Insects can communicate with each other about all kinds of things, but instead of using words, they use… you guessed it! Organic Chemistry! Insects can send signals to each other by secreting compounds, and one such compound used by...

Have you ever wondered why the gas station has “unleaded fuel” but there isn’t a “leaded” option? The answer has to do with a chemical called tetraethyl lead, which is an organometallic compound, or an organic compound with a...

Why are we so deadlocked on climate, and what would it take to overcome the seemingly insurmountable barriers to progress? Policy entrepreneur TED Halstead proposes a transformative solution based on the conservative principles of free...

In 1985, scientists discovered that 60 carbon atoms could join up to form one big soccer ball shape: a buckyball! It's a strange little molecule.

And thus begins the most revolutionary biology course in history. Come and learn about covalent, ionic, and hydrogen bonds. What about electron orbitals, the octet rule, and what does it all have to do with a mad man named Gilbert...

Photosynthesis plays a huge role in regulating the earth's CO2. But what happens when the temperature gets high enough that photosynthesis slows down?

SciShow Space describes a new phenomenon that might be out there: Stars made entirely out of metal. But it's not quite what it sounds like!

So, the stars made the elements, we're all made of star stuff, etc. But what does all this mean? This week Emily Graslie teaches you how the formation of chemical elements in the bellies of the earliest stars made life as we know it...

Since 1850, global average temperatures have risen by 1 degree Celsius. That may not sound like a lot, but it is. Why? 1 degree is an average. Many places have already gotten much warmer and if average temperatures increase one more...

A molecule is nearly all empty space, apart from the extremely dense nuclei of its atoms and the clouds of electrons that bond them together. When that molecule forms, it arranges itself to maximize attraction of opposite charges and...

The cold medicine you picked up at the store involves some cool chemistry to treat your symptoms.

When you think of a frozen object in space, you might think of Pluto, but stars themselves actually freeze.

Organic chemistry is a great workout for your brain, and to keep its energy up, your brain needs glucose. To maintain blood glucose levels, our bodies go through a process called gluconeogenesis, which involves the important type of...

Scientists are turning to unusual places to find new compounds to fight off drug-resistant “superbugs.” The discovery came from milking ferocious mammals!

Scientists have known for some time that certain animals can breathe using their butts, but now, researchers have determined that certain mammals can too! And in very much other news, researchers in Washington state have developed a new...

Scientists studying Comets 67P and Lovejoy have discovered oxygen, alcohol, and the building block of sugar. Sounds like a regular Friday night on earth, but it’s the first time we’ve found any of these things on a comet.

In 2009, a satellite circled Earth, scanning and sorting the wavelengths reflecting off the planet's surface. Researchers noticed something baffling: an unexpected wavelength of unknown origin. They tried looking at Earth with only this...

Some might call sand coarse, rough and irritating, but there’s no denying that it’s used everywhere: from glass to asphalt, sand is a key ingredient for all sorts of materials in construction and technology. But this heavy reliance on...

What if we took out more greenhouse gases than we put into the atmosphere? This hypothetical scenario, known as "drawdown," is our only hope of averting climate disaster, says strategist Chad Frischmann. In a forward-thinking talk, he...

Genomics pioneer Craig Venter takes a break from his epic round-the-world expedition to talk about the millions of genes his team has discovered so far in its quest to map the ocean's biodiversity.

What do woolly pigs have to do with climate change? They're part of a vital, ingenious and evolving strategy to take carbon out of the sky and store it safely -- in trees, soils, the ocean, buildings, rocks and deep underground. Every...

How do we know what the air is like on planets we haven't visited? This video explains how to see air from 150 light years away. Thanks to NASA's James Webb Space Telescope project at the Space Telescope Science Institute for supporting...

These days, we don't have to worry too much about meeting an early demise from ulcers, breaks in the stomach lining that could be fatal back in the early 1900s. This is because we have medicines to treat them, like proton pump...

As Earth’s climate changes, one of the hardest things to figure out is exactly how the planet will change in response. And while we can’t know the future for sure, we can get a lot of good clues from the past.