Vitamins are an important part of our diet, but you probably haven’t given a great deal of thought to their chemical structures. This graphic shows chemical structures for all 13 vitamins; though there can be some variability in these structures in sources of the vitamins, these are generally representative. They perform a range of roles in the body; below is a brief discussion, and a look at the evidence for taking vitamin supplements.
With New Year’s Eve upcoming, a large number of people will celebrate by popping open a bottle of champagne. The bubbles in your glass may seem simple enough, but there’s actually a wealth of interesting chemistry behind them – chemistry that’s vital for the perceived taste and aroma of the wine. There’s a lot more to the bubbles than you might think, and this post picks apart some of the chemical compounds involved.
Gold, frankincense and myrrh are key parts of the traditional Christmas story, brought as gifts by the Three Wise Men. Of course, gold we’re all more than aware of, but frankincense and myrrh are perhaps more mysterious substances in the modern day. This post takes a look at the chemistry of all three.
The aroma of pine trees is one that’s evocative of Christmas; one of the responsible molecules, alpha-pinene, has already been featured on the Chemistry Advent Calendar, but here we take a more detailed look at the chemical constituents of the aroma.
There are few things more warming than a mug of mulled wine in the depths of December. Exact recipes may vary, but they all include a common core of ingredients, each of which contributes something to the final flavour. This graphic examines some of the key chemicals that each ingredient adds into the mix, with more detail on each provided below.
There’s one vegetable at the Christmas dinner table that’s always bound to elicit strong and contrary opinions: brussels sprouts. Much like marmite, they seem to conjure up a ‘love it or hate it’ sentiment; however, if you fall into the latter camp, there may actually be a chemical and genetic reason why you can’t stand the taste. Sulforaphane is the featured molecule today in the Chemistry Advent Calendar, but here we take a closer look at the some of the other chemicals found in brussels sprouts.
