Every Molecule Matters

Every Molecule Matters is a successor to the author's earlier Every Molecule Tells a Story, and tells the story of a wide range of molecules.

List of contents

Preface
The Author
Acknowledgements
Chapter 1 Food
[Abstract, Keywords]
Introduction
Carbohydrates
Polysaccharides
Amino acids and Proteins
Aminoacids
Polypeptides and proteins
Lipids
Taste Sensations
Meat
Cheese
Blue cheeses
Lactose and Camembert
Cheddar
Bread
Baking
Potato
Raw potatoes
Boiled potatoes
Baked potatoes
Potato chips
Mushrooms
Puffball mushrooms
Onions
Fresh onions
Cooked onions
Tomatoes
Strawberries
Wild strawberries
Oranges and lemons
Orange juice and limonene isomer smells
Chapter 2 Vitamins
[Abstract, Keywords]
Introduction
Vitamin A
Vitamin B1, Thiamin
Vitamin B2, Riboflavin
Vitamin B3, Niacin
Vitamin B5, Pantothenic acid
Vitamin B6, Pyridoxine
Vitamin B7, Biotin
Vitamin B9, Folic acid
Vitamin B12, Cobalamin
Vitamin C, L-Ascorbic acid
Vitamin D, Calciferol
Vitamin E
Vitamin K
Chapter 3 Hot and Cold
[Abstract, Keywords]
Introduction
Spices and 'hot'
Capsaicin
The TRPV1 receptor
Black pepper
Ginger
Clove
Nutmeg
Cinnamon
Szechuan peppers
Cool and menthol
How menthol works
Carvone
A new minty molecule
Mustard
Chapter 4 Abused Painkillers and Other Drugs of Abuse
[Abstract, Keywords]
Opium
Morphine
Heroin
Fentanyl
Carfentanil and other powerful fentanyls
Oxycodone and Oxycontin
Krokodil
Spice
Nitazenes
Chapter 5 Nasty Smells
[Abstract, Keywords]
Introduction
Hydrogen sulphide
Dimethylsulfide
Dimethyldisulfide and the titan arum
Thiols
Skunks
Personal hygiene - and wines
Trimethylamine
The Smell of the Living and the Dead
The scent of death
Molecules and Mosquitoes
Euglossine bees
Chapter 6 War and Peace
[Abstract, Keywords]
Introduction
Cut grass and green aroma
Plant defence
Weaponised insects
Out of detective novels
Blister beetles
Plants attracting insects
Insect repellents
Chapter 7 Organochlorine Compounds
[Abstract, Keywords]
Introduction
Organic chlorine compounds
Chloromethane
Pesticides and DDT
Dieldrin and Aldrin
Chlorinated medicines
Chlorinated phenols
Natural germ-killers from the earth
Teicoplanin
Chloramphenicol
Halogenated Compounds from Marine Fungi
Another killer
Chapter 8 Organofluorine Compounds
[Abstract, Keywords]
Introduction
CFCs, serendipity and a serious problem
Other organofluorine compounds
Other problematic organofluorine compounds
A natural problem
Fluorinated pharmaceuticals
Anaesthetics
Blood substitutes
Perfluorocubane
Chapter 9 Smoking and Vaping
[Abstract, Keywords]
Smoking
Nicotine
Health effects of smoking
Toxic chemicals in tobacco
Vaping
Metal heating elements and metal pieces
Solvents
Flavourings
Diacetyl
Benzaldehyde, cinnamaldehyde and vanillin
Vitamin E acetate
Nicotine analogues
Student vaping
Conclusions and summary
Chapter 10 Isotopes
[Abstract, Keywords]
Isotopes
What's the difference between H2O and D2O?
Lead isotopes
Coinage and Isotopes
Uranium isotopes and their separation
Carbon isotopes
Detecting food fraud
Radiocarbon
Fraudulent white truffles
Isoscapes
Carbon in foods
Strontium isotopes
Isotopes and drugs
King Richard III
Isotopes in solving crimes
The Welsh case
The 'Scissor Sisters' case
An unsolved crime .... five thousand years ago.
Chapter 11 Methane
[Abstract, Keywords]
Introduction and historical background
Wood, coal and coal gas
Coal, the environment and smogs
Natural gas and methane.
Methane, a greenhouse gas
Bibliography

About the author

Simon Cotton obtained his BSc and PhD in the Chemistry department of Imperial College London, followed by research and teaching appointments at Queen Mary College, London, and the University of East Anglia. He subsequently taught chemistry in both state and independent schools for over 30 years, then in 2011 he became an honorary senior lecturer in Chemistry at the University of Birmingham, where for five years he taught inorganic and organic chemistry. He has published research on the chemistry of iron, cobalt, scandium, yttrium and the lanthanide elements.
His "Soundbite Molecules" feature ran as a regular column in the magazine
Education in Chemistry from 1996 to 2012, reaching every secondary school in the UK. He has written over 100 "Molecules of the Month" articles, which are featured online at
http://www.chm.bris.ac.uk/motm/motm.htm and recognised globally. Additionally, he has delivered over forty "Chemistry in Its Element" podcasts for the Royal Society of Chemistry's Chemistry World website at http://www.rsc.org/chemistryworld/.
In 2005 he shared the Royal Society of Chemistry Schools Education Award and in 2014 was awarded the British Empire Medal for his work in chemistry and education.
He was editor of "Lanthanide and Actinide Compounds" for the Dictionary of
Organometallic Compounds and the Dictionary of Inorganic Compounds between 1984 and 1997. He wrote the account of lanthanide coordination chemistry for the second edition of Comprehensive Coordination Chemistry and the accounts of lanthanide inorganic and coordination chemistry for the first and second editions of the Encyclopedia of Inorganic Chemistry.
This is his ninth book; his previous books are
D. J. Cardin, S. A. Cotton, M. Green, and J. A. Labinger, Organometallic Compounds of the Lanthanides, Actinides and Early Transition Metals,.
S. A. Cotton, Building The Late Mediaeval Suffolk Parish Church,
S. A. Cotton, Chemistry of Precious Metals, London:
S. A. Cotton, Every Molecule Tells a Story, CRC Press, Boca Raton, Fl., 2012.
S. A. Cotton, Lanthanide and Actinide Chemistry,
S. A. Cotton, Lanthanides and Actinides
S. A. Cotton and F. A. Hart, The Heavy Transition Elements

Product details

• Authors: Simon (University of Birmingham Cotton, Cotton Simon
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd.
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Release: 26.08.2025
• EAN: 9781041110637
• ISBN: 978-1-0-4111063-7
• No. of pages: 416
• Subjects: Natural sciences, medicine, IT, technology > Medicine > Pharmacy; ORGANIC CHEMISTRY, SCIENCE / Chemistry / Inorganic, SCIENCE / Life Sciences / Biochemistry, SCIENCE / Chemistry / General, SCIENCE / Chemistry / Organic, biochemistry, Pharmacology