Ben Valsler
Digital editor, Chemistry World
While teaching science in north east Thailand, I realised just how exciting and interesting communicating science could be. Taking the opportunity to produce and present the 'English hour' on Thai local radio, it dawned on me to combine the science with the radio, and I’ve never looked back.
A zoologist by training with an MSc in science communication, I have become something of a jack of all trades. I specialised in astronomy and materials science during my tenure with Cambridge University’s Naked Scientists, before taking on the online and multimedia editor position at Chemistry World. Far from a disadvantage, being a generalist allows me to revel in learning new aspects of science, and has given me a real interest in the boundaries – the edge effects where one specialism meets another, where theory meets application and where science meets engineering.
FeatureVisualising the Nobel nomination archive
Who nominated whom for the biggest prize in chemistry
PodcastCinnamaldehyde
How did a tree bark from Sri Lanka become one of the essential flavours of the festive season?
PodcastGlycyrrhizic acid
A sweet treat with a deadly trick for Halloween – glycyrrhizic acid is found in black liquorice and sweeter than sucrose, but can cause heart problems and even prove fatal if consumed in excess
PodcastFavipiravir
Originally developed to treat flu and marketed in Japan as Avigan, promising Covid-19 trial results have seen countries stockpiling this medication by the millions
PodcastRactopamine
Common in the US but banned in the EU, this animal feed additive makes for muscular pigs and beefy international trade disputes.
PodcastDexamethasone
News that this cheap, ubiquitous steroid drug may reduce deaths in Covid-19 cases has been greeted with cautious optimism
PodcastInterferon beta
An immune-modulating compound used to reduce the symptoms of multiple sclerosis and now showing potential against coronaviruses
PodcastRemdesivir
Will new clinical trials for Covid-19 give remdesivir a second chance? Ben Valsler introduces the broad-spectrum antiviral that didn’t quite make it as the Ebola drug it was originally planned to be
PodcastChloroquine and hydroxychloroquine
The Covid-19 pandemic – and some very high profile backing – has led to malaria drugs chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine hitting the headlines worldwide.
PodcastVitamin B12 or Cobalamin
If you’re trying out a vegan diet, you’re likely to be told to make sure you get enough vitamin B12. But what is B12, where do we get it from, and how can we be sure we’re getting enough?
ArticleThe Elements Song 2019
For the international year of the periodic table, we’ve worked with Helen Arney and the Waterbeach Brass Band to update Tom Lehrer’s Elements Song
PodcastTryptophan
Ben Valsler tackles ‘zombie facts’ and the tenuous connection between tryptophan in turkey and your post-Thanksgiving dinner doze
PodcastHypoxia-inducible factors – HIFs
The oxygen sensors that help life react to changing conditions, key to the 2019 Nobel prize in physiology or medicine
ArticleThe data behind the Nobel prizes
We’ve looked at over 100 years of data behind who and what wins the Nobel prize
Podcast2C psychedelics
A class of hallucinogenic phenethylamines, explored by the 'godfather of psychedelics' Alexander Shulgin and sadly implicated in a tragedy at a 2017 music festival
OpinionPride and prejudice
Cambridge’s first official Pride event stood in contrast to the everyday experiences of some LGBT+ scientists, but a new report shows how things are improving
NewsThe Cambridge Structural Database hits one million structures
Warning! Contains extreme crystallography
