The Science
Looking inside
Molecules, environmental exposures, and the research behind why pregnancy and birth look so different for different mothers.
Take a look
Documentaries worth your time
Not mine, just documentaries and explainers on maternal health that stuck with me!
Seen a good one? Add it!
A documentary, talk, or educational site on maternal health or women in science that stuck with you? Send it my way!
The chemistry of motherhood
Awesome molecules that help labor happen
All ones I feature over on @oflifeandlabor. Tap a card to read more!
The scientific background
Evidence from around the world
Real, published research showing how industrial and environmental exposure alters maternal and fetal health globally. This is the cited evidence behind why this site exists.
Japan and South Korea
Industrial chemicals and air pollution
Maternal exposure to air pollutants and volatile organic compounds is linked to higher rates of preterm birth and low birth weight.
Ooka et al. (2021), Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health, 18(22), 11748
Read the study →East Africa
Mining and heavy metal pollution
Mining communities show elevated lead, mercury, and cadmium in pregnant women, tied to adverse birth outcomes.
Udom et al. (2025), Heliyon
Read the study →For the love of chem!
The periodic table
Interested? Tap any element to meet it, or hit Surprise me. Tap a family below to light it up.
More to tap
Two little pick-me-ups
Like the periodic table, these are one tap each. Tap for a note, or meet a founder!
Positivity notes
Black founders
Scientists who came before me
The people whose work made room
To date, no Black chemist has been awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry. That is part of why I want to remember the ones who did the work anyway.
My own research
Chemistry, science, and maternal health
My research is a mix of chemistry and maternal health. Here is the short version!
Maternal health and postpartum depression
Ongoing · Writing and science communication
My essay "Beneath the Skin: The Horror in Silence" looks at how postpartum depression gets misread through art, culture, and clinical stories. Through Of Life and Labor and my content partnership with the UNC Office of Undergraduate Research, I also break down the chemistry of pregnancy, labor, and the weeks after birth.
Photoelectrochemical characterization of hybrid p-Si/SiOx electrodes for CO2 reduction
Spring 2025 – August 2026 · Undergraduate Researcher, Dempsey Lab, UNC Chapel Hill
This research targets excess CO2 from a chemistry angle, building electrochemical cells and using electron transfer to convert C1 products into useful products. This work was recognized with a competitive SURF fellowship award.
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I work on immobilizing molecular catalysts onto hydrogen-terminated silicon electrodes, essentially building tiny chemical systems that can drive this conversion efficiently. The goal is to better understand how these catalysts behave when anchored to a surface, a key step toward scalable, clean energy solutions. This project sits at the intersection of electrochemistry, materials science, and sustainability, and it's teaching me that the most important scientific questions are rarely simple ones.
Felsenstein and the stepping stone model
Spring 2024 · Mathematical Biology Research, UNC Chapel Hill
Investigating theoretical evolutionary dynamics based on populations structured over spatial landscapes. This research expands on Felsenstein's classic two-island model by mathematically extending the framework to a third island system, mapping complex patterns of migration and genetic divergence.
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Using a stepping stone model, I tracked how allele frequencies and linkage disequilibrium shift across three populations over time, then compared those results to what Felsenstein originally found, which pointed to recombination and natural selection as the main barriers to speciation in wild populations.
Plastic degradation and bioplastic synthesis
Summer 2023 · NSF / CXC Research Experience
An NSF / CXC research experience on plastic degradation and bioplastic synthesis, presented at a research symposium.
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The project investigated the resistance of common plastics to degradation using solvents including acetone, apple cider vinegar, hydrogen peroxide, and lemon juice, finding that more acidic and neutral pH solutions were ineffective against rigid plastics. The second component explored bioplastic synthesis, comparing starch-citric acid polymers and starch-glycerol polymers in terms of flexibility, transparency, and structural integrity.
On the way
More science, coming soon
The series
A recurring science series. Name coming soon!
Body Basics
Short explainers on how the body works. Coming soon!
Lizzy's Ligands
Coming soon!