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The recent introduction of an online undergraduate equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) training workshop incorporating short authentic videos from a diverse range of voices is described. The training was designed to provide students with insights into how they can access support, act as allies, and respect diverse peers, preparing students for a professional life in chemistry. Embedding EDI training into a compulsory first year skills module was proposed to be an effective way to emphasize the importance of this topic. Usage statistics, instructor reflections, and student feedback were used to evaluate the workshop, and the implications for practitioners and future development of these online resources were considered. All of the materials and resources have been made available in the Supporting Information and on YouTube in order to support and encourage other institutions to embed the teaching of EDI principles into their Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) undergraduate programs.

Discussions on decolonizing the curriculum are common in Humanities and Social Science Faculties but still rare in the Physical Sciences. In this commentary, we describe the work we have conducted to begin decolonizing and diversifying our undergraduate chemistry curriculum. We also discuss what it means to decolonize chemistry and reflect on why it is an important thing to do. Finally, we discuss a number of different strategic approaches that could be followed to decolonize an undergraduate chemistry curriculum.

We report the use of wet‐spinning to 3D‐print gels from low‐molecular‐weight gelators (LMWGs) based on the 1,3 : 2,4‐dibenzylidenesorbitol (DBS) scaffold. Gel stripes assembled from DBS‐CONHNH2 and DBS‐COOH are printed, and their conductivities assessed. Printed gels based on DBS‐CONHNH2 can be loaded with Au(III), which is reduced in situ to form embedded gold nanoparticles (AuNPs). The conductivity of these gels increases because of electron transport mediated by the AuNPs, whereas the conductivity of DBS‐COOH, which does not promote AuNP formation, remains lower. We then fabricate multi‐component gel patterns comprised of spatially well‐defined domains of printed DBS‐CONHNH2/AuNP (higher conductivity) and DBS‐COOH (lower conductivity) resulting in soft multi‐domain materials with differential conductivity. Such materials have future prospects in applications such as soft nanoelectronics or tissue engineering. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports hybrid gels combining a low‐molecular‐weight gelator (LMWG) and a photoinitiated crosslinked polymer gel (PG). The presence of the PG enhanced the stiffness and strength of the gel. The gels were loaded with heparin, and in the hybrid gel, the interpenetrated LMWG and PG networks somewhat restricted its release. In terms of stem cell growth, the hybrid gel significantly improved the performance of the PG because of the presence of the LMWG, which is an excellent substrate for stem cells in its own right. Furthermore, the presence of heparin in the hybrid gels also enhanced stem cell proliferation over longer timescales. Finally, these gels were photopatterned within the well‐plates used for tissue culture, with patterning helping control stem cell proliferation. In summary, these hybrid gels combine the advantageous features of both LMWG and PG: rheological performance is endowed by the PG with stem cell compatibility provided by the LMWG. The hybrid gels also control the release of the bioactive agent heparin and have capacity to be shaped and patterned. Patterned gels such as these, capable of directing stem cell growth, have potential in regenerative medicine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social media provide a unique arena in which chemists can communicate directly with an international audience from a wide range of backgrounds. In particular, YouTube offers a rich environment through which students of chemistry and members of the general public can be engaged, and chemophobia can be addressed. This article describes the development of a YouTube channel designed to inform and engage by (i) providing revision material for students of chemistry and (ii) reaching out to nonchemists and nontraditional learners through the application of chemistry in a real-world context. In addition to this educator-led approach (iTube), the active use of YouTube has been developed as an educational tool for undergraduate students. In a module on polymer chemistry, students could choose, instead of writing a magazine-style article, to make a YouTube video. The students making videos (YouTube) found it much more enjoyable than those who wrote articles and also gained further educational benefits: developing public engagement and presentation skills, enhancing their creativity, and even becoming empowered as global educators in their own right. The highly interactive nature of YouTube, in which users can comment, provides the audience with a voice, and as such, an online chemical community (WeTube) begins to spontaneously emerge.

This article uses student feedback to explore student attitudes towards the use of lecture breaks. The survey illustrates that undergraduates genuinely value such breaks, finding them educationally useful and enhancing their enjoyment of the lecture experience. By comparing and contrasting the perceived value of different types of lecture breaks, a clear overview of the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches is given. The lecture demonstration is the "gold standard" among lecture breaks in chemical science. However, it is shown that contextualized fascinating-fact lecture breaks can come close to rivalling practical demonstrations for engaging students' interest in a topic. Problem-solving exercises can, in the right setting, have significant education value. This is particularly true if there is a significant degree of interactive engagement. Even the use of a simple lecture pause should not be underrated as a mechanism for allowing students to take a break from difficult material. Using examples from the author's own teaching practice, a number of strategies are suggested for improving lecture breaks. In particular, the development of demonstrations for advanced undergraduate audiences, interactive problem solving, red-green voting systems, and fascinating-fact segments are all highlighted. (Contains 1 table.)

Since 2013 the occurrence of human infections by a novel avian H7N9 influenza virus in China has demonstrated the continuing threat posed by zoonotic pathogens (1,2). Although the first outbreak wave that was centred on eastern China was seemingly averted, human infections recurred in October 2013 (refs 3-7). It is unclear how the H7N9 virus re-emerged and how it will develop further; potentially it may become a long-term threat to public health. Here we show that H7N9 viruses have spread from eastern to southern China and become persistent in chickens, which has led to the establishment of multiple regionally distinct lineages with different reassortant genotypes. Repeated introductions of viruses from Zhejiang to other provinces and the presence of H7N9 viruses at live poultry markets have fuelled the recurrence of human infections. This rapid expansion of the geographical distribution and genetic diversity of the H7N9 viruses poses a direct challenge to current disease control systems. Our results also suggest that H7N9 viruses have become enzootic in China and may spread beyond the region, following the pattern previously observed with H5N1 and H9N2 influenza viruses (8,9)., The second wave of the H7N9 outbreak that begun in late 2013 has resulted in 318 human cases and over a hundred deaths as of 12 September 2014 (ref. 7), [...]