The American Chemical Society, Washington, D.C., has chosen 10 people as semifinalists for its Chemistry Champions contest, which seeks to identify and train chemists and chemical engineers who are early in their careers and show promise as science communicators. The semifinalists comprise three undergraduates, five graduate students, a recent graduate and an assistant professor. They were picked from 27 entrants, all of which had to submit a 2–3 minute video describing their work and why they wanted to be a Chemistry Champion.

Topics covered in the semifinalists’ videos range from understanding whisky chemistry and preventing honeybee decline to biofuel catalyst research and chemistry to better deliver medicine inside cells. The roster of semifinalists and links to their videos can be seen here.

Five of the semifinalists will be selected in a closed-door competition at the ACS National Meeting in San Francisco on August 9 to present their research the next day to a live audience. The 2014 Chemistry Champion then will be chosen by a real-time popular vote including inputs via Twitter.