Science and Arts,Philosophy and Science: Why after All? Why Not?

This perspective summarizes some interdisciplinary aspects of science and the relation to philosophy, also including the basic motivations and aims as they might be discussed with young scientists starting their careers and presented also in the form of a commencement speech. The contents of this speech were repeatedly discussed also with Jack Dunitz, who showed great interest in it, given his broad interests. The speech also referred to an earlier commencement speech by Jack Dunitz in 1989. In the introduction of our essay, we mention the early common history of science and humanities under the name of philosophy. This early history can be traced back to ancient Greek philosophy and the ‘academy’ of Platon in Athens with a history of more than 1000 years until closure in 529 AD, in modern times revived as the National Greek Academy in Athens in the 19th and 20th centuries. Other ‘academies’ in Europe started in the 17th century and had publications under various names involving ‘philosophy’ with a focus on what we call science (natural science) today. After about 1800 there was increasing fragmentation of the various fields of knowledge and philosophy was considered to be part of the modern ‘humanities’ quite separate from science, and the natural sciences were fragmented into physics, chemistry, biology etc., and even finer subdivisions. The essay also describes an effort at ETH Zurich, reintegrating the various subfields of science and also stressing an education of scientists and engineers in the humanities. The essay concludes with a discussion of several global risks for mankind and a scientific imperative to maintain life on Earth. The common aspects and the foundations of all sciences as fields of knowledge aiming for an understanding of the world around us and of human beings as part of it are discussed from various perspectives.     

Distance-of-Flight Mass Spectrometry: What,Why, and How?

Distance-of-flight mass spectrometry (DOFMS) separates ions of different mass-to-charge (m/z) by the distance they travel in a given time after acceleration. Like time-of-flight mass spectrometry (TOFMS), separation and mass assignment are based on ion velocity. However, DOFMS is not a variant of TOFMS; different methods of ion focusing and detection are used. In DOFMS, ions are driven orthogonally, at the detection time, onto an array of detectors parallel to the flight path. Through the independent detection of each m/z, DOFMS can provide both wider dynamic range and increased throughput for m/z of interest compared with conventional TOFMS. The iso-mass focusing and detection of ions is achieved by constant-momentum acceleration (CMA) and a linear-field ion mirror. Improved energy focus (including turn-around) is achieved in DOFMS, but the initial spatial dispersion of ions remains unchanged upon detection. Therefore, the point-source nature of surface ionization techniques could put them at an advantage for DOFMS. To date, three types of position-sensitive detectors have been used for DOFMS: a microchannel plate with a phosphorescent screen, a focal plane camera, and an IonCCD array; advances in detector technology will likely improve DOFMS figures-of-merit. In addition, the combination of CMA with TOF detection has provided improved resolution and duty factor over a narrow m/z range (compared with conventional, single-pass TOFMS). The unique characteristics of DOFMS can enable the intact collection of large biomolecules, clusters, and organisms. DOFMS might also play a key role in achieving the long-sought goal of simultaneous MS/MS.

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The Nozoe Autograph Books: Why Sign Them? Why Publish Them? Why Read Them? Why Treasure Them? Personal and Professional Reflections

Note from the Editor: The Nozoe Autograph Books project involves the publication of the entire 1179 pages of Tetsuo Nozoe's autograph books in 15 consecutive issues of The Chemical Record. In the design of this project, three of us—Eva Wille, Brian Johnson and I—had a vision of bringing a wide range of experiences to our communities of readers. We also had an eye to the archival future. The final design included, with each of these issues of The Chemical Record, an essay that would provide context, novel content and especially enjoyable reading, to round out the project. In the 10 issues published to date, and in the others that will follow, the essays range from personal stories to perspectives in the areas of chemistry near and dear to the heart of Tetsuo Nozoe. Eva Wille's essay is particularly special. The daughter of a professor of chemistry of Nozoe's generation at the Ludwig‐Maximilians‐Universität München (Franz Wille, 1909—1986), Wille is a Ph.D. chemist herself, and for many years, has been and is a major figure in the world of scientific publishing. Thus, she has a unique perspective to share. Indeed, all of the authors of these essays have shared their very personal and professional perspectives, and we are thankful for all of them—and for Tetsuo Nozoe and the thousands of our friends and colleagues who signed his books. —Jeffrey I. Seeman Guest Editor University of Richmond Richmond, Virginia 23173, USA E‐mail: jseeman@richmond.edu     

Why are quasicrystals quasiperiodic?

