Zusammen

Chempedia, the free and open chemical substance registry now hosts 100 user accounts. The century mark was reached last week with the registration of an Anonymous User.

For those who may be unfamiliar, a Chempedia account entitles its owner to submit new substances and namings for existing substances, and to vote on namings. Creating an account on Chempedia is quick and easy - and there's no password to remember.

About Chempedia

Chempedia is the free substance registry created and maintained by the global chemistry community.

Courtesy BenchFly.

Congratulations to the winners of the first Chempedia Lab Contest:

• Joost Plattel
• Egon Willighagen
• Johan Kool
• Richard West
• Andrew Lang
• Chemjobber

Many thanks to our awesome sponsors Made With Molecules and Buckyballs for making this contest possible.

About Chempedia Lab

Chempedia Lab is the question and answer site for experimental chemistry. Borrowing concepts from peer-review, social media, and realtime information flow, Chempedia Lab offers a fast and fun way to get answers to your tough questions.

Just a reminder - this is the last day of the Chempedia Lab Contest. To kick off the opening of Chempedia Lab, we've teamed up with Made With Molecules and BuckyBalls to offer prizes for creating an account, voting, and getting voted on. Winners will be announced here sometime this week.

About Chempedia Lab

Chempedia Lab is the question and answer site for experimental chemistry. Borrowing concepts from peer-review, social media, and realtime information flow, Chempedia Lab offers a fast and fun way to get answers to your tough questions.

I've been describing Chempedia Lab as a question and answer site for experimental chemistry - and it is. But nothing prevents you from asking and immediately answering your own question. In fact, this is one of Chempedia Lab's intended purposes.

Asking and then answering your own question does a few useful things. First, you'll be able to find the answer to your question by visiting Chempedia Lab directly or through search engines like Google. For information you need frequently, this can save time over just using a reference manager. Second, your question creates a new place on the Web to which information can be added as new discoveries are made. Third, you give the Chempedia Lab community a chance to give you an even better answer - one you may not have considered or known about.

For example, a recent synthesis of 2,3,6,7-tetrabromoanthracene caught my eye, so I created a question. Next, I added my answer. A Google search for 2,3,6,7-tetrabromoanthracene now returns this question as the #1 result.

If you answer your own question, you may want to allow some time for other answers to be posted before accepting your own answer. A better answer may be just around the corner.

Chempedia Lab offers a few ways for you to find your question again. Under your profile, you'll find all of your question listed. Or, you can favorite your question and it will appear under your favorite items. Finally, by using unique words in your question's title, you'll be able to take advantage of Chempedia Lab's search engine optimization to let services like Google index your question for you.

Asking and answering your own question helps not just you, but the entire Chempedia Lab community.

About Chempedia Lab

Chempedia Lab is the question and answer site for experimental chemistry. Borrowing concepts from peer-review, social media, and realtime information flow, Chempedia Lab offers a fast and fun way to get answers to your tough questions.

To celebrate the launch of Chempedia Lab, we've teamed up with Made With Molecules and Buckyballs to offer prizes for using Chempedia Lab. For details, click here.