2019-09-02 Bloomberg Businessweek

21

1900 1950 2000

750

OVER 3 FT. OVER 40 FT. AWAY

AWAY

ALMOST 350 FT. AWAY

Atom

1-DIAZIDOCARBAMOYL-

5-AZIDOTETRAZOLE

C 2 N 14

Extremely unstable and volatile

experimental explosive

OCTANITROCUBANE

C 8 N 8 O 16

A pretty, symmetrical

explosive

FLUTICASONE

C 25 H 31 F 3 O 5 S

Anti-asthma steroid

PROZAC

C 17 H 19 F 3 NO

Antidepressant

ASPARTAME

C 14 H 18 N 2 O 5

Artificial sweetener

PROGESTIN

C 21 H 30 O 2

Birth control hormone

THC

C 21 H 30 O 2

Increasingly legald

GLYPHOSATE

C 3 H 8 NO 5 P

Weedkiller

HIGH-OCTANE GASOLINE

C 8 H 18

Vroom vroom

CFC-12

CCl 2 F 2

Coolant;

ozone

destroyer

RITALIN

C 14 H 20 ClNO 2

ADHD treatment

LSD

C 20 H 25 N 3 O

Turn on. Tune in.

Drop out.

POLYFLUOROALKYL SUBSTANCES

C 8 HF 15 O 2

“Forever chemicals”

ASCORBIC ACID

C 6 H 8 O 6

Vitamin C

ESTROGEN

C 18 H 24 O 2

Female sex

hormone

TESTOSTERONE

C 19 H 28 O 2

Male sex hormone

DOPAMINE

C 8 H 11 NO 2

Brain’s reward molecule

TRYPTOPHAN
C 11 H 12 N 2 O 2
Amino acid
popularly tied to
turkey MSGC 5 H 8 NO 4 Na
Umami salt

ADRENALINE

C 9 H 13 NO 3

Stress hormone

ASPIRIN

C 9 H 8 O 4

POLYETHYLENE

C 2 H 4

Recyclable plastic No. 2

CAFFEINE

C 8 H 10 N 4 O 2

Antisoporific

COCAINE

C 17 H 21 NO 4

Claptonsong

TNT

C 7 H 5 N 3 O 6

POLYCHLORINATED

BIPHENYLS

C 12 H 5 Cl 5

Chemical coolant;

Hudson River poison

HEMOGLOBIN

Too many letters

and numbers

Blood protein

INSULIN

C 257 H 383 N 65 O 77 S 6

Sugarchaperone

MYOSIN

The letters and subscript

would run off the page

Skeletal muscle protein

A BASE PAIRS

mula varies

ofDNA double helix

BUCKMINSTERFULLERENE

C 60

Molecular soccer ball,

not for kicking

CAROTENE

C 40 H 56

Why parents make

their kids eat carrot

POLYSTYRENE

C 8 H 8

Burger box

METHANE
CH 4
Simplest
hydrocarbon

ADENOSINE TRIPHOSPHATE

C 10 H 16 N 5 O 13 P 3

Fuel for cells

PENICILLIN

C 16 H 18 N 2 O 4 S

Antibiotic

0 BLOOMBERG (1); GETTY IMAGES (20)

drug

ts

g

DNA

Form

Rung