It’s a very small world for the nano sciences
MAKING the tiniest of machines made for a fascinating subject as part of the Scarisbrick Hall School’s Great Hall Lecture Series.
The lecture, on molecular self-organisation, was delivered earlier this month by Prof David A Leigh, FRS.
Prof Leigh enthralled all present with the possibility of nano machines and what they can do for us in the future.
His research has been based on nanotechnology and molecular machines.
These are “machines” created by chemistry that manipulate the properties of some of the smallest elements known to man.
His work on manipulating molecules has led to all sorts of breakthroughs, including tying molecules into complex knots which could give materials “exceptional versatility” or the ability to be shock absorbent.
The knotted molecules mimic the complex knots found in proteins and DNA, helping change their properties.
But, the potential of the technology is only just being discovered.
The talk was part of the 2018 Dalton Lecture series.
These are given to commemorate the life and work of chemist, physicist and meteorologist John Dalton, who proposed modern atomic theory.
It was a public lecture of the Royal Society of Chemistry organised by the Manchester and District Local Section of the RSC. The professor was addressing the school for a second time and students from local schools were made welcome alongside the school’s own budding scientists.
Since 2014, Prof Leigh has held the Sir Samuel Hall Chair of Chemistry in the school of chemistry at the University of Manchester.
He was previously the Forbes Chair of Organic Chemistry at the University of Edinburgh (2001– 2012) and Professor of Synthetic Chemistry at the University of Warwick.
The lecture showed that it is a very exciting time to venture into a science career.