Christine Dell'Amore
@cdellamore.bsky.social
Science journalist and editor, bug lover, world traveler. Co-founder of Newsbrief Award. Author of South Pole (Assouline, 2012). Deputy EiC at Chemical & Engineering News
Cuba’s energy crisis, worsened by instability in Venezuela and Iran, has hit households hard. But what about the impact on its biopharma industry, which has long punched above its weight? @cenmag.bsky.social explores an undercovered aspect of this situation. cen.acs.org/pharmaceutic...
What next for Cuba’s biopharma industry?
Amid long blackouts and dwindling supplies, research and development have become ‘very difficult’
cen.acs.org
Many moons ago, I wrote about the origins of Syrian hamsters, which are a vulnerable species in the wild, particularly in the region surrounding Aleppo. www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/arti... Now I have my own hammy! Meet Oreo Cream, a male with black-and-brown fur.
Can I make a corny joke? OK just checking. Our @cenmag.bsky.social package on astrochemistry is OUT OF THIS WORLD! From protein bacteria that tastes like umami to the mysterious chemical makeup of icy moons to promoting circular economy in space, we've got it covered. 🚀 cen.acs.org/physical-che...
To the moon, Mars, and beyond
Chemistry is key to the success of current and future space missions
cen.acs.org
In today's example of how chemistry is in everything, @maxhenrybarnhart.bsky.social sat down with @crockett.house.gov about how her microbiology background paved the way for her political career.
C&EN (Chemical & Engineering News)@cenmag.bsky.social · 2mo agoJasmine Clark @jasmineclarkforga.bsky.social, a PhD microbiologist who won the democratic primary for Georgia’s 13th Congressional District, tells C&EN how being a scientist is propelling her toward Congress. #chemsky 🧪
How has the Canvas outage affected your chemistry classes? We'd like to hear from you if you're a student, professor or TA for a story in @cenmag.bsky.social .Please DM or email edit.cen@acs.org. #chemsky #science
As controversy swirls over data centers and their burden on our local energy grids, scientists are investigating methods to lower that demand. One team's idea? Godzilla fins. Check out Prachi Patel's latest story in @cenmag.bsky.social cen.acs.org/energy/heat-...
"But, like many things in their mid-40s, the aquarium is beginning to show its age." Touche! But true. Interesting story on a beloved Baltimore institution: www.thebanner.com/community/lo...
The National Aquarium has big plans, old bones and dolphins to move
The National Aquarium in Baltimore is beginning to show its age. The autumn maintenance crises forced the Inner Harbor institution, which normally closes only on Thanksgiving and Christmas, to shut it...
thebanner.com
A weight-loss drug without GI side effects and lean-muscle loss? Sounds like a blockbuster in the making. @aayushipratap.bsky.social takes a closer look at the molecule amylin for @cenmag.bsky.social. cen.acs.org/pharmaceutic...
Can amylin weight-loss drugs compete in a world of GLP-1s?
Wall Street isn’t impressed, but amylin-molecule developers see a silver lining in clinical trial results
cen.acs.org
It's a tiny conservation movement with a big goal: To preserve the microbes that make our world go 'round. Ashley Stimpson introduces us to a unique initiative in Switzerland called the Microbiota Vault Initiative. cen.acs.org/biological-c... @cenmag.bsky.social
A ‘doomsday vault’ of microbes could save species—including us
Scientists are storing backup copies of the bacteria, viruses, archaea, protists, and fungi that keep our planet healthy
cen.acs.org
In 2025, new grants for cancer research fell by 23 percent — even as cancer rates are rising sharply among Gen X and millennial Americans. This striking graphic shows how much the US government has slashed funding for health conditions across the board. www.vox.com/future-perfe...
The US slashed research for cancer, Alzheimer’s, mental health — and nearly everything else
Revealed in one chart.
vox.com
In my first feature for @cenmag.bsky.social, I wrote about a topic very close to my heart: Life-saving cancer drugs. cen.acs.org/pharmaceutic...
Paclitaxel saved my life. New discoveries could boost supply
After decades, scientists have finally pieced together the 23-step biosynthetic pathway to produce this cancer drug
cen.acs.org
I have been shouting this from the rooftops for years! European honeybees are not native species, yet there is this false narrative that we must protect them. Meanwhile, North America has 5,000 native bee species that are virtually ignored by the public. www.washingtonpost.com/climate-envi...
Column | Good news: We saved the bees. Bad news: We saved the wrong ones.
Honeybees have never been in danger of extinction. But scientists are finding that they can accelerate the demise of native bee populations.
washingtonpost.com
Did a trip down my journalistic memory lane today and I discovered I wrote about chemistry back in the day! Looking at some of my old columns from a series I once managed on UPI, EcoWellness, and found this piece on polonium. www.upi.com/Health_News/...
