Inspirational Chemistry

Abstract

Throughout 2011, nations are celebrating the International Year of Chemistry. This worldwide recognition of the importance of chemistry is somewhat unusual. It is true that chemistry has been called “the central science,” not only by chemists but even in Wikipedia (of course, that article may have been written by a chemist), perhaps as a metaphor for its role in connections between the fundamental concepts of physics and the practical problems of biology. Furthermore, it is the discipline that will continue to drive the discoveries that tackle today's most vexing challenges: solving the energy problem, developing and producing new treatments for diseases, devising advanced materials for a host of applications, and many more. It seems most appropriate to talk of chemistry as overlapping, rather than bridging, other disciplines. And most certainly it is time to celebrate the creative future of chemistry, which lies in myriad directions.