chemistry

John Emsley

John Emsley is a chemistry topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand John Emsley rather than just read about it. In short: John Emsley (born 1938) is a UK popular science writer, broadcaster and academic specialising in chemistry. He researched and lectured at King's College London for 25 years, authoring or co-authoring about 100 papers, and then became Science Writer in Residence at Imperial College London in 1990.

Key takeaways

John Emsley belongs to chemistry; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect John Emsley to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of John Emsley from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

John Emsley (born 1938) is a UK popular science writer, broadcaster and academic specialising in chemistry. He researched and lectured at King's College London for 25 years, authoring or co-authoring about 100 papers, and then became Science Writer in Residence at Imperial College London in 1990. From 1997 to 2002 he was Science Writer in Residence at the Department of Chemistry at Cambridge University, England, during which time he started and wrote the newsletter Chem@Cam. He is the author of more than 12 books and several of them have been translated into other languages.

Newspaper column For six years Emsley wrote a column on chemistry for the Independent called "Molecule of the Month".

Books Emsley's published books include:

More Molecules of Murder, (London): Royal Society of Chemistry, 2017. Chemhistory, Witley Press, 2017. Chemistry at Home. Exploring the Ingredient in Everyday Products, Cambridge UK: Royal Society of Chemistry, 2015. Elements of Fortune, ebook Witley Press, 2014. Chemystery, Witley Press, 2013. The Newsletter. An EPIC tale of spin, ebook Publicola Publishing ISBN 978-0-95722771-2, 2013. Sweet Dreams, Nightmare Days, Witley Press, 2013. Islington Green: A Book of Revelation, Witley Press, 2012. A Healthy, Wealthy, Sustainable World, Cambridge UK: Royal Society of Chemistry, 2010. Molecules of Murder: Criminal Molecules and Classic Cases, Cambridge, UK: Royal Society of Chemistry, 2008. Better Looking, Better Living, Better Loving : how chemistry can help you achieve life's goals, Weinheim: Wiley-VCH 2007. The Elements of Murder, Oxford University Press, 2005. Vanity, Vitality, and Virility: the science behind the products you love to buy, Oxford University Press, 2004. Nature's Building Blocks: an A–Z Guide to the Elements, Oxford University Press, 2001. 2nd ed. 2011 Nature's building blocks : everything you need to know about the elements, Oxford; New York : Oxford University Press, 2011. Shocking History of Phosphorus, 2000. US Edition The 13th Element: The Sordid Tale of Murder, Fire, and Phosphorus, 2001. with P. Fell, Was it something you ate? Food intolerance, what causes it and how to avoid it, Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 1999. Molecules at an Exhibition : portraits of intriguing materials in everyday life, Oxford University Press, 1998. Parfum, Portwein, PVC ..., Weinheim : Wiley-VCH, 1997. In German. The Consumer's Good Chemical Guide: Separating Facts from Fiction about Everyday Products, W.H. Freeman, 1994. (Winner of the Rhone Poulenc Science Book Prize 1995). Also title The Consumer's Good Chemical Guide: a jargon-free guide to the chemicals of everyday life. The Elements, Oxford University Press, 1989, 2nd ed. 1991, 3rd ed. 1998. Complex chemistry, Berlin; New York : Springer, 1984. Series: Structure and bonding, 57. with C. Hall, The Chemistry of Phosphorus: environmental, organic, inorganic, biochemical, and spectroscopic aspects, Harper & Row, 1976. The inorganic chemistry of the non-metals, London: Methuen Educational (1971).

References

External links Biography and list of awards John Emsley's website List of reviews and research papers

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with John Emsley

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what John Emsley claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In chemistry, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to John Emsley before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about John Emsley ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of John Emsley

In research: John Emsley appears in chemistry research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses John Emsley in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: John Emsley is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1938 births, British chemists, British writers, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for John Emsley outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study John Emsley in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what John Emsley means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain John Emsley out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is John Emsley in simple terms?

Why does John Emsley matter?

Because it connects several chemistry ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study John Emsley?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on John Emsley.