This Week in Chemistry – Taming Organolithium Chemistry, and Using Silly Putty to Detect the Human Pulse

Here’s the weekly summary of both new chemistry research and studies that have been in the news. This week features news on how using a greener solvent could help tame fiery organolithium chemistry, how chemists have helped work out how sailors on John Franklin’s ill-fated arctic expedition died, and more. As always, links to further articles and original research papers are provided below.

Note: links to studies behind a journal paywall are indicated with (£). Studies without this symbol are open access, and can be accessed and read for free. Asterisked studies are free but require logging in to read.

Featured Stories

Graphene-spike silly putty can detect human pulse: [Article] [Study (£)]

Franklin expedition: Fingernails rule out lead poisoning: [Article] [Study (£)]

Chemoluminescent nanoparticles detect viruses in blood: [Article] [Study*]

Chemists help identify Egyptian Queen’s mummified legs: [Article] [Study]

Greener solvent tames fiery organolithium chemistry: [Article] [Study (£)]

Keep track of older ‘This Week in Chemistry’ posts on the category page, or via the #TWIChem hashtag on Twitter.

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