There is a healthy debate among scientists about which discipline can provide the best tools for solving key societal problems. This cartoon pokes fun at the sometimes—contentious relationship between chemists and biologists. Chemists are often the inventors and early developers of materials and techniques that drive biotechnology. Is this area (arguably biology’s most useful side) then really just chemistry in disguise? Can chemists lay claim to the most impactful discoveries within it? Whether you’d argue yes or no to these questions, it could be the biology community that gets the last laugh. Another clue in the man’s crossword puzzle: “A biologist who has made seminal discoveries in his or her field, perhaps (4 words).” The answer: N-O-B-E-L-L-A-U-R-E-A-T-E-I-N-C-H-E-M-I-S-T-R-Y. —Chad Mirkin, Northwestern
