Mark Lorch

Mark Lorch

Professor of Science Communication and Chemistry, University of Hull

Mark Lorch is Professor of Science Communication at the University of Hull. He trained as a protein chemist, studying protein folding and function. His research now focuses on the chemistry of a broad range of biological systems including lipids, proteins and even plant spores. As well as his written outputs he gives regular talks to schools, the public and conferences, and he occasionally pops up on the radio and TV explaining science and technology to a public audience.

Articles by: Mark Lorch

a microscope image of bacteria that has been mirrored

'Mirror life forms' may sound like science fiction, but scientists warn they could be deadly to humans and destroy the environment

By Mark Lorch published

Bacteria that are mirror images of existing ones could evade our immune systems, causing serious illness.

A still of a dragon from the TV show "House of the Dragon"

Could a fire-breathing animal ever exist?

By Mark Lorch published

To create a fire-breathing animal, you would need to combine features found in a cow, a beetle and an eel.

AA Batteries

Yes, Dead Batteries Do Bounce

By Mark Lorch published

One rumoured and simple test to determine a flat battery from a good one is the dead battery bounce – drop them on the floor, and the flat ones bounce.

wrong, science myths

5 Science 'Facts' You Learned in School That Are Wrong

By Mark Lorch published

Taste, touch, sight, hearing and smell don’t even begin to cover the ways we sense the world.

Chemical reaction printer

How to Turn an Inkjet Printer into a Bio Lab (Op-Ed)

By Mark Lorch published

German cranial brace and bit, weird medical instruments, historical medicine

10 Weird and Terrifying Medical Instruments from the Past

By Mark Lorch published

For me, the progress of science best described by advances in medicine and the instruments used to practice it.