the past couple weeks in my advanced organic lab we were working on an experiment where we made vanillin - the stuff that gives vanilla its delicious smell. but beyond its food uses, i've discovered that it's a pretty cool little molecule. it's a pretty important intermediate in the synthesis of a bunch of pharmaceuticals, including trimethoprim and dopamine. and research is currently being done to study its anti-metastic and anti-tumor properties. that's right. vanillin stops cancer. they did a test in lab rats with breast cancer and it actually stopped it from spreading. pretty cool, huh? and lastly, i've found that vanilla-scented candles cause people to crave sweets, specifically baked goods. i bought one of those glade candles at the store the other day and we've had it on a candle burner in the kitchen. me and my roommates keep walking in there hoping someone's baking a cake or cookies. i finally caved and made some cookies. :) they are delicious. anyways, here's the report. enjoy!
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