There's a new buckyball on the scene!

In 1985, buckminsterfullerene (a spherical molecule formed of 60 carbon atoms) was discovered by a small team led by Kroto, Curl and Smalley, who later won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Buckminsterfullerene belongs to a group of molecules called fullerenes which have shown potential as a hydrogen storage at high densities due to their closed, cage-like structures. Much research has since gone into this class of molecules, and now a cousin of the buckyball has come to light.

Boron is next to carbon in the periodic table and is well-known for it's cluster formation (boranes). Lai-Sheng Wang at the Brown University has successfully made a molecule, nicknamed "borospherene", with 40 boron atoms by vaporising a chunk or boron with a laser then freezing it with helium. Scientists are now hunting for further boron analogues of carbon structures such as graphene.

Xenon's potential to erase bad memories

I find xenon such an interesting element. Before I came to university, I believed it was the most mundane of all the periodic table, barely any reactivity, colourless, nothing special really... However, since my studies have begun I have learnt that xenon has more to offer.

Through history, it has surprised chemists with it's sometimes, literally, explosive reactivity as it forms unstable fluoride compounds. Still, xenon alone can't do much, right?

Wrong. Recent studies have shown that when inhaled, xenon gas has the potential to erase fearful memories in mice. Although in early stages of trial, this is an amazing breakthrough and could be the start of finding a treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder. Trials on healthy humans will hopefully be carried out within a year and, if successful, will then move onto patients with post-traumatic stress disorder.