

Chemistry For Your Life
Melissa and Jam, Bleav
A podcast that helps you understand the fascinating chemistry hidden in your everyday life.
Have you ever wondered why onions make you cry? Or how soap gets your hands clean? What really is margarine, or why do trees change colors in the fall? Melissa is a chemist, and to answer these questions she started a podcast, called Chemistry for your life!
In each episode Melissa explains the chemistry behind one of life’s mysteries to Jam, who is definitely not a chemist, but she explains it in a way that is easy to understand, and totally fascinating.
If you’re someone who loves learning new things, or who wonders about the way the world works, then give us a listen.
Have you ever wondered why onions make you cry? Or how soap gets your hands clean? What really is margarine, or why do trees change colors in the fall? Melissa is a chemist, and to answer these questions she started a podcast, called Chemistry for your life!
In each episode Melissa explains the chemistry behind one of life’s mysteries to Jam, who is definitely not a chemist, but she explains it in a way that is easy to understand, and totally fascinating.
If you’re someone who loves learning new things, or who wonders about the way the world works, then give us a listen.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Jul 21, 2022 • 37min
What is sea level rise? (with Dr. Renee Collini)
#025 Rebroadcast
This week, Melissa, Jam, and very special guest Renee Collini (Melissa's sister and climate scientist) delve into the important topic of sea-level rise. What causes it to rise? What affect will it have on the world? How should we feel about it? Is there anything us regular folk can do?
References from this episode
Thermal Expansion Model - Jet Propulsion Lab - California Institute of Technology
Climate Science Leader Expands Extension Role - Susan Collins-Smith, Red Hills News Mississippi
Chemistry, Edition 2 - Theopold, Langley, Flowers, and Robinson
Global and Regional Sea Level Rise Scenarios for the United States - Sweet, Kopp, Weaver, Obeysekera, Horton, Thielar, Zervas
Special thanks to Mississippi Alabama Sea Grant, the Northern Gulf of Mexico Sentinel Site Cooperative, and Mississippi State University
There have been some updates since the other Dr. Collini first visited us:
New Application Guide on How to Apply Sea Level Rise Science: https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/hazards/sealevelrise/sealevelrise-tech-report-sections.html#application-guide
Videos to learn more about sea-level rise science and how to take action: bit.ly/Future-Flooding
Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife.
Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com
And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/
Thanks to our monthly supporters
Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon
★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Jul 14, 2022 • 49min
What is the chemistry of volcanoes?
#139
The crazy, insane, scary, fascinating world of volcanoes is fully of chemistry! What is lava/magma? Why do some volcanoes ooze and others erupt? What causes the magma to start rising to the surface? Let's get into this hot topic?
How to start a podcast. <- Check this out if you've got a podcast idea you want to make happen!
References from this episode
http://www2.tulane.edu/~sanelson/Natural_Disasters/volcan&magma.htm
https://www.usgs.gov/observatories/cascades-volcano-observatory/information-about-volcanologists
https://nap.nationalacademies.org/read/24650/chapter/6
https://edu-rsc-org.libproxy.library.unt.edu/feature/eruption/3009796.article
Natural Disasters - Patrick L. Abbott
Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife.
Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com
And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/
And seriously, we love using Transistor. Check it out to be sure your podcast makes a bang.
Thanks to our monthly supporters
Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon
★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Jul 7, 2022 • 18min
Why are sand and water different temperatures at the beach?
#002
Many of us have been in a situation where we are near a body of water (lake, ocean, pool etc), and you may have noticed that no matter what the temperature is outside, the water and the land can feel like super different temperatures, like the sand being hot and the ocean being cold. Why is that? Well it's because of something called specific heat, and we're going to talk about it right now.
How to start a podcast. <- Check this out if you've got a podcast idea you want to make happen!
Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife.
Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com
And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/
And seriously, we love using Transistor. Check it out to be sure your podcast makes a bang.
Thanks to our monthly supporters
Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon
★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Jun 30, 2022 • 44min
What is wind?
#138
Wind is everywhere, we've all experienced it: soft breezes, strong gusts, cold fronts, warm fronts. But what is wind? What starts it? Where does it come from, and where does it go? And who am I to blow against the wind?
How to start a podcast. <- Check this out if you've got a podcast idea you want to make happen!
References from this episode
Natural Disasters - Patrick L. Abbott
https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/education/whatischemistry/adventures-in-chemistry/experiments/aware-of-the-air.html#:~:text=The%20air%20is%20made%20up,dioxide%2C%20and%20some%20other%20gases
https://scijinks.gov/wind/
https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/learn-about/weather/types-of-weather/wind
https://www.acs.org/content/dam/acsorg/education/k-8/inquiry-in-action/kindergarten/k-l1.4-bkgd.pdf
https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/education/resources/k-8/inquiryinaction/kindergarten/chapter-1/what-is-wind.html
https://www.eia.gov/energyexplained/wind/
Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife.
Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com
And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/
And seriously, we love using Transistor. Check it out to be sure your podcast makes a bang.
Thanks to our monthly supporters
Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon
★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Jun 23, 2022 • 29min
Bonus: Where does sand come from? (and other questions)
Bonus Episode: Question and Response 32
In this month's bonus episode, Melissa and Jam respond to comments and questions about CO2 and mosquitos, sand, light scattering, cooking eggs, and more!
Want to start your own podcast? Use Transistor and you'll have the best podcast platform available. We use it and we are totally in love with it.
Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife.
Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com
And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/
Thanks to our monthly supporters
Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon
★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Jun 16, 2022 • 45min
What is lightning?
#137
Lightning is something we're all used to. It's always just been an odd part of life. But think for a second, what even is it? It's just electricity, hanging out in the sky?? Why? What causes it? What makes it move from cloud to cloud? Or from cloud to earth? Let's get into this asap.
How to start a podcast. <- Check this out if you've got a podcast idea you want to make happen!
References from this episode
https://www.weather.gov/jetstream/lightning
https://www.weather.gov/safety/lightning-science-overview
https://www.preprints.org/manuscript/201811.0320/v1/download
https://journals.ametsoc.org/view/journals/atsc/58/18/1520-0469_2001_058_2751_ticgcc_2.0.co_2.xml
https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1029/JC088iC09p05494
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11214-008-9345-0
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/lightning?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=social&utm_content=yt20190412-environment-lightning&utm_campaign=editorial&utm_rd=&cmpid=org=ngp::mc=social::src=youtube::cmp=editorial::add=yt20190412-environment-lightning::urid=
https://youtu.be/zUNEFefftt8
https://www.compoundchem.com/2018/07/31/thunderstorms/#:~:text=Lightning%20strikes%20split%20diatomic%20oxygen,ionising%20molecules%20in%20the%20air
https://www.weather.gov/safety/lightning
Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife.
Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com
And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/
And seriously, we love using Transistor. Check it out to be sure your podcast makes a bang.
Thanks to our monthly supporters
Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon
★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Jun 9, 2022 • 27min
What do rainbows and mirages have in common?
#024 Rebroadcast
This week, Melissa and Jam explore three very different, but related, light phenomena. We'll discuss situations when light can be bent, slowed down, and even broken. It's gonna be lit.
References from this episode
Why do rainbows form instead of just straight bands of colors? And why do they appear to touch the ground? - Scientific American
What causes a mirage? - Scientific American
Chemistry, Edition 1 - Julia Burdge
Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife.
Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com
And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/
Thanks to our monthly supporters
Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon
★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

