295 episodes

A podcast that helps you understand the fascinating chemistry hidden in your everyday life.

Have you ever wondered why onions make you cry? Or how soap gets your hands clean? What really is margarine, or why do trees change colors in the fall? Melissa is a chemist, and to answer these questions she started a podcast, called Chemistry for your life!

In each episode Melissa explains the chemistry behind one of life’s mysteries to Jam, who is definitely not a chemist, but she explains it in a way that is easy to understand, and totally fascinating.

If you’re someone who loves learning new things, or who wonders about the way the world works, then give us a listen.

Chemistry For Your Life Chemmunity

    • Science
    • 4.7 • 259 Ratings

Listen on Apple Podcasts
Requires subscription and macOS 11.4 or higher

A podcast that helps you understand the fascinating chemistry hidden in your everyday life.

Have you ever wondered why onions make you cry? Or how soap gets your hands clean? What really is margarine, or why do trees change colors in the fall? Melissa is a chemist, and to answer these questions she started a podcast, called Chemistry for your life!

In each episode Melissa explains the chemistry behind one of life’s mysteries to Jam, who is definitely not a chemist, but she explains it in a way that is easy to understand, and totally fascinating.

If you’re someone who loves learning new things, or who wonders about the way the world works, then give us a listen.

Listen on Apple Podcasts
Requires subscription and macOS 11.4 or higher

    How do sunglasses protect our eyes?

    How do sunglasses protect our eyes?

    #082 Rebroadcast
    Wow sunglasses sure are cool. What's the coolest thing about them? Is it how cool they make us look and feel? Or is it the chemistry inside them? We'll let you decide, but we think you'll be surprised to find out how significant a role chemistry plays in the making of your shades.

    References from this episode
    https://pubs.acs.org/doi/pdf/10.1021/acs.chas.8b23208https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.macromol.8b02513https://www.acs.org/content/dam/acsorg/education/resources/highschool/chemmatters/issues/2018-2019/December2018/2%20Shades%20TG%20Reading%20Supports.docxhttps://www.safetyglassesusa.com/product-information/https://cen.acs.org/articles/94/i19/Periodic-graphics-chemistry-sunglasses.htmlhttps://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/9781118909911.ch26https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/ma960808xhttps://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/1999/JM/a902864a#!divAbstractThanks to our monthly supporters


    Ciara Linville
    J0HNTR0Y
    Jeannette Napoleon
    Cullyn R
    Erica Bee
    Elizabeth P
    Sarah Moar
    Rachel Reina
    Letila
    Katrina Barnum-Huckins
    Suzanne Phillips
    Nelly Silva
    Venus Rebholz
    Lyn Stubblefield
    Jacob Taber
    Brian Kimball
    Emerson Woodhall
    Kristina Gotfredsen
    Timothy Parker
    Steven Boyles
    Chris Skupien
    Chelsea B
    Bri McAllister
    Avishai Barnoy
    Hunter Reardon

    ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★
    Check out our website at chemforyourlife.com
    Watch our episodes on YouTube
    Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife.
    Want to start your own podcast? Use Transistor and you'll have the best podcast platform available. We use it and we are totally in love with it.

    • 38 min
    What are the Northern Lights?

    What are the Northern Lights?

