Highlights
ACS Central Science: Pharm to Table Podcast Duo Bridges the Academia–Industry Divide
29 April 2026The Merck colleagues and cohosts advocate closer collaboration between academic and industry chemists.
New Scientist: We need more radioactive drugs. Can we make them from nuclear waste?
22 April 2026The rise of a new generation of radiotherapies means we will soon need much greater quantities of radioactive atoms. That’s why companies are scrambling to refine them from all manner of radioactive waste.
Science: Whistleblower alleges Finnish startup’s vaunted solid-state battery isn’t what it claims
22 April 2026Donut Lab’s assertions of lightning-fast charging and high energy storage have led to a criminal complaint.
Nature: Fresh claim of making elusive ‘hexagonal’ diamond is the strongest yet
04 March 2026After decades of debate, researchers say that they have found the clearest evidence yet for this rare form of carbon.
C&EN: Copper finally joins the metallocene club
17 February 2026More than 70 years after ferrocene’s discovery, cuprocene fills a long-standing gap in the sandwich menu.
TESTIMONIALS
“As an editor and reporter, Mark Peplow is fast, accurate, and versatile. He covers science policy and pure research with equal passion, and his writing combines a scientist’s precision with a journalist’s verve.” Tim Appenzeller
Former Chief Magazine Editor at Nature, now News Editor at Science
"Mark guided me through some of the most challenging stories I've written. These are pieces I might not have attempted were it not for his steady editorial hand." Linda Nordling
Freelance Journalist, South Africa
“Working with Mark is never anything other than a pleasure. He is the kind of editor that writers hope for: able to identify what needs fixing and what doesn’t, bringing to bear a wealth of knowledge, always clear, prompt and easy to talk with. Much of that comes from being a splendid writer himself.”
Philip Ball
Freelance Science Writer
Author Archives: Mark Peplow
Nature Biotechnology: Chemistry Nobel materials in the clinic
Human trials using metal–organic frameworks for drug delivery are underway, but challenges remain.
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C&EN: Trace additive cleans up Fischer-Tropsch synthesis
A dash of bromomethane curbs carbon dioxide emissions from industrial process used to make olefins from syngas.
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Nature: AI is dreaming up millions of new materials. Are they any good?
Critics slammed attempts by Google, Microsoft and Meta to speed up materials discovery. But behind the hype, there is progress.
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Nature: How should ‘mirror life’ research be restricted? Debate heats up
Some researchers are calling for strict limits, while others speak out against prematurely halting basic science.
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C&EN: Metal complexes rip open benzene
Scandium and chromium compounds team up to convert iconic molecule into linear product at room temperature.
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C&EN: Crystals defy their symmetry to discern chiral light
Centrosymmetric crystals have always absorbed equal amounts of left- and right-handed circularly polarized light—until now.
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C&EN: Magnetic stirrers linked to issues with reproducing chemistry results
From the lab that found impurities on your stir bar—your flask’s placement on a stirrer plate can mess with your reaction too.
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C&EN: ‘Perplexanes’ achieve mind-bending molecular topology
Zirconium helps to weave entangled nanocarbon cages in high yields.
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C&EN: Atom-thin iodine film makes its debut
Iodinene is the first halogen analog of graphene and is expected to be unusually metallic.
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C&EN Talented 12: Sascha Feldmann
Commanding charged particles and light for energy efficiency.
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