Every Molecule Tells a Story, 2ed by Simon Cotton, 2026

From cooking to medicine, from engineering to art, chemistry—the science of molecules—is everywhere. A celebration of the molecules of chemistry, Every Molecule Tells a Story celebrates the molecules responsible for the experiences of everyday life: the air we breathe; the water we drink; the chemicals that fuel our living; the steroids that give us sex; the colours of the seasons...

#books
#nonfiction
#science
#chemistry
#molecules

UK-based #deeptech startup Anzen Industries has secured $2.2 million in pre-seed #funding to advance its cell-free biomanufacturing platform for producing complex chemicals.

The company uses #reusable enzyme reactors and AI-driven design to manufacture high-value #molecules more efficiently than traditional synthesis or fermentation.

Its #technology reduces infrastructure, energy use, and production costs while strengthening global supply chain resilience.

We live in a very exciting time: answers to some of the oldest questions humanity has conceived are within our grasp.

One of these is whether #Earth is the only place that harbours #life.

In the last 30 years, the question of whether the Sun is unique in hosting a planetary system has been resoundingly answered: we now know of thousands of #exoplanets orbiting other #stars.

But can we use telescopes to detect whether any of these distant worlds also harbour life?

A promising method is to analyse the gases present in the #atmospheres of these #planets.

Astonishingly, we can identify #molecules present in the atmospheres of exoplanets.

Quantum mechanics causes each atmospheric chemical to have its own distinct barcode-like pattern, which it leaves on the light passing through it.

By collecting starlight that has been filtered through an #exoplanet’s atmosphere, telescopes can see the barcodes of the molecules making up that atmosphere.

To take advantage of this, the planet needs to #transit – pass in front of – the star from our point of view.

#astronomy #astrobiology
https://theconversation.com/how-astronomers-plan-to-detect-the-signatures-of-alien-life-in-the-atmospheres-of-distant-planets-272821