Ever wondered about poisonous chemistry, when will finite resources run out, or the science behind hydrophobic materials? Pupils in Year 12 from City of London Freemen’s school enjoyed a day out in London for Chemistry Live to find out. Held in the Friends House in Euston, the vast auditorium was packed with many other A-Level chemists wanting to build on their scientific knowledge.
The day comprised five lectures from top scientists, along with two examiner sessions. Here are some of the highlights:
The series of talks started with UCL Professor of Chemistry Andrea Sella, who won the Royal Society of London Michael Faraday Prize in 2014. He delivered an interesting talk on ‘Nerve Agents: Chemistry’s dirty secret,’ which mentioned the case of the Salisbury poisonings in 2018. The nerve agent, Novichok, poisoned the former Russian double agent for MI6, Sergei Skripal, his daughter Yulia, and sadly claimed the life of a British woman named Dawn Sturgess.
Teaching us all about ‘Understanding the Periodic Table’ was a Professor of Chemistry from St Catharine’s College, Cambridge. Dr Peter Wothers also has a passion for collecting antique early works on chemistry. During his talk he showed many different arrangements of elements of the periodic table, as well as sharing the intriguing history behind why these tables had such different structures compared to Mendeleev’s that we use today.
Professor Serena Cussen from the University of Sheffield rose awareness about ‘The Hunt for New Batteries’ and the fight against climate change. She successfully highlighted how we need to find alternatives to lithium batteries and shed some light on our overuse of finite resources.
My personal favourite was Dr Tim Gabriel’s talk on ‘Chemistry and Careers.’ As well as educating us on what we can do with a degree in chemistry, he talked about his work around the world from Barbados to Ireland. In addition, he spoke about his research on nanoparticles and demonstrated how a special hydrophobic shirt repelled water spilling on it.
One student told me: "I really enjoyed the chemistry trip as I think it gave me insight into the use of chemistry in the wider world. My favourite talk was about the use and development of chemical weapons."
