Extras · 1 of 4

A typical day

In an industry lab: check the instruments and the overnight runs, then set up the day's experiments. A lot of chemistry is preparation, waiting, and measuring. Between runs you work up data, plot it and argue with a colleague about whether the peak is real. There is a project meeting where you explain what you tried and what failed. Doctoral students run the same day with more freedom and less money, and often finish it at 9pm because a reaction needed one more hour.