A ring to bind them

Using genomics, a chemistry lab has worked out the biosynthetic machinery that makes a new class of antibiotic compounds called the beta-lactones. Like the beta-lactams, such as penicillin, they have an unstable four-member ring. The key to their antibiotic activity, it is also difficult to synthesize.

Death by volcano?

The discovery of anomalously high levels of mercury in rocks from the Ordivician geological period has led to a new interpretation of the ensuing mass extinction. A sequence of disturbances may have led to catastrophic cooling by reflective sulfate aerosols injected into the atmosphere by massive volcanism. The finding is important since aerosol cooling is under consideration as a way to temper global warming.

Campus Kitchen seeks summer volunteers

The Campus Kitchen at Washington University seeks volunteers during the summer to help prepare meals for the hungry. Cooking shifts are 6-8 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays from June 6 through Aug. 10 at the First Congregational Church on Wydown Boulevard.

Examining the links between minimum wage changes, employment

For the first time, a group of researchers at Washington University in St. Louis used a big-data approach to determine the effects of minimum-wage changes on business. The Olin Business School faculty processed wage data on more than 2 million hourly workers from across the country over a six-year period. The results? There are winners and losers.

Record moves to summer schedule

The May 22 issue marks the last daily Record of the 2016-17 academic year. The next issue will be published Wednesday, May 31, and then twice weekly through the summer. Visit The Source for the latest news between issues.