Sciencemadness Discussion Board - Weird Impacts Chem had on your Life

Weird Impacts Chem had on your Life

ScienceHideout - 25-6-2014 at 06:45

We are all different people, we all have different stories. But- in what non-chemical ways has chemistry impacted your life? I always hear stories of chemists meeting eachother at chemistry parties and falling in love and getting married, or someone who loves home chemistry so much they make it a business to supply to home chemists.

For example- I was required to take 2 years of a foreign language in high school. I decided to take German because I live close to BASF, and I thought that it would help me get a job there. I also realized the history that chemistry has that is only documented in German (Like the beilstein handbuch der organischen chemie). Well, as it turns out, I liked it so much that I ended up taking 4 years, will minor in German in college, and I have travelled to Germany once.

Another impact that chemistry had on my life is actually quite spiritual. Now, I don't want to start a religious discussion, so I won't get into detail... but just about a year ago I was very unhappy (and I still am) with the religion my parents baptized me into. Well, at that time I was doing some research on GC-MS. Well, GC-MS is related to LC-MS, which is sort of a mix between GC-MS and HPLC. When I typed LC-MS in on the computer, "Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod" came up. I studied the doctrine and fell in love with it, so I decided to go to church there. I took it as a sign when I realized the pastor has an MS in organic/analytical chem and speaks German. This fall I will be starting a class to make my confirmation in the LCMS, the 2nd largest Lutheran Synod in the USA.

So, those are just a couple of the odd-ish ways chemistry changed my life. I am looking forward to hearing some of yours which undoubtedly would be incredible.

Brain&Force - 25-6-2014 at 11:31

I took Russian for 3 years, and I will be taking it in university...it's going to be interesting, reading the works of Mendeleev, Lomonosov, and Zhabotinsky. I originally took Russian for when I wanted to be an aerospace engineer, but home chemistry quickly switched me to being a future chem major.

Try http://www.versuchschemie.de/ for a great German chemistry resource. Pok is one of the members both here and on Versuchschemie.de and he is REALLY knowledgeable about many things, including triboluminescent complexes and making potassium (hence his title, Potassium Prometheus).

I can't say chemistry has been life-changing for me other than the fact that I now know what specific field of science I want to get into. I'd have to say is the best part of any STEM hobby, though, is outreach - it's a lot of fun to show people Saturn on a clear night, or evaporate some iodine and mesmerize them with the giant purple vapor cloud. I've met and inspired many people, several of whom were initally quite reluctant.

NexusDNA - 25-6-2014 at 15:44

Really? Did you loose your interest for aerospace engineering? I particularly can't see chemists anywhere... I mean, I can see chemists working with computational models, I can see chem engineers running industries, and I can see a lot of teachers... but I don't see the "experimentalist" spirit anymore, that sweet & sour discovery aftertaste. Maybe I'm very wrong. I view chemistry as a hobby, like baking... is there future for "pure" chemistry?

DraconicAcid - 25-6-2014 at 15:59

Chemistry got me a couple of dates (one from a woman who enjoyed me telling her about some demos enough that she wanted to see them), and a couple of jobs in interesting places.

alexleyenda - 25-6-2014 at 16:03

Quote: Originally posted by NexusDNA

Really? Did you loose your interest for aerospace engineering? I particularly can't see chemists anywhere... I mean, I can see chemists working with computational models, I can see chem engineers running industries, and I can see a lot of teachers... but I don't see the "experimentalist" spirit anymore, that sweet & sour discovery aftertaste. Maybe I'm very wrong. I view chemistry as a hobby, like baking... is there future for "pure" chemistry?

Well there are searchers in universities, chemist working to prepare special compounds for chemistry companies, chemists analysing drug and food samples for governments health agencies... The place where chemistry is very useful at the moment is to find "green" chemicals to replace more harmful ones, in biochemistry for vaccines and all that stuff and in nanotechnologies, though this last one is quite far from the "traditionnal" pure chemistry.

On topic, chemistry did not really change my life much atm, though it is what i'm studying in. Anyways, i've been in it for real for around a year only so I guess that's normal it didn't change much. Oh yeah, it was quite effective at making me spend a lot of money :p

Brain&Force - 25-6-2014 at 16:15

Quote: Originally posted by NexusDNA

When I become a research chemist, I'll make sure to bring the spirit of amateurism with me. And steal all of your ideas for future research papers.

I just felt chemistry fits me better than engineering. I wouldn't mind being a teacher. I could also work for a biotech company.

ScienceHideout - 25-6-2014 at 17:03

I plan on becoming a chemistry professor... College level chemistry teaching is awesome because you can give undergrads their first taste of chemistry, and then you can lead a research group of grad students and actually be able to do research at the same time. I will never lose chemistry as a hobby, though. I will keep a lab in my basement even when I get a PhD and become a teacher and research leader. Because of my hobby, I will have more experience than all of my future colleagues... that ought to contribute a lot.