Jun 2, 2022 • 30min
What are clouds? And why do they look white?
#136
Clouds. So fluffy. So wispy. So mysterious. What are they really? Why do they look white? How do they hold so much water for so long? Why do they float?
How to start a podcast. <- Check this out if you've got a podcast idea you want to make happen!
References from this episode
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-do-clouds-turn-gray-b
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-do-clouds-float-when/
https://www.usgs.gov/special-topics/water-science-school/science/condensation-and-water-cycle
https://www.usgs.gov/special-topics/water-science-school/science/how-much-does-cloud-weigh?qt-science_center_objects=0#qt-science_center_objects
https://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/k-4/stories/nasa-knows/what-are-clouds-k4.html
https://youtu.be/a2GvzsaOncE
https://www.metoffice.gov.uk/weather/learn-about/weather/types-of-weather/clouds/why-are-clouds-white#:~:text=But%20in%20a%20cloud%2C%20sunlight,background%20of%20the%20blue%20sky
https://www.childrensmuseum.org/blog/why-are-clouds-white
Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife.
Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com
And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/
And seriously, we love using Transistor. Check it out to be sure your podcast makes a bang.
Thanks to our monthly supporters
Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon
★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

May 26, 2022 • 52min
Bonus: Why is caffeine in shampoo? (and other questions)
Bonus Episode: Question and Response 31
In this month's bonus episode, Melissa and Jam respond to comments and questions about shampoo, microplastics, misunderstood chemicals, sports teams, ADHD medications, and more!
Want to start your own podcast? Use Transistor and you'll have the best podcast platform available. We use it and we are totally in love with it.
Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife.
Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com
And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/
Thanks to our monthly supporters
Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon
★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

May 19, 2022 • 51min
Why do people hate organic chemistry?
#135
Well guess what, Melissa is a PhD Doctor now! And you know what that means? She gets to tell us more details about the research she did to get her PhD. Listen to hear what Melissa found as she dove deep into the question "Why do people hate organic chemistry?" for the past few years.
How to start a podcast. <- Check this out if you've got a podcast idea you want to make happen!
References from this episode
National Research Council, (2012), Discipline-based education research: Understanding and improving learning in undergraduate science and engineering, The National Academies Press.
Graulich N., (2015), The tip of the iceberg in organic chemistry classes: How do students deal with the invisible? Chem. Educ. Res. Pract., 16(1), 9–21.
Xu X. and Lewis J. E., (2011), Refinement of a chemistry attitude measure for college students. J. Chem. Educ., 88(5), 561–568.
Gibbons R. E. and Raker J. R., (2019), Self-beliefs in organic chemistry: Evaluation of a reciprocal causation, cross-lagged model. J. Res. Sci. Teach., 56(5), 598–618.
Find us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook @ChemForYourLife.
Email us at chemforyourlife@gmail.com
And check out our chill, simple little website at https://chemforyourlife.transistor.fm/
And seriously, we love using Transistor. Check it out to be sure your podcast makes a bang.
Thanks to our monthly supporters
Ciara Linville
J0HNTR0Y
Jeannette Napoleon
Cullyn R
Erica Bee
Elizabeth P
Sarah Moar
Rachel Reina
Letila
Katrina Barnum-Huckins
Suzanne Phillips
Nelly Silva
Venus Rebholz
Lyn Stubblefield
Jacob Taber
Brian Kimball
Emerson Woodhall
Kristina Gotfredsen
Timothy Parker
Steven Boyles
Chris Skupien
Chelsea B
Bri McAllister
Avishai Barnoy
Hunter Reardon
★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★