EcoWellness: Polonium's dangerous kin - UPI.com
Polonium-210, the rare radioactive substance that fatally poisoned a Russian ex-spy, doesn't pose a threat to most. Found in tiny amounts in the Earth's crust,
upi.com
Producing a significant amount of oil from Venezuela is not like turning on a tap. Alex Tullo writes a timely analysis for @cenmag.bsky.social cen.acs.org/business/pet...
For Venezuela, a post-Maduro boom in chemicals could take years
Even if the country’s oil and gas sector gets back on its feet, petrochemical projects may be ill-timed
cen.acs.org
The color-changing pigment xanthommatin may also lead to better, petroleum-free paints. What can't octopuses do?! 🐙 @theoceanwriter.bsky.social has the story for @cenmag.bsky.social cen.acs.org/biological-c...
This octopus pigment could lead to a more sustainable sunscreen
A new metabolic engineering technique makes xanthommatin cheaper and easy to produce
cen.acs.org
I've been adding kefir to my fruit smoothies for years. We did a deep dive into the research of why it's so good for you. cen.acs.org/food/ferment...
How chemistry makes kefir such a powerful superfood
The popular drink has an unusual mixture of organisms that can kill harmful bacteria
cen.acs.org
Our inaugural Year in Pictures at @cenmag.bsky.social takes a visual look at how chemistry shaped the world—and vice versa—in 2025. cen.acs.org/education/sc...
Photos capture some of 2025’s most notable events in chemistry
Los Angeles wildfires, a CRISPR milestone, and a de-extinction controversy are among 2025’s notable events captured in photos
cen.acs.org
November rose. My house in D.C. came with several rose plants, and they bloom at unexpected times — even apparently in 44-degree weather.
What a story! Now this is good journalism. www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/202...
Theft of $24,000 wine bottle spurs high-speed chase through Va. countryside
A couple talked their way into the Virginia wine cellar, where the woman reportedly distracted their guide while the man slipped bottles into his overcoat.
washingtonpost.com
Sports + science fans, rejoice! @cenmag.bsky.social has a bracket -- for chemistry pictures. Check out our cool new feature. cen.acs.org/education/sc...
Our first-ever Chempics Bracket is here. Vote for your favorite science photo
Only one photo will emerge victorious
cen.acs.org
Help! In the last 24 hours I've been mass followed by hundreds of accounts, most of which I suspect are bots. Has this happened to anyone?
We only saw a light red blush from our neighborhood before it got cloudy last night, but friends in Colorado sent me amazing photos of red and green pillars. There’s another CME on the way, and depending on when it arrives, we might see the #aurora again tonight
Fionna Samuels@fmorningstar.bsky.social · 9mo agoIt’s pretty exciting that we might see big auroral displays in Maryland tomorrow night! Last fall, I couldn’t believe how purple the sky got… anyway, if you’re interested in how CMEs and solar flares form, check out the story I wrote last month for C&EN! 🌌☀️ cen.acs.org/physical-che...
The next big breakthroughs in chemistry start here. Explore 10 innovative start-ups in fields including food, agriculture, industrial chemicals, textiles, energy, mining, and drug discovery: cen.acs.org/business/sta... #10StartUpsToWatch #chemsky 🧪
As a mom to a 7yo who grins impishly whenever I ask what 6-7 means, I enjoyed this read! www.nytimes.com/2025/11/07/s...
What Does ‘6-7’ Mean? Maybe Tweens Don’t Want You to Know.
nytimes.com
Reading Frankenstein made him want to be a chemist!?! At this year's ACS fall meeting, Victor Olet said this and caught the attention of several of our editors. What a thrill to work with him on this piece about what he's gained by reading the book 25 times cen.acs.org/people/Chemi...
My Chemical Story: How ‘Frankenstein’ made me want to be a scientist
The book is more than a tale of horror; it’s a psychological drama about the drive to develop knowledge and be seen
cen.acs.org
No one has ever photographed a will-'o'-the-wisp, and their origins have been shrouded in mystery. Until now! @annieroth.bsky.social has the spooky season tale for @cenmag.bsky.social cen.acs.org/environment/... #halloween #spookyseason #chemsky
Spooky will-o’-the-wisps finally explained
A newly discovered molecular phenomenon is responsible for the spectral balls of light seen in swamps and cemeteries
cen.acs.org
What makes civet coffee so special -- from a chemical perspective? @maxhenrybarnhart.bsky.social has the story for @cenmag.bsky.social cen.acs.org/food/ferment...
This coffee comes from civet poop. What makes it chemically distinct?
Kopi luwak is a specialty coffee that’s fermented in the gut of a civet. It’s also rich in fatty acids
cen.acs.org
