#194

In this episode of Chemistry for Your Life, Melissa and Jam delve into the chemistry behind modern dental fillings. They explore how dentists use a combination of organic monomers and inorganic fillers to address cavities and the role of light-activated photoinitiators in hardening these materials. Melissa also shares her personal experiences and recent achievements, introduces new community members, and compares amusing dental scenes in pop culture.

00:00 Introduction and Dentist Experiences
00:38 Chemistry in Everyday Life
02:11 Community Updates and Announcements
04:44 Understanding Dental Fillings
08:39 The Science Behind Polymerization
19:08 The Role of Light in Dental Fillings
26:01 The Reaction Begins
26:22 Mixing Dental Materials
27:47 Personal Dental Experiences
30:51 Understanding Polymerization
35:42 Photo Initiators and Family Tangents
43:12 Pop Culture Dentist Moments
48:35 Wrapping Up and Community Shoutouts

References from this episode:

https://pubs.acs.org/doi/epdf/10.1021/ed076p1497?ref=article_openPDF
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7867280/

We want to give a special thanks to Bri McAllister for illustrating molecules for some episodes! Please go check out Bri’s art, follow and support her at entr0pic.artstation.com and @McAllisterBri on twitter!

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What are dental fillings and how are they chemistry?

Chemistry For Your Life