Chemical Engineering
Dating back to 10,000 BC, this is the oldest known chemical process used by humans and is responsible for making beer, bread, and wine.
What is fermentation?
This gas makes your voice sound funny when inhaled because it’s lighter than air, allowing sound waves to travel faster.
What is helium?
This AMC TV series follows a high school chemistry teacher who turns to cooking methamphetamine after a cancer diagnosis.
What is Breaking Bad?
When making bread, yeast produces this gas, causing the dough to rise and become fluffy.
What is carbon dioxide?
If you visit Rice University, you might find yourself walking through the campus's iconic archways, named after this founding family.
What is Lovett (or the Lovett Hall Archways)?
This thermodynamic property, often called ‘corrected pressure,’ accounts for deviations from ideal gas behavior and is crucial in phase equilibrium calculations.
What is fugacity?
Cutting onions can make you cry because they release compounds containing this stinky element, also found in rotten eggs.
What is sulfur?
In Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, this mythical chemical substance was said to grant immortality.
What is the Sorcerer's Stone (or Elixir of Life)?
Adding lemon juice to apples slows down this chemical reaction, which causes them to turn brown.
What is oxidation?
Rice students call this cherished tradition 'Beer Bike,' but ironically, it involves as much of this beverage as it does actual cycling.
What is water?
This chemical process, responsible for producing 50% of the world’s food supply, synthesizes ammonia for fertilizers.
What is the Haber-Bosch process?
This metal, known as 'quick silver,' is the only one that is liquid at room temperature.
What is mercury?
In Back to the Future, Doc Brown originally wanted to power the DeLorean time machine with this highly unstable radioactive element.
What is plutonium?
This reaction, named after a French scientist, is responsible for the golden-brown color of toasted bread, grilled meats, and roasted coffee.
What is the Maillard reaction?
Rice University is home to this famous open-air artwork, where visitors can whisper in one spot and be heard across the circle.
What is the James Turrell Skyspace (or Twilight Epiphany)?
This Shell chemical engineer, referenced in the movie Oppenheimer, was suspected of trying to steal U.S. atomic bomb secrets for the Soviet Union.
Who is George C. Eltebton?
This radioactive element was famously used in the first nuclear bombs and later became a symbol of nuclear energy.
What is uranium?
Tony Stark (Iron Man) had to create a new element to replace this toxic metal that powered his arc reactor in Iron Man 2.
What is palladium?
Ice cream stays smooth instead of turning into an ice block thanks to this simple carbohydrate that lowers the freezing point of water.
What is sugar?
Rice University played a crucial role in America’s space race, with John F. Kennedy famously declaring in 1962 that 'We choose to go to the moon'—at this on-campus location.
What is Rice Stadium?
This famous chemical engineer helped develop the lithium-ion battery, revolutionizing energy storage.
Who is John B. Goodenough?
This element is the best conductor of electricity, even better than copper.
What is silver?
Marvel fans know that Captain America’s shield is made from vibranium, but in reality, this real-life metal is the closest thing we have to an indestructible material.
What is titanium?
This kitchen ingredient, found in chili peppers, is responsible for their spicy heat by triggering pain receptors in your mouth.
What is capsaicin?
In one of Rice’s most legendary pranks, students ‘borrowed’ this school’s statue and placed it on their own campus, dressed in Rice gear.
What is Texas A&M (or the Aggie statue prank)?