, 2007

Lanthanides Expand Spectroscopic Arsenal

Metal ions' luminescent and magnetic properties enhance protein detection and structural studies.

Japan Profits Rising

Major Japanese firms once again boosted their full-year results.

May 14, 2007

Mylan Captures Merck Unit

Deal creates global player in the generic drug market.

Yeast Smells Explosives

Cells engineered to express rat olfactory receptors can detect DNT.

BIO 2007

Scientific innovation, commercialization are themes of biotech meeting.

Titan's Haze

New data from Cassini spacecraft unveil surprising chemistry behind the smog.

Lanxess Wants Degussa

German chemical maker is "very serious" about buying its compatriot rival.

May 11, 2007

Purdue Pleads Guilty In OxyContin Case

Drugmaker to pay $600 million for misleading promotion of narcotic painkiller.

Iranian ACS Members

Society reinstates 14 people who were dropped from the rolls owing to federal regulations.

Higher Capacity Lithium-Ion Batteries

New cathode materials boost performance.

Former Dow Executives Fight Back

Dismissed pair is denying company's accusations of betrayal.

May 10, 2007

Nanotube Needles Deliver Quantum Dots

Nanoscale injection system penetrates cell membrane to place optical probes into cytosol.

Rising Chemical Costs Threaten U.S. Manufacturers

Study finds that big users of chemicals may move offshore as raw material prices rise.

Senate Blocks Drug Import Bid

Safety concerns cited by health officials and drug industry thwart effort to allow imports of lower cost medicines.

Chinese Environment Watchdog Blocks Chemical Projects

Agency says projects worth $20 billion lacked public support.

May 9, 2007

Sila-Explosives Offer A Better Bang

Silicon-based explosives could be cleaner, more potent alternatives to traditional carbon-based explosives.

Peter Seeberger Wins Körber Prize

Vaccine research earns chemist prestigious German prize.

Clariant Exits Custom Chemicals

Swiss firm will sell custom chemicals business to private equity firm ICIG.

May 8, 2007

Climate-Change Solutions

Cost of stabilizing CO₂ is high but manageable, science panel says.

Brazil Breaks Patent On A Merck Drug

Despite drug maker's patent on AIDS drug, Brazil plans to import cheaper generic.

May 7, 2007

Probing Element 112's Chemistry

The superheavy element behaves like mercury.

Multifaceted Catalysts

Platinum polyhedra outshine their spherical cousins in catalysis.

Chemical Arms Disposal

Watchdog group offers ways to make U.S. program safer.

May 4, 2007

Supreme Court Rules On Patents

High court eases standard for determining whether an invention is obvious.

Vaccine Advance

Product made in mammalian cells, not chicken eggs, nears approval in Europe.

May 3, 2007

Steric Zippers Play Key Role In Amyloid Fibrils

Study indicates that Alzheimer's, type 2 diabetes, and other degenerative diseases are closely related at the molecular level.

Arctic Sea Ice Is Melting Fast

Researchers find that Arctic ice is disappearing much faster than predicted in UN models.

May 2, 2007

Writing On Ionic Liquids

Etching and erasing patterns on the frozen surface of the organic salts suggests a host of potential applications.

Sensitive, Selective Mercury Sensor

Nanoparticle-based colorimetric method detects part-per-billion levels of mercury.

May 1, 2007

Faster, More Sensitive 2-D NMR

Technique combines ultrafast NMR with hyperpolarization.

Academy Elects New Members

NAS elects 72 new members and 18 foreign associates from 12 countries.

Firms Advance Chemicals From Renewable Resources

More chemicals may be made as coproducts of the biofuels industry.