I didn’t like sprouts as a child and I must admit to a degree of ambivalence even now as an adult. I think they are generally better-cooked these days so that they arrive at the table crunchy rather than mushy (everything seemed to be boiled to destruction when I was young). I am just not …
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Category:Biology
Coloured Compounds….
Although I have written about chromatography, and how it can be used to separate mixtures of coloured compounds, it occurs to me that I have not really talked about why certain chemicals are a particular colour or even what colour really is. I shall try to address this omission here. Our experience of colour is …
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Balthazar…
NB – if you have posted comments, I often include follow up questions in my replies so do check back and read my responses. A standard wine bottle holds 750 ml (cm3) of liquid. That is ¾ of a litre, sometimes called 75 cl. We almost always use units derived from the litre to measure …
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Respiration…
I often refer to respiration as the most important chemical reaction on the planet (arguable!). Encyclopaedia Britannica defines cellular respiration as… the process by which organisms combine oxygen with foodstuff molecules, diverting the chemical energy in these substances into life-sustaining processes and discarding, as waste products, carbon dioxide and water The Oxford English Dictionary divides …
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Gaspar…
This is part of a Christmas themed trio of posts titled after the three wise men of nativity fame (Gaspar, Balthazar & Melchior). As an aside, how do we know there were three? There were three gifts (I have written about them too!) but the bible makes no mention of how many wise men/kings/magi there …
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Myrrh…
Myrrh is, like Frankincense, derived from the sap of a tree; this time from trees of the genus Commiphora, particularly the species Commiphora abyssinica. As you can see from the picture, it is formidably well armed. When a cut is made through the bark and into the sapwood beneath, waxy gum oozes out that can …
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Tautonym…
I like the Latin names of different species. They are normally named with their genus then their species so humans are Homo sapiens (often abbreviated to H. sapiens). The genus is always capitalised and the whole name is in italics. I have always liked it when the genus and species are the same. I think …
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Diffusion…
Diffusion is the random movement of particles from areas of high concentration to areas of lower concentration. This happens because the particles in a liquid, solution or gas are able to move freely. The following video explains it quite nicely with a sugar lump dissolving in water as the example. . I will write about …
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Frankincense…
Twelve years ago the BBC published two stories about the probable disappearance of frankincense – here and here. Frankincense continues to be produced so perhaps concerns about the sustainability of its production were listened to, and suitable action taken. It is a valuable commodity for those involved in its production. Frankincense is the hardened resin …
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Photosynthesis…
Photosynthesis is an immensely important reaction for life on Earth since plants are the primary producers of food for (nearly) all food chains. They get the energy to make their food from sunlight and use it to split carbon dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O) into their constituent atoms and reassemble them into glucose (C6H12O6) molecules. Some …
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