Short Takes – 4-25-25

Catenane with tuneable mechanical chirality created. ChemistryWorld.com article. Just a bit Chem-Geeky. Pull quote: “While the approach works in solution too, complete control of chirality can currently only be achieved in the solid state. ‘When the molecule is crystalised with the chiral anion, the crystal packing of one diastereomer is so favourable compared to the other that a single diastereomer of the crystal is formed,’ comments Goldup. ‘This is important because although mechanically chiral molecules with fixed stereochemistry have been shown to have exciting potential applications in areas like catalysis and chiral emission, making them enantiopure is still difficult.’”

China selects international payloads for Chang’e-8 lunar south pole mission. SpaceNews.com article. Pull quote: “Chosen payloads include multi-functional robots, rovers, and instruments for astronomy and analyzing particles, imagers and a laser retroreflector. The mission will include a Chinese rover, a Pakistani rover, and, for the first time in a Chinese lunar mission, micro-rovers jointly developed by a Turkish university, a Chinese university and a private company.”

Isaacman calls potential NASA science cuts not “optimal”. SpaceNews.com article. Pull quote: “That includes appearing to break with the White House on the future of the Roman Space Telescope. “To my knowledge, the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is nearing completion and remains on schedule and within budget—something that is unfortunately rare for flagship programs at the agency,” he said in response to another question from Schatz. “I’m not aware of any reason why it should be canceled, and I would support its completion and successful deployment.””

First foodborne illness tied to Bacillus velezensis found in bakery cake outbreak. FoodSafetyNews.com article. Pull quote: “nvestigators identified undercooking and 72-hour storage as key factors that allowed B. velezensis spores — naturally present in flour or added to crops as an inoculant — to multiply. A dose-response relationship showed that higher consumption (up to 504 grams) increased the likelihood of illness, with odds 9.23 times higher for those exposed. Noticing a bad odor reduced consumption by an average of 151 grams.”