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Eric Scerri recounts the story of element 87, which after a number of false starts was finally tracked down in France — and named in its honour.

Synthetic vesicles with membranes made from amphiphiles that are fluorescence acceptors encapsulate donor molecules in their cores, and emit different proportions of red, blue and green light depending on pH. The balance of these coloured emissions at pH 9 results in white fluorescence.

Perceived lapses in the peer-review process often receive a lot of attention, but the majority of researchers declare themselves satisfied with the system. But if it is broken, how do we fix it?

Each year since 1951, young researchers and Nobel Laureates have gathered on the shores of Lake Constance for a unique scientific conference. In 2009 the meeting was dedicated to chemistry, and Laureates and students all came away enriched by their experiences.

The host–guest properties of metal–organic frameworks have usually relied on molecular separation by the pore aperture or non-specific binding with the pore walls. Incorporating supramolecular recognition units into the frameworks has now enabled the docking of a specific guest.

How long a road is it from physical chemistry to philosophy? Michelle Francl tries to find her way using charts of the intellectual world, old and new.

Identifying inhibitors of protein–protein interactions is an ongoing challenge in the field of drug design, but the use of peptide fragments based on a known binding interface is showing promise.

Inorganic semiconductors have long been used to construct rectifying diodes, but making them out of single molecules has remained a challenge. Now, two separate studies have induced rectification behaviour within molecular systems through different approaches.

The Nobel Laureate Meetings held on the German island of Lindau bring together some of the world's brightest young minds with those individuals who have reached a pinnacle of scientific achievement. The impact of this unique event on all the delegates — especially the young researchers — is far-reaching.

Copper-containing proteins can be classified into types 1 and 2, depending on their functional or spectroscopic properties. Now, a protein that fits neither type has been built using a scaffold made from the protein Pseudomonas aeruginosa azurin.

Complete chiral symmetry breaking of an amino acid derivative is achieved by circularly polarized light irradiation of a solution of the racemate in contact with racemic crystals, followed by abrasive grinding. The chirality of the amino acid derivative in the resultant crystals is fully determined by the rotation sense of the irradiation.

Silica microstructures can be grown from a sodium silicate solution using polymer beads loaded with transition-metal salts.

Calculations and model reactions show that a simple iterative Diels–Alder strategy is a viable method for the synthesis of most single-chirality carbon nanotubes.

A diarylethylene photoswitch can control paralysis in a nematode worm.

The nucleation and growth of methane hydrates have been investigated by molecular dynamic simulations.

A thiourea-derived catalyst provides the key to the scaleable Strecker synthesis of α-amino acids with quaternary alkyl and aryl substituents.

A computational method to screen metal–organic frameworks for hydrothermal stability has been developed.

Altering the properties of materials by using an external signal, such as light, heat or mechanical stress, is attractive for the preparation of functional materials in diverse fields. This Perspective focuses on liquid and solid materials that change the colour of their luminescence under mechanical pressure, and highlights the structural changes involved.