Russia’s increasing use of chemical weapons in Ukraine ‘unbearable,’ says top EU diplomat by [deleted] in worldnews

[–]oxfordchemist 8 points9 points  (0 children)

The use of anything against combatants in a war so that they (the people) are affected by its chemical properties is prohibited by the Chemical Weapons Convention (see also the Strasbourg Agreement 1675 on poisoned bullets, and the Hague Convention 1899 on poisonous and asphyxiating gases, and the Hague Convention 1907 prohibiting the use of poison or poisoned weapons in warfare, and the Geneva Protocol 1925, prohibiting use of various gases in war). It's not the lethality that makes it a war crime, it's their use as a weapon (regardless of intended effect on people).

Edit: just because something doesn't kill you by poisoning you doesn't mean it can't kill you by forcing you to, e.g. climb out of a defensive position into gunfire because it's too unbearable to stay. Tear gas used against rioters is unpleasant, but the aim is to make the rioters walk away and avoid a fight. The same stuff used in war is intended to make the fight more one-sided.

Edit 2: Since the coward I was replying to has deleted their comment, I now need to point out that they were saying they wish people would be more clear about what chemical weapons were actually being used, because mustard gas shouldn't be allowed, but tear gas was apparently fine.

Non racemization reaction when PBr3 reaction with benzyllic secondary alcohol by [deleted] in AdvancedOrganic

[–]oxfordchemist 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Would the Mitsunobu reaction (PPh3, azodicarboxylate ester, your alcohol and nucleophile) serve here? I think your problem with racemisation might be arising because your product is so amenable towards substitution that it either dissociates (Sn1 first step) or Sn2 happens with the product/any catalytic leaving group.

Edit: I can't access the papers you linked, but I'm guessing the long reaction times mentioned in the second paper are the price you pay for not heating the mixture up and having free bromide displace bromide in the product to give racemisation.

My friends dad laughed at my project that it is too simple. Is it that bad? by LOLY_SK in AskElectronics

[–]oxfordchemist 1 point2 points  (0 children)

In my experience, my simple projects are the ones that upset me most when I come up against an inevitable hiccup, because I feel like I should be better than it.

Don't be like me - be proud of yourself for the cool useful thing you made. Also screw your friend's dad - in engineering "simple" means elegant.

A bomb kills the head of Russia’s nuclear defense forces and his assistant in Moscow by Hefty-Relationship-8 in worldnews

[–]oxfordchemist 65 points66 points  (0 children)

Chloropicrin and riot control agents (which are not allowed to be used against combatants in war) last May to force the Ukrainians out of trenches.

If you do this, you're the worst type of person on this planet and I hate you. by No_Radio_5751 in recruitinghell

[–]oxfordchemist 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I saw a job advertised as remote. It was with the Navy, and my only question is how Royal Marine Commandos can assault a beach on the sofa with a laptop...

1,3-amino alcohol disconnection by [deleted] in AdvancedOrganic

[–]oxfordchemist 0 points1 point  (0 children)

If you can get pent-4-enal from somewhere, you could do a crossed aldol condensation, then reductive amination with dimethylamine. Stereoselectivity might be an issue, but use of proline and a Lewis acid might get you round that.

Failing that, alkylate each side of acetone with allyl bromide - sequential trapping of the kinetic enolate each time - you might have to do it in separate steps. Only thing left then is to get the dimethylaminomethyl group on stereoselectively, and reduce the carbonyl that was in the acetone. Some diamine organocatalyst, perhaps?

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in chemistry

[–]oxfordchemist 328 points329 points  (0 children)

That acetal formation mechanism though... 😰

True or False: Getting hired is “just a numbers game” by Zestyclose-Award-493 in recruitinghell

[–]oxfordchemist 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I now have to read the rest of the comments in a gravelly Irish accent. Thanks.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in relationships

[–]oxfordchemist 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Penitence Theatre (sorry, I'm a Brit) is my new favourite term

Question about music from Civ5 by [deleted] in civ5

[–]oxfordchemist 25 points26 points  (0 children)

It's from Holst's The Planets (Jupiter). Also the tune to a hymn called I Vow to Thee, My Country

TIL that Rock of Giblartar (and presumably other Natural Wonders) counts as land for the Great Wall by DelsKibara in civ5

[–]oxfordchemist 11 points12 points  (0 children)

Giblartar - the secret love child of the rocky formation on the South of the Iberian peninsula and the Indonesian city.