In the past two decades significant progress has been made in the search for stable quasicrystals, the determination of their structures and the understanding of their physical properties. Now, quasiperiodic ordering states are not only known for intermetallic compounds, but also for mesoscopic systems such as ABC-star terpolymers, liquid crystals or different kinds of colloids. However, in spite of all these achievements fundamental questions concerning quasicrystal formation, growth and stability are still not fully answered. This tutorial review introduces the research in these fields and addresses some of the open questions concerning the origin of quasiperiodicity.     

Why do drying films crack?

Understanding the mechanism by which films fail during drying is the first step in controlling this natural process. Previous studies have examined the spacing between cracks with predictions made by assuming a balance between elastic energy released with a surface energy consumed. We introduce a new scaling for the spacing between cracks in drying dispersions. The scaling relates to the distance that solvent can flow, to relieve capillary stresses, as a film fails. The scaling collapses data for a range of evaporation rates, film thicknesses, particle sizes, and materials. This work identifies capillary pressures, induced by packed particle fronts travelling horizontally across films, as responsible for the failure in dried films.     

Why send humans to Mars?

Presidential long-term direction for the U.S. Space Program includes the goal of landing humans on Mars. Criticism of this goal includes executive commitment, NASA technical capabilities, and economics. The author suggests landing humans or robots on Mars is possible only with international cooperation on technical and economic issues.     

Why are water-hydrophobic interfaces charged?

We report ab initio molecular dynamics simulations of hydroxide and hydronium ions near a hydrophobic interface, indicating that both ions behave like amphiphilic surfactants that stick to a hydrophobic hydrocarbon surface with their hydrophobic side. We show that this behavior originates from the asymmetry of the molecular charge distribution which makes one end of the ions strongly hydrophobic while the other end is even more hydrophilic than the regular water (H2O) molecules. The effect is more pronounced for the hydroxide than for the hydronium. Our results are consistent with several experimental observations and explain why hydrophobic surfaces in contact with water acquire a net negative charge, a phenomenon that has important implications for biology and polymer science.     

Why do some Fischer indolizations fail?

The mechanisms of the Fischer indole synthesis and competing cleavage pathways were explored with SCS-MP2/6-31G(d) and aqueous solvation calculations. Electron-donating substituents divert the reaction pathway to heterolytic N-N bond cleavage and preclude the acid-promoted [3,3]-sigmatropic rearrangement.     

由(1S)-cis-菊酸合成(1R)-cis-二溴菊酸

拟除虫菊脂是在研究天然除虫菊脂化学的基础上发展起来的一类高效低毒,广谱杀虫剂。其中,溴氰菊脂是活性较高,光稳定性较好的一种菊脂类杀虫剂, 它是具有(IRcis.αs) 构型的单一光学异构体。 生产溴氰菊脂的关键中间体是IR-cis-)二溴菊脂。本文报道利用化学剪切法将(is)-cis-菊脂转化为(IR-cis-)二溴菊脂的新方法。     

Why are Cold Molecules so Hot?

Brrrr! Cold molecule and cold atom research are juxtaposed and the challenges in cooling and trapping molecules are recounted. Both indirect and direct techniques of producing cold and slow molecules (such as buffer‐gas cooling and magnetic trapping, see picture) are described. Advanced techniques of manipulating cold or slow molecules are reviewed and ongoing work with cold molecules is outlined.

     

Why do molecules echo atomic periodicity?

