EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE: Monday, April 8, 2013, 8 a.m. Eastern Time

Newswise — NEW ORLEANS, April 8, 2013 — Cooking an egg may seem like the simplest of culinary arts, but this process remains the topic of a huge controversy among chefs and experts on the chemistry of cooking. Two such experts today will lead off a special edition of a popular live broadcast series originating here courtesy of the American Chemical Society (ACS), the world’s largest scientific society.

César Vega, Ph.D., and Shirley Corriher will discuss and demonstrate methods for cooking the perfect egg in the session. With a doctorate in food science and culinary training from Le Cordon Bleu, Vega is research manager at Mars Botanical, a division of Mars, Incorporated, in Germantown, Md. Vega co-edited, with Job Ubbink and Erik van der Linden, The Kitchen as Laboratory: Reflections on the Science of Food and Cooking.

A biochemist by training, Corriher is the author of CookWise: The Hows and Whys of Successful Cooking, winner of a James Beard Foundation award, and BakeWise: The Hows and Whys of Successful Baking. Corriher is winner of the ACS’ 2012 James T. Grady-James H. Stack Award for Interpreting Chemistry for the Public.

It will begin at 11 a.m. Eastern time, as part of the ACS’ 245th National Meeting & Exposition. The meeting, which continues through Thursday, features 12,000 reports on new advances in science and other topics. About 14,000 scientists and others are expected to attend. Other sessions on the chemistry on how to lose weight, converting food waste to useful products and oil spills will be held today and Tuesday. The schedule appears below.

Register at http://acswebinars.org/new-orleans-live to view the broadcasts without charge.

The agenda for the broadcast series:

Monday, April 8 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. ETLive Cooking Demonstration: Egg Science DeconstructedCésar Vega, Ph.D., and Shirley Corriher

Heat ’em, Beat ’em, Mix ’em. Any way you look at it, eggs are essential in many dishes. But do you know the science behind them? Tune in as we eggs-plore the fascinating chemistry behind eggs. Join acclaimed book authors and TV personalities César Vega, Ph.D., and Shirley Corriher for this session.

3:00 - 4:00 p.m. ETThe Chemistry of Weight Loss – Facts and FictionTimothy Harlan, M.D.

Are carbohydrates really bad for you? Would dairy products help you gain or lose weight? Can you lose weight with celery? With some simple thermodynamics and biochemistry, Tim Harlan, M.D., assistant professor of medicine and executive director at Tulane University Center for Culinary Medicine, will explain and answer your questions and more. Harlan, an acclaimed book author and an expert in diet, is also known in television as Dr. Gourmet.

Tuesday, April 9 11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. ETFuture of Lipid Self Assembly: From Drug Delivery to Dispersants for Oil SpillsVijay John, Ph.D.

Lipids are considered one of the basic building blocks of living organisms. Advances in chemistry have extended our knowledge of lipid self-assembly into applications ranging from tubular liposomes for drug delivery to dispersants for the oil spill cleanups. Join the Leo S. Weill Professor in Engineering at Tulane University Vijay John, Ph.D., to learn how scientists have used this knowledge in the Deepwater Horizon oil cleanup and why lipid self-assembly holds such a promising future in medical and biological applications.  3:00 - 4:00 p.m. ETConverting Waste into Products — Opportunity for $35 Million Global Grand ChallengeEloise Young, Ph.D., and Kirk Andrews

Turn your green chemistry ideas into financial rewards. Join the Global Grand Challenge to turn carbon emissions into a valuable resource. The Climate Change and Emissions Management (CCEMC) Corporation is giving out CAD$35 million for innovative ideas from around the world for an open innovation challenge that will create new, carbon-based products and markets. The goal is to change captured carbon from a waste stream to an enabling starting material. Join Eloise Young, Ph.D., and Kirk Andrews for this session. The American Chemical Society is a nonprofit organization chartered by the U.S. Congress. With more than 163,000 members, ACS is the world’s largest scientific society and a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related research through its multiple databases, peer-reviewed journals and scientific conferences. Its main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio.

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