Taste the Rainbow! And be a FLAVOUR CHEMIST!! (Post #6)

While typing in "bestest/coolest/awesome-est jobs in chemistry" I came across the FLAVOUR CHEMIST. And yes, it is as awesome as it sounds (or tastes..yum).

The job description of the flavour chemists is, and I quote, " ...[to] enhance natural flavours and create new ones using various scientific applications and creative thinking". They usually work in "flavour houses" within the food, beverage, pharmaceutical and pet industries, and sell their products to companies that are in the need to amp up the flavour or, shall I say, spice it up a little bit. But in all seriousness this is a legitimate career branch in chemistry and there are a few things you do need in order to acquire this job.

Firstly, you do require a Bachelor degree for entry level careers, although for some positions more higher up in the field, they may also require for graduate degrees. Even though those are the only mandatory conditions, previous lab experience is also recommended.

Although it may not seem like the most ground-breaking branch in science, it is definitely something we take for granted, as it's the reason behind why a lot of the food you buy at the grocery store looks, feels, tastes, and lasts the way it does. Take for example pudding–sold in the refrigerated section at the grocery store. To make pudding, you start with dairy milk, which provides liquid and protein. Then you add starch to make the formulation thicker. As starch expands, it traps liquids to help create the pudding texture goodness. But, after only a few days, the expanded starch molecules start coming back together and the starch leaks water, which, for a consumer product, is undesirable. Thus, that's where the food chemists come in. They use chemically modified starches to prevent this from happening (crazy stuff!). So...yeah. They're the ones coming up with those wacky chemicals on your food products you can't pronounce...whoops. Whether or not that's a good thing, it's still pretty cool on a chemistry stand-point how you can alter the chemical makeup of food to make it do certain things that you want it to. So, if you're into that kind of stuff, the flavour chemist or the flavourist, just may be the right career for you.

Link to Article:
https://portal.acs.org/portal/acs/corg/memberapp?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=PP_ARTICLEMAIN&node_id=1188&content_id=CTP_003389&use_sec=true&sec_url_var=region1

Vaping vs. Smoking: Is There Really a Difference? (Post #5)

In recent years, E-cigarettes or vapes have become increasingly more popular–especially among younger individuals like myself. I was inspired to do some research on this topic as recently someone with whom I'm close with decided to splurge on a 170$ vape in their attempt to quit smoking conventional cigarettes. I was a little taken back at the price, but I didn't think much of it as I supported the thought behind it. I, myself, have tried these before and enjoyed it (they come in multiple flavours so it's quite pleasant), and was always told "it's only water vapour, so it's good for you" but I decided to investigate further as I asked myself: Is it really completely harmless?

Turns out, based on a number of studies, no...but it depends. Basically, on a vape (including the one my friend purchased), you have the option to increase or decrease the voltage. This essentially means how much of the flavoured liquid you fill it up with is heated to (which then causes it to evaporate and turn into "smoke"). Based on multiple studies done including The New England Journal of Medicine, it concluded that vaping on a high voltage releases the chemical formaldehyde (a known carcinogen) and one study even claimed you are 15 times more likely of getting cancer than a long-term smoker if you vape on a high voltage. This relates to our fifth unit "Gases and Atmospheric Chemistry" as the process of vaping turns a liquid into a gas (through energy given via electricity), and well...that's some form of atmospheric chemistry happening!

My personal opinion on the idea is pretty neutral. Some people claim vapes are "dumb" or "pointless" or "people only do it to look cool", but what the heck! If you're doing it safely, who cares the reason why? Whether that be for quitting tabacco, for health benefits (someone told me it greatly helps their asthma!), food cravings, or just for the fun of it, if it's used properly, doesn't harm your health (or improves it!) and tastes like candy, vape away!

What do you think about the idea of vapours/e-cigs? Would you ever purchase one? Why or why not?

Link to Article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/27/opinion/joe-nocera-is-vaping-worse-than-smoking.html?_r=0