Franck–Condon factors are investigated for sequences of free main‐group diatomic molecules. Theory‐based Condon loci (parabolas) and Morse‐potential loci are plotted on Deslandres tables to verify if they, indeed, follow the largest Franck–Condon factors. Then, the inclination angles of the Condon loci are determined. Thus, entire band systems are quantified by one variable, the angle. For all available isoelectronic sequences, this angle increases from a central minimum toward magic‐number molecular boundaries. The theory for the Condon locus gives the angle in terms of the ratio of the upper‐state to the lower‐state force constants. It is concluded that the periodicity is caused due to the fact that this ratio becomes larger as rare‐gas molecules are approached, a trend that probably points to the extreme cases of the rare‐gas molecules themselves. Thus, molecular periodicity echoes atomic periodicity in that data plots have extrema at molecules with magic‐number atoms, yet it does not echo the details of atomic periodicity in series between those molecules. © 2013 The Authors. International Journal of Quantum Chemistry Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Why Does 258Fm Fission Symmetrically ?

²⁵⁸Fm fissions partly symmetrically because fission fragments with Z=50, such as ^126–132Sn, are energetically enormously favored, and because deep collective pick-up processes such as that leading to the ideally symmetric configuration ¹²⁹Sn-¹²⁹Sn can occur within a very energy-rich primordial configuration of the fissioning nucleus. The width of 8 mass units of the distribution can be justified; an even narrower mass distribution can be predicted for ²⁶⁴Fm.     

Why do Congo Red,Evans Blue,and Trypan Blue differ in their complexation properties?

Congo Red, Evans Blue, and Trypan Blue dyes were evaluated in terms of their ability to form supramolecular systems in water solution. A geometric transformation set was defined to construct a supramolecular model system composed of eight dye molecules. The stability of the constructed multimolecular systems was estimated by molecular dynamics using AMBER 4.1 and DISCOVER force fields. The results essentially confirm the tendency toward self‐assembly in each case. However, Congo Red and Evans Blue were found to form stable, continuous, ribbon‐like supramolecular organizations, whereas Trypan Blue self‐assembly appeared defective; some additional deviations from planarity seem to be the main reason for the disturbance in self‐assembling. The extra rotation around the azo bonds in the Trypan Blue molecule is slightly extorted by the close proximity of sulfonic groups. This may also be the direct cause of the observed deviation from symmetry in the molecule of this dye. The results confirm that the self‐assembling capability of the compounds studied correlates with the capacity to complex proteins, supporting the idea that supramolecularity may create specific ligation properties. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Comput Chem 21: 656–667, 2000     

A future for nuclear analytical techniques? Why not?

The choices of universities and national research institutions in supporting scientific research are increasingly justified on the basis of, amongst others, the relevance that has to be reflected by external, preferably sustainable funding of the research programs. Many traditional fields of application such as environmental sciences do not offer a promising outlook in this respect. As a consequence, university research reactors face closure because of reallocations of university funds to more contemporary sciences such as molecular biology and nanotechnology. Therefore, laboratories operating nuclear analytical techniques (NAA, (TR)XRF, and PIXE) need to use their creativity in finding ways for participation in, for example, nanotechnology, cancer research, or genomics. This requires an open mind in terms of the opportunities, strengths, and weaknesses of the techniques, and a departure of technique-oriented research towards problem-oriented research in which other nuclear techniques can be used. The unique features of radiotracers, nuclear imaging, and nuclear beam techniques are discussed in view of the new areas mentioned above. Some examples of opportunities for nuclear analytical techniques in the above-mentioned fields are given.     

Why does Kevlar decompose, while Nomex does not, when treated with aqueous chlorine solutions?

Kevlar and Nomex are high-performance polymers which have wide varieties of applications in daily life. Recently, they have been proposed to be biocidal materials when reacted with household bleach (sodium hypochlorite solution) because they contain amide moieties which can be chlorinated to generate biocidal N-halamine functional groups. Although Nomex can be chlorinated without any significant decomposition, Kevlar decomposes under the same chlorination conditions. In this study, two mimics for each of the polymers were synthesized to simulate the carboxylate and diaminophenylene components of the materials. It was found that the p-diaminophenylene component of the Kevlar mimic is oxidized to a quinone-type structure upon treatment with hypochlorous acid, which then decomposes. However, such a mechanism for the Nomex mimic is not possible. In this paper, based upon these observations, a plausible answer will be provided to the title question.     

Modeling the Dynamics of Protein–Protein Interfaces,How and Why?

