biochemistry

I teach an introductory college chemistry course for non-science majors called Chemistry of Everyday Things. Most of my students have little prior science experience, and they often begin the course intimidated by chemistry.

The conversion of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) into adenosine diphosphate (ADP) is an extremely important energy source for living organisms. Under common physiological conditions, it can be expressed as:

Many have asserted that the water we drink is exactly the same water that has been eliminated from the bodies of humans and animals from the past. The argument goes that water excreted from our bodies by exhalation or urine ultimately ends up back in the water cycle.

An experiment that has always fascinated me is observing what happens when CO₂ is bubbled into limewater (which is a saturated solution of calcium hydroxide).^1-2 This experiment can be carried out by blowing bubbles of exhaled breath (which contains roughly 4% CO₂)³ through a straw into limewater.

Co-Authored by Iain A. Smellie*, Iain L. J. Patterson* *University of St Andrews, School of Chemistry, North Haugh, St Andrews KY16 9ST, United Kingdom

Can Alkaline Water Change Body pH?

Recently as I was mowing my lawn, I noticed that some of the florets on white clover have a slight pink or purple color (Figure 1). Because anthocyanins often impart red, blue, and purple color to plants, fruits, and flowers,^1,2 I wondered if these tiny pink florets in white clover contained anthocyanins.

First, thanks for reading. And second, share often and share liberally. About 150+ days ago SARS-CoV-2 and the debilitating disease it causes COVID-19 were scientific unknowns to the American public. Of course, that is not the case today. And since March 2020 interest in the virus and the disease it causes has dominated scientific inquiry.