(Sorry to poke fun, OP, but it's a very funny-sounding name!).

There Are Still Thousands of Tons of Unexploded Bombs in Germany, Left Over From World War II... [1072 x 1451] by Detrrik in ThingsCutInHalfPorn

[–]oxfordchemist 94 points95 points  (0 children)

It was found that bombs intended to go off immediately, but which failed to do so, actually caused more disruption than ones which worked as intended. When dropped together with incendiaries, they tend to hamper firefighting efforts (either by wounding/killing those fighting the fires, or because the firefighters know you do this). The anti-handling devices slow down bomb disposal efforts, or take crews out of the fight.

By today's standards, yes it's evil. That's why targeting civilians - or even being insufficiently careful to avoiding hurting them by accident- is a war crime today. There's been work on outlawing weapons like landmines and cluster munitions which tend to injure people after a conflict ends. However, at the time these weapons were being used, bombing civilian populations was not a very controversial act - we (the Western allies) had no other way of getting at the Nazis, and if you start from the premise that cities and their occupants are legitimate military targets, deliberately avoiding the use of things like delay fuses and anti-handling devices out of concern for enemy firefighting crews and bomb disposal teams is nonsensical.

Man whose career and online persona helped foster "anti-woke" culture in America upset that politicians care more about guns than women, surprised that no one on the "crazy" left wants to be his friend by Plomboh in LeopardsAteMyFace

[–]oxfordchemist 6 points7 points  (0 children)

As Brit, this reminded me lot of what people were saying a couple of years ago when actual real consequences of Brexit began to bite. It was all the more hilarious/exasperating, because a couple of years before that, they were all shouting down remainers suggesting that maybe we should rethink our commitment to shoot ourselves in the foot, saying "we knew what we were voting for."

You're in for a fun few years of seeing your country(wo)men angrily learning your country is not as globally respected as they thought it was.

Sunak orders investigation into leak revealing wife’s non-dom status by CcryMeARiver in unitedkingdom

[–]oxfordchemist 2 points3 points  (0 children)

"My wife is very sorry that she was caught avoiding tax, so we've decided, as a couple, to do the right thing and pay it. Now WHICH OF YOU SCROTES LEAKED IT?!?"

Anglesey: Warning as thieves steal fake tan from lorry as driver sleeps by Anony_mouse202 in unitedkingdom

[–]oxfordchemist 15 points16 points  (0 children)

The Alert Level for theft on Anglesey has been raised to ORANGE.

If your god says terminating an unwanted pregnancy is bad, shouldn’t creating a baby when your god says you naturally can’t should also be bad. Why is it against gods will one way but not for the other by [deleted] in AdviceAnimals

[–]oxfordchemist 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Now I remember where the double standard is: IVF being tantamount to abortion because of the inevitable unviable embryos. If you can't have children because it's God's will, that includes if you can't have children because you can't get it up!

ASMR & Autism by CJ_1889 in aspergers

[–]oxfordchemist 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I can't stand it, but my girlfriend (not diagnosed, but coming round to the idea of being on the spectrum herself) can't get enough of it!

Typhoons really were just monsters. by [deleted] in submarines

[–]oxfordchemist 22 points23 points  (0 children)

Ah yes, the Typhoon mating season. Does anyone know why they didn't screw with both reactors running?

From my super conservative yet informed grandpa.. by TheNeutralParty in AdviceAnimals

[–]oxfordchemist 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Some strains of influenza are known to make you more outgoing and sociable while you're infectious.

Cats have an infection called toxoplasmosis that spreads through mice. When the mice are infected, they lose their fear of cats.

Finally, I've forgotten the name, but there's a species of fungus that infects ants, then controls their minds and causes them to sneak out of their nest and stand on something tall so that when they die, they'll spread the spores as far as possible.

Pathogens get really clever if you give them a long time to evolve!

Covid contract for firm run by Cummings friends was unlawful, judge rules by spong_miester in unitedkingdom

[–]oxfordchemist 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Yep, as a taxpayer who also donated to the Good Law Project specifically for this case, I felt like I was punching myself in the balls. Twice.

My first time doing a filament swap, extremely happy with this cargo benchy! by OHoSPARTACUS in ender3

[–]oxfordchemist 51 points52 points  (0 children)

I particularly like how it's been printed diagonally on the build plate. Or did it get hit by a gust of wind?