Shape the Future of ACS! We want your feedback about the ACS brand and how we can serve you better into the future. Take the Survey!

October 2020

Features

guy using sticky note on glass
DepositPhotos

How Sticky Innovations Changed the World

By Carl E. Heltzel

Tapes and glues are everywhere, making it easy to take them for granted. But take a quick look at their long, influential history, and you might gain a new appreciation for everyday adhesives!

Teacher's Guide

* Article in Spanish Translation


fish in water full of plastic
DepositPhoto

The Search for Hidden Plastics

By XioZhi Lim

Millions of tons of plastic enter the oceans every year, but only some ends up floating on the surface. Researchers are on a mission to find out where the rest of the plastic has gone and what risks it might pose.

Teacher's Guide

Hidden Plastics Puzzle

*Available by subscription only


northern lights aurora
Shutterstock

Lighting Up the Night Sky

By Jeffrey Deakin

For millennia, the ghostly, breathtaking northern lights have awed those who have seen them. Find out what causes the lights, where you might catch a glimpse of them, and how studying these auroras can help protect us.

Teacher's Guide

*Available by subscription only


hands pumping sanitizer
Freepix

What is Hand Sanitizer, and Does It Keep Your Hands Germ-Free?

By Laura Howes/Chemical & Engineering News

Hand sanitizer has become an essential tool in the fight against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. But not all hand sanitizers are the same. Make sure you know which ones to buy—and what’s a better alternative.

Teacher's Guide

*Available by subscription only


Featured Video

Youtube ID: K2pMVimI2bw

Departments

Can Copper Save Us from Coronavirus?
Doc Silver Medical Wear

Can Copper Save Us from the Coronavirus?

By Michael Tinnesand

A recent claim is that a familiar metal, copper, could help us beat back the COVID-19 pandemic. There is already some basic science to suggest that it might help in some ways. Copper has natural antibacterial and antiviral properties, which seem to come from copper’s ability to conduct electricity.


Summer camp
Hoby Wedler

A Different Way of Seeing

By Carl E. Heltzel

In Petaluma, California, where Hoby Wedler went to high school, a teacher once told him that his blindness would make it exceedingly difficult for him to study lab chemistry. But Wedler has frequently chosen not to take the easy route. Undeterred, Wedler took high school chemistry, then went on to earn college degrees in history and chemistry.