From vibrant dyes to volatile disasters - trinitrophenol’s unstable legacy. Few substances in human history have been both so brilliantly useful and so terrifyingly dangerous as picric acid. This humble-looking yellow crystalline compound, formally known as trinitrophenol (TNP), has lurked in the shadowy corridors of chemistry for well over two centuries, causing as much chaos as it has progress. It’s a chemical that epitomises humanity’s knack for fiddling with dangerous thi

Fritz Haber: Science & War Welcome to our new series, "Bad Boys of Science", where we look into stories of scientists whose contributions...

The Great Smog of 1952 stands as a disturbing chapter in London's history,

#62 Science in History 15th May 1923 Today In 1923, Listerine was registered as a trademark. The iconic mouthwash known as Listerine is a...

#60 Science in History 25th April 2007 Today is World Malaria Day, instituted by the World Health Organisation’s Member States to raise...

#59 Science in History 23nd April 1867 Today in 1867, The zoetrope was patented by William E. Lincoln. The zoetrope is a device that...

#58 Science in History 22nd April 1915 Today in 1915, chlorine was first used on the battlefield. The gas attack at Ypres in 1915 was a...

#57 Science in History 19th April 1982 On this day in 1982, Guion Bluford, Jr. was announced as the first African American astronaut by...

#56 Science in History 7th April 1827 Today in 1827, English pharmacist John Walker sells his first matches in Stockton-on-Tees, England....

#55 Science in History 5th April 1753 The British Museum was founded on 5th April 1753. The British Museum is one of the world's oldest...

#54 Science in History 3rd April 1973 On April 3rd, 1973, Martin "Marty" Cooper made the first-ever cellular phone call. Cooper, who was...

#53 Science in History 1st April 1960 TIROS I, the first successful weather satellite, was launched into orbit on this day in 1960....

#52 Science in History 31st March 1981 Today in 1981, the first patent for a genetically engineered life form was issued to Ananda...

#51 Science in History 28th March 1979 Today in 1979, America faced a nuclear crisis - the worst nuclear accident in a commercial,...

#50 Science in History 27th March 1933 Today in 1933, two British scientists discover polyethylene (polythene). Polyethylene was...

#49 Science in History 24rd March 1882 Today in 1882, Robert Koch announces the discovery of the bacillus responsible for tuberculosis....

#48 Science in History 23rd March 1989 On this day in 1989, fusion at room temperature was claimed by Martin Fleischmann and Stan Pons....

#47 Science in History 20th March 1886 The first demonstration in America of the alternating-current (AC) system for lighting was...

#45 Science in History 6th March 1899 It’s 1899 and on this day, acetylsalicylic acid was patented by Felix Hoffmann for the German...

#44 Science in History 1st March 1954 On this day, 06:45 local time, the Marshall Islands were flooded with the light emitted by the...