Chemistry likes to call itself “the central science” because very little research, from astronomy to zoology, can be done without it. This year, Scientific American has chronicled this central role in many compelling stories.

Here is my list of 5 of the most interesting stories. Follow the links to check them out if you missed them the first time around. And if you think I missed some—a crazy thought, but it could happen—let me know in the comments below, or email me at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/27304596@N00/96522428 

Most days I feel like I’m sitting in my car with a lead foot on the pedal. The engine is roaring.

But I’m in neutral.

I’m stationary.

I’m still in my driveway.

If you have ever set out to do your own thing, you know exactly what I’m talking about. Since my freshman year in college, I’ve had the burning desire to start a company that I’m absolutely in love with and travel the world.

Image: http://www.flickr.com/photos/95942851@N00/2977224990 

When discussing entrepreneurship – particularly with other entrepreneurs – there tends to be a general assumption that it is a force for good. And one that is extremely powerful – with the potential to transform and grow economies.

But this may not necessarily be the case. Experts at the  ‘Entrepreneurs are born, not made’ debate, hosted by Barclays discussed entrepreneurship’s powers, whether it should be encouraged and, if so, how.

Our entrepreneurial hubs are growing. And, come 2015, startup hubs in Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill could blend into the same Triangle brand. That's a good thing, says Ted Zoller, director of UNC's Center for Entrepreneurship, who explains that it's all about regional competitiveness.

Image: Ted Zoller, director of the Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  

Biotechnology will have a strong year in 2015, but it can’t get any better than 2014, biotech investor G. Steven Burrill says in his annual year-end report....

Facing one of the most drawn-out downturns in its brief history, bitcoin is nearing a fork in the road. The cryptocurrency will either rebound and finally enjoy long-term stability, or bitcoin's platform will leave the digital currency back at the fork and carry on evolving. From there, smoke swirls around the crystal ball.

In part one of this series, we explored how bitcoin emerged from the mind, or minds, of a mysterious entity and battled through numerous setbacks to break into the mainstream. It appears the peer-to-peer platform on which bitcoin rests is here to stay, though there is cause for concern about currency itself.

Image: Bitcoin is primed to move into the next stage of its life where it will either mature in the mainstream or tokenize other currencies. From there, its life may be in the hands of the country whose currency currently backs the cryptocurrency. (Photo : Jason Benjamin | Creative Commons) 

Firms that want to innovate often do so by conducting cooperative innovation activities with business partners. In such inter-organizational cooperations, business partners depend on each other's knowledge and bring in different types of expertise. In our research we focus on the knowledge exchanges across knowledge boundaries in inter-organizational activities for innovation. Information systems (IS) play an important role as enablers in this context. The concept of boundary objects has been used to describe interactions between actors with varying information and knowledge needs. While the vital role of boundary objects has been recognized in IS literature, the process of emergence of boundary-spanning has received less attention. Recent literature has hinted that, contrary to initial conceptualizations, boundary objects may not manifest as only single information technology artifacts. In this study, we offer the view of boundary objects as a cluster of several artifacts. By means of a qualitative case study, we describe the process of emergence of such boundary clusters and provide evidence for how they advance inter-organizational innovation activities. We describe how such clusters emerge from differences and dependencies in the knowledge of cooperating actors and explore the clusters' significance to knowledge exchanges in inter-organizational innovation contexts. In doing so, we offer an explanation of cluster emergence which links the interplay of artifacts, uses, practices, and knowledge to the coordination of cooperative inter-organizational innovation activities.

TODAY’S fast-paced global economy is ruled by innovators. Those who invent new products and processes or create their own businesses are the main drivers of economic growth.

But innovations do not occur in a vacuum. Places with high concentrations of scientists and engineers, high-tech jobs, patents, venture capital and public and private investment in research and development have a greater capacity to innovate and to succeed economically.

Image: http://seattletimes.com/ 

As related previously, the Bring Back the Meritocracy! project's first priority for 2015 is getting the eight Ivies - followed by the rest of the top-tier university community - to set up plans for salvaging the economic fortunes of their own financially-at-risk graduates and alumni, many of whom are over age 40 and all of whom belong to the "Highly-Educated But Under-Employed" population.

China has apparently invented a new form of futuristic non-lethal weapon—which is pretty handy if some of its biggest cities are going to continue protesting against a lack of democracy. The Poly WB-1 uses millimeter-thick microwave wave beams that heat up the water molecules under the skin, which causes unbelievable pain when the gun is pointed at you. (The US has its own microwave pain gun that was supposed to be used in Afghanistan but was recalled over ethics and technical issues.)

image: http://www.freedigitalphotos.net 

When it comes to moving forward in your career, there are two paths you can take: The ladder or the lattice.

