Document XRO5GNxRkRaVx7YmyYGjy52DR

Letters Chasing rainbows? SIR: Once more we are regaled by the re port of a committee composed--as usual! -- "of leading educators, that of the Panel on Alternate Approaches to Graduate Edu cation (C&EN, Dec, 24. 1973, page 35). I feel at a great disadvantage in having only the C&EN report in front of me but the ne cessity of making at least some reply be fore, hopefully, this report follows others into oblivion, mandates a quick (and mer cifully brief) comment. Once more the universities are being told that they must buckle on their soup kitchen aprons and save society! Let's make sure that we tram these students in all those things which this panel thinks so ciety wants and yet we of the universities are so ill qualified to do! The list of shibbo leths is breath-taking: "enhance prepara tion for problem solving. " "increase the breadth of students' outlooks." "make them aware ... of industry' (Do I get cu cumbers from sunshine or sunshine from cucumbers? I always forget!)--away with discipline-oriented attitudes (')--"reorient themselves to fulfill a pivotal role in socie tal planning" (I enjoyed that one!), "too many overtrained students" (whatever that means!), "each major discipline . . . re-ex amine its . . . aims and social uses," "pref erential treatment to groups hitherto dis criminated (unfairly?) against' (Dr. Page's pronouncements on that question in col umn 3 of page 36 were sophistry of a high order). Need I continue? One might seriously ask many questions but surely the first one is whether, perhaps, we have not already chased too many rain bows and whether each of us individually and departmental^ should not simply ask ourselves whether we have not already strayed too far from our field of compe tence and expertise, that of educating stu dents to think in chemical terms. The hilarity engendered by the metaphor (?) at the end of the article prompted me to recall that, no doubt apocryphal, story about the great leader (or was it a commit tee?) who, having exhorted his followers on to greater things, replied to the an guished question of "but what should we do' with the ringing phrase "EVEN MORE!" Thomas M. Dunn Professor ot Chemistry. University ot Mich igan. Ann Arbor. Mich. M re on petrochemicals SIR: The Jan. 7 issue of C&EN (page 5) quotes the Shah of Iran as saying. "You cannot get petrochemical products from atomic energy." Most of your readers will realize that statement is not quite correct. Mineral oil. the Shah's oil. is basically a grand mixture of hydrocarbons. Given lime stone as a source of carbon, i.e. C02. water as a source of hydrogen via electrol ysis. heat and electrical energy from nu clear power plants and some selected cat alysts. the chemical industry can produce hydrocarbons as desired. Coal may now be a cheaper source of carbon than limestone and can yield either carbon monoxide or dioxide, or carbon monoxide and hydrogen with addition ot water, without nuclear en ergy My point is that production of petro chemicals is possible without natural oil or gas. and even without coal given nuclear energy The process is just one of energy conversion. The cost of hydrocarbons via this route sets an upper limit, in the long run. on the price of oil. That upper limit is probably not as much above the present price for oil as many would imagine. Much further along the road, an upper limit on the price of uranium is in turn set by the cost of recovery from the Gulf Stream for example, and doesn't frighten me at all. I do agree with the Shah in the sense that an overall systems approach to oil consumption should be taken, and the best use be made of this nonrenewable re source. However, i remember two lines from my first chemistry textbook, authored by Prof. Cornish: "You can make anything from a salve to a star, if you only know how from black coal tar." The textbook was written before Chadwick proposed the existence of the neutron, and before oil was a commodity in the Middle East. Deep River. Ont. W. H. Stevens Use your right to vote SIR: I am in accord with your editorial concern about the lack of votes sent in by ACS members in various elections and other matters where voting of the member ship is concerned. How about increasing the membership charges for those members who can t muster enough energy to vote? As an al ternate. give reduced rates to those who are sufficiently interested in the Society to utilize their voting rights. That should gath er a few more votes. R. W. Curtis Commercial Development Dept.. Cincinnati Milacron. Cincinnati. Ohio No asbestos here SIR: I would like to point out that on page 19 of your Dec. 10, 1973, issue of C&EN. under the article "Asbestos health question perplexes experts." you have published a picture of a cement worker shaking out a bag of Utility Cement, which happens to be an insulating cement manufactured by C-E Refractories. We have not used asbestos in this product since early 1972. and we cer tainly don't appreciate the implication that this product is one that is dangerous to workers. In the future. I would suggest that before using proprietary items in your articles you check with the manufacturer as to contents of materials, particularly in such sensitive areas as asbestos. R. T. Hegeman President. C-E Refractories, Valley Forge, Pa. Yes, Dominique, there are ... SIR: Yes. Dominique, in spite of all rumors to the contrary, chemists are people (C&EN. Peb. 4, page 3). Some of us love the beauty of sun. stars and wind: some of us even write poems about sunsets. A long time ago it was shown that there is a positive correlation between all human excellencies if you are willing to accept large feet as an excellency. So chemists, who are well above average in intelligence, are also musical, good. kind, and great people in general--with a few exceptions. H. B. Hass Summit, N.J. An A inexpensive* dithiol EVANSt GLYCOL di-mer! CAPTO* ACETATE HS-(CH2C02CH*)-SH Cross-Linking agent and specialty monomer by addition across unsaturation -- by reaction with aldehyde, ketone and acid chloride groups. i CH II II + H$(CH,C0iCH,],SH HC CH I II I InhI -- S--(CHj CO, CHjh -- S -- HC iw 00 i II II I HC-- C--Cl Cl- C--CH+ HS(CH) COj CHihSH 0I I M I II I HC--C-S--(CH1CO2 CHj)i--S--C--CH II D X--C--X+sHS--M--SH X I* X I YI | -- S-M-S-C -S-M-S-C -S-M-S- LI I DATA SHEETS AND SAMPLES AVAILABLE ON REQUEST CHemencs, me. 90 Tokeneke Road Darien, Connecticut 06820 Phone: 203-655-874" Cable: EVANSCHE TWX: 710-457*33 QCC 6500 Feb. 18. 1974 C&EN 4