Wh_Why
y is ch?emistry rewarding?

“Chemistry is the science that touches everyone. As a medicinal chemist, I find chemistry rewarding because it allows me the ability to touch others by trying to alleviate pain and suffering in their lives.”

 

SYLVESTER MOSLEY Former ACS Scholar; Postdoctoral Research Associate, U.S. Food & Drug Administration, Bethesda, Md. He is a 4-year ACS member.

“The intellectual stimulation as a chemist is never ending.

I never have two days alike. And it keeps my mind fresh. Coming to ACS national meetings, for instance. I might be exhausted after running from meeting to meeting, but when I go back to work I feel mentally refreshed … People wonder what I’ve done. Have I gone to a spa? Well, no. I’ve rediscovered being a chemist.”

JANET BRYANT Scientist/Engineer IV, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, Wash. She is a 12-year ACS member.

“I actually have things I can reach up
and hold in my hand and say I did this.
I did this with chemistry.”

“Right now, I’m part of a research team that is developing uses for a certain set of polymers in alternative energy. Finding applications for these polymers in membrane systems could, one day, make fuel cells more efficient and practical for everyday use. As a chemical engineer, being able to say that I have a hand in that is exhilarating.”

JOHN ENGELMAN

Scientist, S.C. Johnson & Son, Racine, Wis. He is a 12-year ACS member.

KEITH G. REED Former ACS Scholar; Ph.D. candidate, School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta. He is an 8-year ACS member.

 

“It’s a fascinating thing to know that all that complex machinery of life is all based on fairly simple chemical principles. No matter how you look at it, it’s chemistry. And to me, that’s sufficient reward.”

BELA BUSLIG Retired chemist, Auburndale, Fla. He is a 44-year ACS member.