For example, one mid-level manager took a calculated risk when she accepted a lower position with a much larger company. On her resume, it looked like a step down the career ladder — but after less than a year in the role, she had gained recognition as a high-potential emerging leader.

Image: : FLICKR, FDECOMITE 

If there's one thing biotech execs like to do more than anything else, it's planning a global strategy for rolling out an experimental drug. Up to now, that has largely meant studying the FDA for clues on drug approvals, considering the virtues of solo marketing (usually just a negotiating ploy in licensing talks) or co-promoting in the U.S., followed by a partnership deal for Europe and maybe Japan.

In the coming year, you can expect to see a lot more work being done on Asian deals, particularly for China. Through the course of this past year there have been growing signs of this global evolution. More Chinese companies are on the lookout for drugs that can be in-licensed, and more U.S./European companies are reaching out to some new players in the region. J&J ($JNJ) highlighted the change by placing one of its global innovation centers in Shanghai.

image: http://www.freedigitalphotos.net 

New mileage rates from the Internal Revenue Service and the review of a new dashboard called Dasheroo top the news this week. But  there are many other tech announcements, reports on the latest trends in entrepreneurship and other stories of interest to small business owners.

You’ve got your disruptive idea. You’re making the rounds with angels and VCs. But where will you launch and set up shop with your new startup?

A successful business can have origins in almost any location — Rogers, Arkansas, was the site of the first Walmart, after all. Strategically basing your startup, however, can add power and velocity to your growth, positioning you to gain partners and market share more quickly.

image: http://www.freedigitalphotos.net 

We all reach a point where we question whether or not we were born to be entrepreneurs. Below is a list of traits that are synonymous with successful entrepreneurs and one look is enough to reaffirm your chosen career path. While very few people are blessed with all 20 of these traits, you’ll quickly realise that you were born with at least 50% – the rest, you can work on over time.

Image: https://www.linkedin.com 

Entrepreneurship is as important as innovation for national and global economic growth. “Innovation is essential, and we need it. But the real magic starts with entrepreneurs,” according to Gallup Poll’s Jim Clifton and Sangeeta Bharadwaj Badal. “Entrepreneurs create customers. And customers, in turn, create jobs and economic growth,” they add.

Countries need thinkers and doers. “Entrepreneurship is the horse, and innovation is the cart,” Clifton and Badal explain. Creativity, ideas, discovery and innovation are one side of the growth coin – the other side is commercialisation.

Image: http://yourstory.com/ 

The lifeblood of online investment platforms is investment.  That’s not to take anything away from the brilliant and dedicated entrepreneurs who bravely dance on the cutting edge of industry.  But let’s face it, an idea without funding will flicker and then burn out like a smoldering ember without oxygen.

It’s easy to marvel at today’s fast-paced and innovative business sector, but have you ever stopped to think about how it starts? And by “it” I mean each of the many dazzling tech-smart businesses: the Ubers, the Facebooks, the WhatsApps, the Warby Parkers—they all seem so grown up now (Uber’s latest round pegged the company’s valuation at $41 billion), they all have global user bases (WhatsApp recently eclipsed 600 million worldwide) and many achieve those highly coveted liquidity events (Lending Club’s recent IPO yielded over $ 1 billion). But these businesses started small (a lonesome founder or two), and they all had help from angels.

I sometimes get the question, “Why do you have a social mission?”

To which I will respond, “I can’t wait for the day to come when I get to ask you why you don’t.”

At CommonBond, our core social mission is simple: For every fully funded degree on the CommonBond platform, we fund the education of a student in need for a full year. We’ve partnered up with Pencils of Promise to make this a reality in over 200 schools in Nicaragua, Guatemala, Ghana, and Laos. We call this our “Social Promise” – it is core to who we are and why we do what we do.

David Klein with members of the Wharton Social Venture Fund, spring 2014.

The technology sector in Washington is anything but still. Entrepreneurs are always hatching new ideas. Investors are constantly backing them. And companies are regularly adding, or shedding, employees.

For proof, just look back at the headlines pouring out of the region during 2014.

Capital Business asked local executives, investors and business enthusiasts to peer into their crystal ball to predict what lies ahead for the tech economy. Here’s what they had to say.

image: http://www.freedigitalphotos.net 

Inception is one of my all-time favorite movies. In it, characters find themselves in dream worlds without knowing where they are or how they got there.

That’s how I used to feel throughout the day… every day.

One minute I was focused on the most important thing on my to do list; the next I was on a news site or on social media with dozens of tabs open in my browser. Once I started noticing myself on Facebook while I was driving, I knew something had to change. Constant distractions had rewired my brain and were having a direct impact on my company’s success and even my safety.