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The Ongoing Evolution of Analytical Chemistry A
s a relative newcomer to analytical chemistry, I have watched the field’s research focus evolve substantially during the past decade. Traditionally, analytical chemistry is defined as the development of instruments that can be used for quantitative analysis in the laboratory. A common research goal involves optimizing an instrument to its fullest potential (i.e., obtaining the highest resolution, mass accuracy, and sensitivity) by using well-characterized chemical systems. There has been a shift in focus for many analytical chemists, from developing instruments primarily for labbased measurements to “real-world” measurements. This shift has been spurred by major technological advances in computers and electronics, which have provided analytical chemists with the necessary tools to build instruments with extremely high sensitivity and selectively. This has made it feasible to develop instruments for routine analyses—in many cases, in vivo and real time—of complex biological, environmental, and material mixtures. Instead of building and optimizing instruments for some unspecified problem, it is now more common to focus on the scientific problems to be solved and use these as the driving force for new tools. Motivated by a common set of goals, the traditional areas of chemistry are becoming more unified. Similarly, the distinctions between chemical, biological, medical, and engineering research are becoming less apparent. This interdisciplinary approach has brought together the necessary tools and different perspectives to solve important real-world problems. A real-world approach is an essential step in the evolution of analytical chemistry because it is impossible to completely simulate the real world in the lab. By making measurements directly in the complex environment of interest, the important interferences and the actual components and processes, which need to be considered when developing a technique, can be directly determined. However, when making a real-world measurement, the major tradeoff is that scientists cannot know and control every parameter.
Although this lack of control goes against the traditional scientific approach, direct measurements are the only assurance that the resulting numbers are representative of real-world processes. These two approaches are complementary, because real-world results can assist in the selection of an appropriate set of controlled laboratory experiments to perform. To entice future generations to become analytical chemists, it is also essential that we adequately portray the rapidly evolving focus of analytical chemistry research. It is the job of professors to show students as early as possible a true picture of analytical chemistry research, extending beyond instrument building and routine quantitative analysis. Real-world applications need to be incorporated into undergraduate laboratories, allowing students to experience the excitement of making measurements directly on problems relevant to their everyday lives. Examples showing how state-of-the-art analytical techniques are being used to provide new insights into important scientific problems are readily available in the Journal, ranging from sequencing the human genome to characterizing global warming.
Kimberly Prather University of California–Riverside
[email protected] A U G U S T 1 , 2 0 0 0 / A N A LY T I C A L C H E M I S T R Y
501 A
EDITOR Royce W. Murray University of North Carolina
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AgilentTechnologies
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