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Chemists create the first of a new class of catalysts to handle big molecules

Researchers at Arizona State University have designed and synthesized the first stable example of a new class of materials that can handle large molecules. The material, formed from zinc oxide and terephthalic acid, is a porous framework with large box-like spaces, allowing it to isolate and modify larger molecules.

How Did Life Begin? Biochemical Evolution On Chemical Surfaces

A new theory suggests that small organic molecules may assemble into self-replicating biomolecules on the surfaces of silica-rich minerals, providing a potential mechanism for life's origin. Geophysicist Joseph V. Smith proposes that organophilic zeolites could have concentrated and protected these organic compounds from destruction.