This week’s Williams Project meeting was presented by Professor Howard M. Colquhoun from Reading University’s Department of Chemistry who began his talk on materials science with a demonstration of how much materials had changed in the past half century, using the example of aerospace design. This led on to a talk on the development, use and structure of the materials we use every day, from the humble polyethene bag to complex carbon composites and kevlar, aided by a whole host of entertaining and surprising demonstrations, all in all giving us a greater insight into the shapes, structures, and strengths of the molecules all around us.

James Mulholland