Chemistry and matter

Science plays such an important part in the modern world that no one can now feel that he understands the world in which he lives unless he has an understanding of science. The science of chemistry deals with substances. At this point in the study of chemistry, we shall not define the word substance in its scientific sense but shall assume that you have a general idea of what the word means. Common examples of substances are water, sugar, salt, copper, iron oxygen - you can think of many others. Chemists study substances to learn as much as they can about their properties and about the reactions that change them into other substances. Knowledge obtained in this way is extremely valuable. Since some substances (like morphine and cocaine), may have undesirable properties along with positive ones, we should test such substances for their powers of deadening pain and of producing addiction very thoroughly. Some methods carried out in laboratories were dangerous. No doubt that the twentieth century may be called the chemical age.

The chemistry of tomorrow

Addressing global challenges means advancing fundamental scientific knowledge, supporting excellence in chemical science research, and maximizing the number of future breakthroughs. It will require an interdisciplinary approach to build bridges between chemistry's sub-disciplines, and with other sciences and engineering.

Experts were brought together to discuss issues facing today's society, identifying seven priority areas.

These seven priority areas have many areas of overlap, with strong links between associated challenges. The themes of sustainable development and climate change underpin the majority of the challenges.

The seven priority areas are summarised here:

Energy. Creating and securing environmentally sustainable energy supplies, and improving the efficiency of power generation, transmission, and use.

Food. Creating and securing a safe, environmentally friendly, diverse, and affordable food supply.

Future cities. Developing and adapting cities to meet the emerging needs of citizens.

Human health. Improving and maintaining accessible health, including disease prevention.

Lifestyle & recreation. Providing a sustainable route for people to live richer and more varied lives.

Raw materials & feedstock. Creating and sustaining a supply of sustainable feedstock, by designing processes and air quality, and addressing the societal impact on water resources (quality and availability).

Technology

Technology is the making, modification, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques to solve a problem or achieve a goal. Human use of technology began with the transformation of natural resources into simple tools, and now technology allows people to communicate at a distance, although, unfortunately, technology is not only developing in a peaceful direction. There is a lot of disagreement in society about the use of technology for humans, but recent research shows that even other species use the simplest technologies in their lives. Until the 20th century, the term technology was used only in technical education, it first gained popularity during the second industrial revolution, and now technology is entities created by the application of mental and physical effort to achieve some value. Sometimes the word "technology" can be used to refer to a set of methods. The distinction between science, engineering, and technology is not always clear. Science studies the world to discover its stable principles. Engineering also applies the achievements of science for practical purposes. Technology is often a consequence of science and engineering, these three areas are often considered as one for research and reference. The exact relationship between science and technology is a question that has not yet received a clear answer.