Reports a study by the National Academy of Sciences that points to transuranic elements and hexachlorobenzene in the oceans as potential problems to humans and marine life. (GS)

Surveys the growth, origins, and languages of the chemical literature. Discusses the indexing and abstracting of the chemical literature by the Chemical Abstracts Service. (MLH)

Describes how polydiacetylenes can be used as educational aids. These polymers have conjugated backbones, which cause changes in color when the polydiacetylenes undergo various chemical and physical processes. Diagrams summarize all chemical reactions and their associated color changes. (CS)

Provides a brief history of chemistry up to the founding of the American Chemical Society in 1876. Includes developments in the understanding of matter, phlogiston theory, atomic theory, and chemical reactions. (MLH)

Reviews the history of selected topics in inorganic chemistry, including catalysis, mechanisms, transition metals, and noble gases. (MLH)

Reviews the history of selected topics in physical chemistry, including kinetics, thermodynamics, quantum chemistry, and nuclear chemistry. (MLH)

Reviews the history of selected topics in analytic chemistry, especially analytical instrumentation. (MLH)

Reviews the history of drug research and the chemical aspects of medical research. (MLH)

Reviews the history of macromolecular synthesis and structure. (MLH)

Discusses research activities conducted by scientists from the United State of America, Canada, and the United Kingdom to determine the long-term effects on natural marine ecosystems, especially plankton communities, of such pollutants as heavy metals, synthetic hydrocarbons, and petroleum hydrocarbons. (CC)

Discusses new techniques for studying reactions that occur in the picosecond range and how the results of this research provide new insights into biochemical events and the chemical processes that take place in liquid systems. (MLH)

Reviews the history of selected topics in organic chemistry, including organic synthesis, free-radicals, and instrumentation. (MLH)

Describes this year's chemistry exhibition held in Japan and sponsored by the Chemical Society of Japan. Summarizes the purposes, preparation, and the activities of the exhibition. (YP)

Discusses scientific information obtained from Pioneer 10's Jupiter flyby and the comet Kohoutek's first trip around the sun, including the high hydrogen emission of Jupiter's principal moon, Io. (CC)