Protein–protein assemblies act as a key component in numerous cellular processes. Their accurate modeling at the atomic level remains a challenge for structural biology. To address this challenge, several docking and a handful of deep learning methodologies focus on modeling protein–protein interfaces. Although the outcome of these methods has been assessed using static reference structures, more and more data point to the fact that the interaction stability and specificity is encoded in the dynamics of these interfaces. Therefore, this dynamics information must be taken into account when modeling and assessing protein interactions at the atomistic scale. Expanding on this, our review initially focuses on the recent computational strategies aiming at investigating protein–protein interfaces in a dynamic fashion using enhanced sampling, multi-scale modeling, and experimental data integration. Then, we discuss how interface dynamics report on the function of protein assemblies in globular complexes, in fuzzy complexes containing intrinsically disordered proteins, as well as in active complexes, where chemical reactions take place across the protein–protein interface.     

Why are glycoproteins modified by poly-N-acetyllactosamine glyco-conjugates?

Poly-N-acetyllactosamine structures occur in mammalian glycoproteins in both N- and O-linked glycans. They represent a backbone for additional modifications by fucosyltransferases, sialyltransferases and sulfotransferases. These glycans have been suggested to be involved in biospecific interactions with selectins and other glycan-binding proteins. Moreover, the poly-N-acetyllactosamine chains in N-glycans have been found to promote tumor progression and metastasis. Poly-N-acetyllactosamine chains are synthesized by repeated alternating additions of N-acetylglucosamine and galactose, catalyzed by beta-1,3-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferases (poly-N-acetyllactosamine synthase) and beta-1,4-galactosyltransferases. This review describes the poly-N-acetyllactosamine assembling machinery and focuses on recent advances in the molecular cloning and characterization of poly-N-acetyllactosamine synthase gene families. Recent progress in revealing the biological functions of poly-N-acetyllactosamine structures by various approaches in vitro and in vivo using different model systems has also been summarized.     

Why do food analysts need quality assurance?

 Most sophisticated products require testing for compliance with specifications and safety regulations before release into many markets, and trade in many simpler commodities and products also requires supporting technical information. Test documentation has become an essential element in this trade. Food intended for human consumption certainly falls into the "sophisticated products" category. Lack of acceptance of laboratory test data across national borders may be a significant barrier to trade. In order to avoid such barriers and unnecessary duplication of laboratory tests, mutual recognition of laboratory results should be regarded as an important means of facilitating international trade in food products. It is difficult to envisage recognition of test data across borders without internationally agreed criteria for assessing the competence of testing. These criteria should, as a minimum, require that a laboratory involved in the analysis of foods operates a suitable quality system. The laboratory must create a quality system appropriate to the type, range and volume of work performed. It is necessary for the elements of this system to be documented in a quality manual which is available for use by the laboratory personnel. The quality manual must be kept up-to-date by a person or persons having responsibility for quality assurance within the laboratory. This paper describes and discusses the elements of a quality system in a food laboratory, including suitable quality assurance measures, the use of validated analytical methods and participation in proficiency testing schemes. Received: 24 February 1996 Accepted: 13 March 1996     

Why are a 3 ions rarely observed?

It has been determined experimentally that a(3) ions are generally not observed in the tandem mass spectroscopic (MS/MS) spectra of b(3) ions. This is in contrast to other b(n) ions, which often have the corresponding a(n) ion as the base peak in their MS/MS spectra. Although this might suggest a different structure for b(3) ions compared to that of other b(n) ions, theoretical calculations indicate the conventional oxazolone structure to be the lowest energy structure for the b(3) ion of AAAAR, as it is for other b(n) ions of this peptide. However, it has been determined theoretically that the a(3) ion is lower in energy than other a(n) ions, relative to the corresponding b ions. Furthermore, the a(3) --> b(2) transition structure (TS) is lower in energy than other a(n) --> b(n-1) TSs of AAAAR, compared with the corresponding b ions. Consequently, it is suggested that the b(3) ion does fragment to the a(3) ion, but that the a(3) ion then immediately fragments (to b(2) and a(3)) because of the excess internal energy arising from its relatively low energy and the facile a(3) --> b(2) reaction. That is why a(3) ions are not observed in the MS/MS spectra of b(3) ions.