But yeah, chemistry really had some big impacts on my life, but also on others' lives, too. Brain&Force noted the importance of outreach. I concur. Each year I do chemistry experiments for kids at Maker Faire

etroit. This year I will be doing experiments like Liquid Nitrogen marshmallows and borax polymers, and demos like clock reactions and elephants toothpaste. If you are in the Metro Detroit area *cough*Neptunium&Praxichys*cough* feel free to swing by and meet me in person!

Texium - 26-6-2014 at 08:00

I find the realm of geochemistry to be particularly fascinating, and that might be something I'd like to go into. It seems like something that there should be demand for.
Being a research chemist would be awesome too, but I haven't decided what exactly I want to do. I might even want to start a chemical company that supports amateur chemists, but I'm not sure that there's a great demand for that with Elemental Scientific and United Nuclear already existing.
Either way, someday, particularly if I can make a decent sum of money doing whatever I end up doing, I'd like to do outreach promoting amateur chemistry in the public to try to eradicate chemophobia and grow respect for the hobby in the community.

[Edited on 6-26-2014 by zts16]

arkoma - 26-6-2014 at 10:09

I am anxiously awaiting a few years to click by so I say, "Hey, see that rascal that just won the Nobel? I remember when he was a 16 year old kid @sciencemadness!"

@sciencehideout--would love to attend a MakerFaire *sigh*.

On Topic--I actually have a GOOD, OPEN relationship with LEO for the first time in my life (Here in Fallon, anyway) due to my daughter-in-law wigging out over my chemistry and calling them (I lied about it being my neighbors, but she's a b**** and unworthy of my "protection" any longer. Won't even give me my stuff grrr)

Brain&Force - 27-6-2014 at 13:38

I have got to look into the Maker Faire stuff. Apparently where I live we're having our very first one this December. I know very little else about it, but if they allow chemistry demonstrations, I would definitely do it - as long as I can fit it into my schedule.

MrHomeScientist runs a show with another physicist; it can be seen here: http://www.sciencebrothers.org/

alexleyenda - 2-7-2014 at 20:52

I printed 50 pages of Volgel's o-chem book to read during my 12 hours trip to my family's village (we're 2 drivers). For the first time I won't be sleeping or listenning to heavy metal during all the road :p

MrHomeScientist - 3-7-2014 at 11:18

He's actually an electrical engineer, hence his part of the show being electricity

Outreach is very important to me. I feel that many teachers don't do any of the interesting and fun demos any more due to cost, strict adherance to "standards" and "teach to the test" mentality, liability concerns, or simply not having the science background to know about good demos. So lots of kids lose interest early on because they get mired in bookwork and can't see the real excitement of the science. That's a big reason why I do my outreach and YouTube channel.

Speaking of the Maker Faire I participated in something similar in spirit, the Gulf Coast MakerCon in Tampa: http://gulfcoastmakers.com/2014/04/11/gulf-coast-makercon-20...
Tons of fun, though not nearly as many attendants as they expected unfortunately. I'm just glad I got to participate in something like that without having to travel across the country. I brought my periodic table display and did several live outdoor demos of fun reactions (smoke bombs, gummy bear in potassium chlorate, and thermite).

Getting into hobby chemistry has also rekindled my interest in rocks and minerals. I used to have a small collection when I was little but got rid of most of them when I lost interest. Now I can look at a beautiful crystal like gypsum and say oh! That's calcium sulfate! Which ot me adds a whole new dimension of appreciation. It's given me a new perspective on lots of things in life, which is pretty neat.

Edit: I actually just today discovered the link I posted above, and just finished looking through the photos. There's some very cool shots of my live demo stuff on page 2-3 of the album. Look at that molten iron!

[Edited on 7-3-2014 by MrHomeScientist]

valeg96 - 4-7-2014 at 22:50

As for me, being born in a family with an uber-conspiracist and chemophobic dad, chemistry -together with some experiences I had during a biotech stage- helped me detach from that shit ass world where you just criticize GMOs and chemicals and everything you don't know just because they seem evil and dangerous.

My dad was a chem amateur like us, back in the 70s, but at some point in his life it all changed and he started getting into his spiritual and alien-like-HAARP-NWO-chemtrails-reptilian-boobies thingy.

Also, I have a girlfriend, and I think chem played its role in it. As for University, I'm still unsure: Natural Sciences or Chemistry? Hmmm...

The Volatile Chemist - 5-7-2014 at 06:21

I lost a lot of friends and potential friends for showing off about chemistry. My fault. But I did learn a skill that I could help people with in school, which may help me socially in the future.

valeg96 - 5-7-2014 at 07:29

The Volatile Chemist why would you lose a lot of friends to chemistry? Were those people that hate nerds/normal guys not exclusively obsessed with big cars, sex and bitc*es? Like that "you-like-some-science-stuff-ha-loser" kind of beings? A good friend of mine experiences that a lot, but he's into electronics/physics, not chemistry.

