Chemistry from the BBC 

The big thaw might well be on its way but should we ever find ourselves faced with such freezing weather conditions again, it’s good to know that – thanks to chemistry − at least we won’t have to panic about how much grit we don’t have. In this item from a recent Radio 4 Today programme, Martyn Poliakoff, Professor of Chemistry at the University of Nottingham, presents a scientific view of how to grit your path – we need never rely solely on grit again!

On a related note, it’s nice to see the BBC is giving chemistry its fair share of airtime. Next Thursday 21^st January sees the start of a three-part series on BBC4 called ‘Chemistry: A Volatile History’ presented by Jim Al-khalili. The series will look at how the elements were discovered and mapped, and explores how new approaches to splitting matter brought both remarkable elements and the new science of chemistry – definitely one worth watching!