Did you realize that calcium is actually a metal....

...which is one of the many reasons it is such a logical element to be utilized by the human body.

Its chemistry is such that it combines with many non-metals--phosphorus, chlorine, carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen, and others--to form such useful materials as bone in living things and many types of minerals in non-living. Its elemental properties make it a superb ion for use by muscles and nerves in the process of excitation-contraction coupling.
Calcium and chemistry--
make sure you are on board with both this weekend.

H2O + CO2 = TROUBLE!

=H2CO3, carbonic acid. Even "normal" rain is acidic!

The more CO2 or H+ (from any source, such as sulfuric and hydrochloric acids), the more acid the rain, the more damage to stone and other non-living objects. And living ones....
Increases in these substances are why the oceans are becoming more acidic.
Acids tear off electrons, destabilizing non-organic molecular structures and living systems such as cell membranes and the Krebs cycle.
We're melting!!

Dem bones, dem bones...

...dem wet bones.
Bones are not "dry"--they are very much alive. Good thing, too, because we depend on their actions every second of our lives.
In addition to providing support and strength, they are our major reservoir of calcium and phosphorus, the former required for nerve and muscle action and the latter to create energy. Be good to your bones today!

It's a gas....

...no, a solid!
no, plasma!
no, a liquid!

It's the Second Law of Thermodynamics!

Cool! (MORE ENTROPY!)

Ode to the Eosinophil

O granulocyte so lovely,
With thy cheerful reddish hue,
I am 'minded of thy beauty
Each time I go, "A-choo!"

Allergic rash thou giv'st to me
Anaphylaxis is thine, too,
Itching is your legacy
And swelling comes from you.

But still for thee I'm thankful,
Even tho' thou pain'st my neck,
For without thy red protection,
I'd surely hit the deck.

It's war!!

Basic Rules of Engagement
Look to your electrons!
Watch your valance shells and orbitals!
Conserve mass, charge, and energy!
Do it with moles!
One step at a time!
It really does make sense and we are the winners!

This guy...

...has to the most hated dead white man in history.
Avogadro.
'Nuff said.

Gimme some....

...SKIN!
The body's largest and perhaps most versatile organ, this guy does it all--secretes, excretes, absorbs, makes several proteins, cools us off, warms us up, makes us pretty, allows us to feel those shivers, and is critical to life and death!
Be good to your skin today!

More chemistry...

Ya gotta have heart....

...miles & miles & miles of heart!

Infinite variety

When I started working in middle school science, I realized my knowledge of physical science was, shall we say, a little oxidized (rusty). So I embarked upon a self education process that opened up a wonderful world, a world that makes use and even sense of chemistry. If, I wondered, there are only, say, thirty or forty elements that are involved in the formation of minerals, why are there thousands of these, if not millions? The answer is that the structure of elements, with their hyperactive electrons and their nuclear thirst for same, provides for an almost infinite number of combinations that are not only a function of these elements and their chemical properties but the circumstances under which the minerals (compounds, molecules) are formed (temperature, pressure, associated elements, time, etc.) It's like biological systems, which can form many thousands of proteins, each with a different function, out of carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and hydrogen. Amazing but consistent with what nature does and is.

The miracle of meiosis

A-->B: 46 x 2 = 92
B-->C: 92/2 = 46
C--D: 46/2 =23

Isn't that easy?

Look to the electrons!

Chemistry = the result of the movement of electrons
See how easy that is?

Super cell

Cardiac muscle cells exhibit basic cellular structure with particular emphasis on the production of ENERGY. Many mitochondria, a unique mechanism for converting chemical to kinetic energy, fantastically efficient organization--it's all there in spades. Be thankful for your cardiac muscle today and treat it right...lay off the toxins!

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder....

I have started a new book that I already see as a great one!
THE DISAPPEARING SPOON, and Other True Tales of Madness, Love, and the History of the World from the Periodic Table of the Elements,
by Sam Kean.
Science really is fun!

I mean it!!

Knowledge is power....

Nowhere is that more true than in science, specifically as it relates to the biology of our own bodies. Without understanding how our body is structured (ANATOMY) and how it functions (PHYSIOLOGY) we are at constant risk of being led astray by PSEUDOSCIENCE.

The BODY WORLDS exhibits are great ways to increase that knowledge. Chicago is currently has two current venues, each having a different emphasis: The Museum of Science and Industry and the International Museum of Surgical Science. I urge you to attend and take all your friends, family members, and acquaintances with you!

Keeping up with scientific priorities!

Welcome to a new semester of scientific discovery!

Back to school!

Central Park in summer

I am looking forward to the new semester!
And it seems to be (more or less) summer at last!