    #184That's right, the Northern Lights aren't just cool CGI after all. They're real, but what are they? Why do they occur? And how are they chemistry? Let's find out!
    References from this Episode
    https://webbtelescope.org/contents/articles/spectroscopy-101--types-of-spectra-and-spectroscopyhttps://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/educators/lessons/xray_spectra/background-atoms.htmlhttps://www.swpc.noaa.gov/phenomena/geomagnetic-stormshttps://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-021-23377-5.epdf?sharing_token=Q0rjm5h2j_KavQboPe5r0NRgN0jAjWel9jnR3ZoTv0Nipe223V5hYGHe-RFuAQXUauChqVoyT7zITbpx_l9I4d9y3fMVLy0n3sVw5SJRoc_II7uBqXU-SzFM3JaTK6_kNmWDs_aEyfCQVLoWqqw15NsYjbFSXvak0yfuKrH76x8%3Dhttps://www.npr.org/2021/06/10/1004859458/what-causes-the-northern-lights-scientists-finally-know-for-surehttps://pwg.gsfc.nasa.gov/polar/telecons/archive/PR_E-PO/Aurora_flyer/aurora-flyer_p2.doc.pdfhttps://www.acs.org/pressroom/reactions/library/what-causes-the-northern-lights-and-where-you-should-see-them.htmlhttps://www.swpc.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/images/u2/Aurora.pdfWe want to give a special thanks to Bri McAllister for illustrating molecules for some episodes! Please go check out Bri’s art, follow and support her at entr0pic.artstation.com and @McAllisterBri on twitter!
    Thanks to our monthly supporters


    Ciara Linville
    J0HNTR0Y
    Jeannette Napoleon
    Cullyn R
    Erica Bee
    Elizabeth P
    Sarah Moar
    Rachel Reina
    Letila
    Katrina Barnum-Huckins
    Suzanne Phillips
    Nelly Silva
    Venus Rebholz
    Lyn Stubblefield
    Jacob Taber
    Brian Kimball
    Emerson Woodhall
    Kristina Gotfredsen
    Timothy Parker
    Steven Boyles
    Chris Skupien
    Chelsea B
    Bri McAllister
    Avishai Barnoy
    Hunter Reardon

    ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★
    Check out our website at chemforyourlife.com
    Watch our episodes on YouTube
    Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife.
    Want to start your own podcast? Use Transistor and you'll have the best podcast platform available. We use it and we are totally in love with it.

    • 44 min
    Ask a Chemist: Can you dissolve a liquid into a solid? (and other questions)

    Ask a Chemist: Can you dissolve a liquid into a solid? (and other questions)

    Bonus Episode: Question and Response 54
    In this month's bonus episode, Melissa and Jam respond to your comments and questions about dissolving, purple shampoo, coal ash, and petroleum waste.
    Thanks to our monthly supporters


    Ciara Linville
    J0HNTR0Y
    Jeannette Napoleon
    Cullyn R
    Erica Bee
    Elizabeth P
    Sarah Moar
    Rachel Reina
    Letila
    Katrina Barnum-Huckins
    Suzanne Phillips
    Nelly Silva
    Venus Rebholz
    Lyn Stubblefield
    Jacob Taber
    Brian Kimball
    Emerson Woodhall
    Kristina Gotfredsen
    Timothy Parker
    Steven Boyles
    Chris Skupien
    Chelsea B
    Bri McAllister
    Avishai Barnoy
    Hunter Reardon

    ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★
    Check out our website at chemforyourlife.com
    Watch our episodes on YouTube
    Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife.
    Want to start your own podcast? Use Transistor and you'll have the best podcast platform available. We use it and we are totally in love with it.

    • 30 min
    Did the FDA eliminate Forever Chemicals? (PFAS Part 5!)

    Did the FDA eliminate Forever Chemicals? (PFAS Part 5!)

    #183We're adding another chapter to the PFAS series! There's new information from the FDA that we've got to talk about,. It's about the PFAS that coat food wrappers. What does it mean? Is it good news? Is it enough? Let's talk about it!
    References from this Episode
    https://cen.acs.org/materials/coatings/PFAS-paper-food-packaging/99/i36https://www.fda.gov/food/process-contaminants-food/market-phase-out-grease-proofing-substances-containing-pfashttps://www.fda.gov/food/process-contaminants-food/questions-and-answers-pfas-foodhttps://www.fda.gov/food/process-contaminants-food/authorized-uses-pfas-food-contact-applications
    We want to give a special thanks to Bri McAllister for illustrating molecules for some episodes! Please go check out Bri’s art, follow and support her at entr0pic.artstation.com and @McAllisterBri on twitter!
    Thanks to our monthly supporters


