A Whole Lot of Chemistry Goin' On

Legend has it that Mark Twain once observed the following of the city on the bay: "The coldest winter I ever saw was the summer I spent in San Francisco." Attendees who arrived early for the American Chemical Society's 232nd National Meeting & Exposition might have concurred. Fog and drizzle blanketed the city on Saturday, Sept. 9, chilling volunteers who gathered to plant seedlings at the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy as part of the Chemists in the Community outreach program.

But the 15,000 chemists arriving for the meeting's opening on Sunday managed to bring the sunshine. Many lounged in nearby Yerba Buena Gardens and watched kids clamber through the park at Zeum, an arts and technology museum adjacent to Moscone Center, the focal point of the conference.

Of course, with some 10,000 papers presented at this meeting, many attendees probably didn't take maximum advantage of the fine weather. But they undoubtedly learned something new. Here's a small sampling of the diverse research that was discussed in San Francisco.