Letters: May 2006

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From Michael Archer

In response to points raised in the news item entitled Australian chemistry department under threat (Chemistry World online, 23 March 2006; p10), I strenuously deny that any ’budget bungle’ has occurred, as the academic staff union emotively and incorrectly claims. Rather, the restructuring of the school is a sign of responsible fiscal management.

Furthermore, it is happening in the context of rising salary costs and the changing fortunes of chemistry itself as a discipline. Both of these are external pressures beyond the control of the school or the faculty. As the report correctly noted, at one point the school’s salary costs reached up to 120 per cent of its income, which is clearly unsustainable.

I acknowledge and regret that the restructuring has unsettled some staff, but even greater uncertainty would have resulted if we had done nothing. The school is being restructured following a recent operational review initiated by the faculty of science management. The restructuring aims to bring stability to the school and pave the way for its future growth in new state-of-the-art chemistry teaching and research laboratories.

The proposed changes are expected to have only a marginal impact on current teaching and research. Chemistry has my strongest possible support and I am determined that the school will emerge from the restructuring process in a stronger, healthier position. When its operational budget is back in the black, I will continue to work with the school to implement strategic initiatives to ensure that chemistry at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) will become even more effective in the future. Chemistry has a long and proud history at UNSW and has been part of its fabric since the university’s inception in 1949. After it emerges from this renewal process its future promises to be equally long and bright.

M Archer
Dean, Faculty of science, University of New South Wales, Australia

From Cliff Wale

The cracking of C-C bonds by mechanical force (Chemistry World, April 2006, p18) is fascinating in relation to the possible origin of life, but the basic idea is not new. I have never forgotten F M Brewer starting his analytical chemistry course at Oxford in January 1945 for first year ’government special’ students (on a war time two-year course) by saying ’The easiest and cheapest way to break chemical bonds is to grind the substance’. And judging by the news item entitled Solvent-free synthesis forms framework (April 2006, p 17), it’s not a bad way of making bonds.

C Wale CChem MRSC
Blunham, UK

From Barry Culpin

Barry Culpin CChem MRSC
Chorley, UK

From Alan Lidiard

In connection with the news item on crystal structures of bubbles (Chemistry World, March 2006, p14), I would like to draw attention to the fact that bubble arrays (largely two-dimensional) were produced in the same manner as that reported in the late 1940s and early 1950s at the Cavendish Laboratory, Cambridge, UK, by Bragg, Nye and Lomer.

Their properties were studied as part of the worldwide efforts being made at that time to understand the properties of dislocations, grain boundaries and other crystal defects and their role in metallurgical processes well before their observation in the electron microscope or by other means. Interested readers may care to look at the original papers.

A B Lidiard CChem FRSC
Farringdon, UK

Further Reading

W M Lomer, Proc. Roy. Soc., 1949, A196, 182
W M Lomer and J M Nye, Proc. Roy. Soc., 1952, A212, 576
W T Read, 1953, Dislocations in crystals, McGraw-Hill
A H Cottrell, 1953, Dislocations and plastic flow in crystals, Oxford University Press

From Tim Reynolds

I would like to express my total agreement with the editorial entitled Engaging with the media (Chemistry World, March 2006, p2). It is vital that scientists feel both willing and able to interact with the media. If science does not engage with the news media on issues of the day this leaves a vacuum which other voices will feel no qualms in filling.

But it is not just media savvy scientists that are required; there is also a need for more public relations (PR) experts who are able to handle science stories confidently.

Most PR people are arts graduates and the increasing numbers of science communication graduates perhaps don’t get enough training on media strategy and other skills needed to make an effective impact in this area.

European initiatives such as Communiqu? and the UK’s Science technology engineering and medical PR association, Stempra are working to redress this skills issue and spread best practice.

The added value that science public relations officers can provide, as the success of the Science Media Centre demonstrates, needs to be recognised and their development encouraged.

T Reynolds CChem MRSC
Inta Communication, Brussels

From G Coles

The remarks about the profession engaging in dialogue with the media are timely and necessary to prevent misrepresentation of the true facts about chemicals, chemists, and the industry (Chemistry World, March 2006, p2).

However, it is perhaps important also to ensure that independent science writers who contribute to the newsletter publications of science organisations should establish their own credentials for the presentation of their remarks - they need not necessarily be members of the profession concerned - when making comments on the developments they report.

Reading some newsletter publications in recent years, particularly material that lies outside the areas in which many of the readers would claim competence to comment, suggests that this requirement is occasionally not fully met. Some of us would perhaps consider that the item on chemical peel (Chemistry World, March 2006, p22) indicates such an example - certainly in respect of phenol. You will no doubt urgently wish to draw attention to the unmentioned grave danger involved in using phenol, which makes it unthinkable that such use can be permitted.

G V Coles CChem FRSC
Victoria, Australia

Chemistry World responds:
Most skin experts advise against using phenol peels, which can have severe side effects. The peels also give skin a permanent pallor. Surgeons contacted by Chemistry World suggested TCA peels as a less extreme alternative.

From Thomas Ryan

Brian Malpass states that phosgene forms a greenish-yellow cloud when released in liquid form (Chemistry World, April 2006, p28). Having handled phosgene in both gaseous or liquid form on numerous occasions in plant and laboratory environments, and as co-author of a monograph on the subject, I feel qualified to confirm that pure phosgene is indeed colourless in both the liquid and gaseous states.

Commercial phosgene may have a pale yellow or yellow-green appearance as a result of the incomplete removal of chlorine, from which it is made. However, this degree of contamination would be unlikely to produce the ’thick green light’ or ’green sea’ referred to in Wilfred Owen’s powerfully evocative Dulce et decorum est.

Phosgene-filled drums were used in the first world war and delivered using the Livens Projector. Once beyond the enemy lines, a TNT core would cause the drum to burst and create a shower of the lethal gas. Phosgene can decompose thermally to carbon monoxide and chlorine and it is likely that some degree of dissociation would occur at the source of detonation. Chlorine-phosgene mixtures were also used in gas attacks in the first world war and the degree of colour would of course depend upon the respective proportions of the two gases.

Whether formed from contamination, decomposition or as a result of the use of liquefied gas mixtures, the green coloured gas referred to in Owen’s poem is due to chlorine per se and not phosgene.

T A Ryan CChem FRSC
Kelsall, UK

Further Reading

T A Ryan et al, Phosgene and related carbonyl halides, 1996, Elsevier

From Nisha Thobhani

I have a general question that I’d like to ask all chemists/those with scientific backgrounds. How many chemists are disabled and work in the pharmaceutical industry? Has disability awareness been introduced in their working environment and services been adapted?

I have worked in the pharmaceutical industry for over five years as an analyst. I have also been learning British sign language (BSL) as a serious hobby and have become more ’deaf aware’ and conscious of disability-related rules and regulations at work.

N Thobhani AMRSC
Leicester, UK