Amos - 5-7-2014 at 07:38

For a long time, I was more or less addicted to playing Runescape(MMO), and I was playing many hours a day, not doing anything really productive with my life. I liked home chemistry and spent so much time doing it that I stopped playing Runescape all together and have since devoted more time to more fruitful pursuits.

valeg96 - 5-7-2014 at 08:15

Quote: Originally posted by No Tears Only Dreams Now

For a long time, I was more or less addicted to playing Runescape(MMO), and I was playing many hours a day, not doing anything really productive with my life.

Same here. To find productivity(ness?) in my activities I focus on synthesizing simple compounds and salts. The feeling of holding a container with a substance and a label I made by myself is way better than the one of fighting a boss or getting a new armor. Even if it's 500g of Na2SO4 or NH4Cl it feels extremely satisfactory.

I guess I'm standing on the line between "Chemist experimentalist" and "Chemist collector".

Texium - 5-7-2014 at 09:20

Quote: Originally posted by valeg96

Quote: Originally posted by No Tears Only Dreams Now

For a long time, I was more or less addicted to playing Runescape(MMO), and I was playing many hours a day, not doing anything really productive with my life.

I know exactly that feeling that you describe! That's been what I've been doing lately too- just trying to synthesize simple compounds to collect. And I used to play games a lot too before I got into chemistry, but mostly Minecraft and Skyrim. Now I still do occasionally, but nowhere near as often as I used to. As you described, it's much more satisfying to create something for real than it is to earn something in a game.

valeg96 - 5-7-2014 at 09:36

Quote: Originally posted by zts16

Now I still do occasionally, but nowhere near as often as I used to. As you described, it's much more satisfying to create something for real than it is to earn something in a game.

Changing OS to Ubuntu helped a lot. I CAN NOT play videogames. And It's about 2 years I do not.

Also, this hobby got me really close to science teachers at school, especially mine, and I got a wonderful feedback from them about the chem lab I held for students, even though only 8 people joined... Later I have been told that nobody actually wanted to make an effort in supporting me and they thought I would've failed or made something really boring.

Texium - 5-7-2014 at 09:57

I wanted to start a chemistry club at my school last year, but my teacher said that although she thought it would be cool, she was concerned that there wouldn't be enough people in the school interested in joining to actually start a club. Unfortunately, she's probably right about that! It would be very doubtful to find even 5 or 6 people who would be interested enough.

valeg96 - 5-7-2014 at 12:05

Quote: Originally posted by zts16

I wanted to start a chemistry club at my school last year, but my teacher said that although she thought it would be cool, she was concerned that there wouldn't be enough people in the school interested in joining to actually start a club. Unfortunately, she's probably right about that! It would be very doubtful to find even 5 or 6 people who would be interested enough.

Actually, most were classmates and others were first-graders sent to my lab by their science teacher. But I like pretending someone was actually interested (A couple of them was, actually, the others just wanted to see fun colorful things)

Amos - 5-7-2014 at 19:30

Quote: Originally posted by valeg96

Quote: Originally posted by No Tears Only Dreams Now

For a long time, I was more or less addicted to playing Runescape(MMO), and I was playing many hours a day, not doing anything really productive with my life.

Yes! Something wasn't there before and now it is because of you. I cannot stress enough how fulfilling it feels to just MAKE something; it's something every person who is battling depression or is just downright bored needs to hear.

The Volatile Chemist - 5-7-2014 at 19:35

Quote: Originally posted by valeg96

The Volatile Chemist why would you lose a lot of friends to chemistry? Were those people that hate nerds/normal guys not exclusively obsessed with big cars, sex and bitc*es? Like that "you-like-some-science-stuff-ha-loser" kind of beings? A good friend of mine experiences that a lot, but he's into electronics/physics, not chemistry.

Sorta. There are a ton of people at my school who just think they're hot stuff. I talked about chemistry stuff waaaay back in 3rd grade, and thhat's what separated me out from others, made me different. Mind you, I had no Idea what I was talking about till last two years (I'm going into tenth grade)

unionised - 6-7-2014 at 12:15

"Weird Impacts Chem had on your Life"
Well, my dad was a chemist too. When he went to university he found that a lot of the text books were in German (This was about 1955) and he didn't speak any German.
So he went to find someone to help him- he asked one of the languages students.
To cut a long story short, the Languages student was my mum.

Is that weird enough?

aga - 6-7-2014 at 13:03

It is hard to understand, and S.A.S. i did not when i was younger. 47 now.

What happens at school tends to all get left behind when you hit the real world of Work and Adulthood.
I mean, all the Personal stuff.
To be perfectly honest, i can remember a couple of embarrassing situations, and a few other minor details, but no way can i even remember the names of most of my classmates when i was 16.

Relationships and Sex always find their own way, so no point worrying about that at all.

Those who end up on Top in Adult life (of which there is a lot more, usually) are those that do the Studying when younger.