    Ciara Linville
    J0HNTR0Y
    Jeannette Napoleon
    Cullyn R
    Erica Bee
    Elizabeth P
    Sarah Moar
    Rachel Reina
    Letila
    Katrina Barnum-Huckins
    Suzanne Phillips
    Nelly Silva
    Venus Rebholz
    Lyn Stubblefield
    Jacob Taber
    Brian Kimball
    Emerson Woodhall
    Kristina Gotfredsen
    Timothy Parker
    Steven Boyles
    Chris Skupien
    Chelsea B
    Bri McAllister
    Avishai Barnoy
    Hunter Reardon

    ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★
    Check out our website at chemforyourlife.com
    Watch our episodes on YouTube
    Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife.
    Want to start your own podcast? Use Transistor and you'll have the best podcast platform available. We use it and we are totally in love with it.

    • 37 min
    Chemmunity: CRUSHING the morning routine

    Chemmunity: CRUSHING the morning routine

    Welcome back to the supporter-exclusive secret podcast. This time we're going to look behind the curtain at how Jam and Melissa have revolutionized their morning routines. What does it look like for them to CRUSH their morning routines and have a perfectly successful day where nothing goes wrong and everything is beautiful?

    Chemmunity is a secret podcast for Chemistry For Your Life Patrons, Supporters, and Subscribers where Melissa and Jam talk about whatever they want... EXCEPT chemistry. For the most part. Welcome to the Chemmunity!

    Why do things fade in the sun?

    Why do things fade in the sun?

    #081 Rebroadcast
    The sun. It's nice, it's warm, it helps things grow, it helps us see, it helps us exist in the first place. But it's also a massive burning molten ball of radiation and ultraviolet rays. So how does our mysterious yellow friend fade the poor items we leave outside? Let's find out. Don't hurt us, yellow friend.


    References from this episode
    https://www.loc.gov/everyday-mysteries/item/why-does-ultraviolet-light-cause-color-to-fade/https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/chemistry/photodegradationhttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4320144/https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1011134404000375?via%3Dihub
    Thanks to our monthly supporters


    Ciara Linville
    J0HNTR0Y
    Jeannette Napoleon
    Cullyn R
    Erica Bee
    Elizabeth P
    Sarah Moar
    Rachel Reina
    Letila
    Katrina Barnum-Huckins
    Suzanne Phillips
    Nelly Silva
    Venus Rebholz
    Lyn Stubblefield
    Jacob Taber
    Brian Kimball
    Emerson Woodhall
    Kristina Gotfredsen
    Timothy Parker
    Steven Boyles
    Chris Skupien
    Chelsea B
    Bri McAllister
    Avishai Barnoy
    Hunter Reardon

    ★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★
    Check out our website at chemforyourlife.com
    Watch our episodes on YouTube
    Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife.
    Want to start your own podcast? Use Transistor and you'll have the best podcast platform available. We use it and we are totally in love with it.

    • 29 min

Customer Reviews

4.7 out of 5
259 Ratings

259 Ratings

Jdjdjsaj ,

Idea

How is plant poison created?

jszmim ,

Waste of time

Go back to school.

Linds8686 ,

Addicted to this podcast!!

I cannot get enough of this podcast! I’m binging past episodes right now and instantly knew it was exactly what I’ve been looking for! My kids constantly ask me questions about science, chemistry and how stuff works, and it always inspires me to look up the answers because either I’m unsure or have forgotten over the many years I’ve been out of school. This podcast refreshes all the things I learned in college or in some cases teaches me something brand new. Melissa explains things brilliantly; its easy to understand but very in-depth all at once. It helps me explain the wonderful world of chemistry to my curious little ones and sometimes even help with their homework without having to consult YouTube or Google first! Jam adds life and a refreshing curiosity to the show with his thought-provoking questions and helpful analogies. If you want to fill your mind with knowledge to help you understand the science behind everyday stuff, this podcast is for you!

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