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Explore the molecular world in this 57-minute Christmas Lecture from The Royal Institution, where Charles Stirling ventures below the surface of familiar objects to reach the molecular level. Discover how molecules assemble from atoms and grasp their minute scale compared to everyday objects, focusing particularly on OH molecules such as water, alcohol, anti-freeze, and sugar. Learn how spectroscopy reveals molecular groups and understand why certain molecules have a notorious tendency to stick together. Delve into the fascinating concept of molecular handedness through the observation of plane polarized light rotation, and witness a re-enactment of Pasteur's groundbreaking 1847 deduction of molecular asymmetry when he solved the mystery of multiple tartaric acids. Examine the separation of right and left-handed molecules through resolution techniques, and observe how handed molecules associate in special ways, particularly those containing OH groups, illustrated through cutting-edge surface reaction research from the early 1990s.
