2008 Salary Report...From www.che.com

Newsfront: 2008 Salary Report
Ch.E.s wonder when the CPI will feel the hit of the changing economy

Kate Torzewski

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The past decade has been a volatile period for chemical engineers in the workforce. The late 1990s was a booming time in the chemical process industries (CPI), with salary increases greater than ever and an unprecedented demand for Ch.E. expertise. This prosperity quickly gave way to harder times in the early 2000s, when engineers struggled to keep their salary increases on par with inflation. Luck had turned around again in recent years with steadily increasing pay, but in light of the recent economic crisis, Ch.E.s wonder — when will the CPI feel the hit of the changing economy?
Recent Salary Trends

This year, most Ch.E.s enjoyed a greater annual salary boost than has been found in nearly a decade. In its 2008 salary survey, the Engineering Income and Salary Survey and the National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE; Alexandria, Va.; www.nspe.org) report a median income of $102,000, an impressive 11.1% increase since 2007. Gulshan Dua, vice-president of process engineering and gas processing of SNC-Lavalin’s chemical and petroleum business unit, has seen a high level of job satisfaction with sustained growth. "The trend in the last two years in particular has been significant increases in salaries and overall packages, as much as 40 to 60% increases."

As expected, education, licensure and experience pay off greatly for Ch.E.s. According to the NSPE survey, having earned a masters degree boosts the median salary to $104,600, a 7.5% edge over Ch.E.s with a bachelors degree, up from 4.9% in 2007.

Meanwhile, attaining Professional Engineer (P.E.) licensure proves to give a significant boost to Ch.E. salaries. With a median income of $114,000, P.E.s earn a 37.3% higher salary than unlicensed Ch.E.s, a number that may also reflect the fact that many licensed engineers have completed a higher level of education and have more years of experience than most other Ch.E.s.

An annual survey report released by the Engineering Workforce Commission, a division of the American Association of Engineering Societies, Inc. (EWC; Washington D.C.; www.aaes.org/ewc) provides engineering salary data at every level of experience, proving that experience pays off, with steadily increasing salaries with increasing years of experience. Table 2 and Figure 2 show Ch.E. salary data for 2008, which illustrate this trend, with new graduates starting around the $60,000 mark and the most seasoned Ch.E.s commanding a median salary of $110,000.

In Figure 3, we compare EWC data from its five most-recent annual salary surveys. The graph shows the median salary of working Ch.E.s as a function of years since a bachelors degree was earned. Data for 2004 through 2008 is shown, with data for years up to 2007 adjusted for inflation to 2008 equivalency. From this data, we see that pay generally increased with experience, with the exception of 2004 and 2007 data, where the salary of engineers approaching retirement reduced. Also, when comparing years, we see that survey participants did not see salary increases that kept up with the rise of inflation from 2005 to 2006, though data has remained somewhat consistent since then.
TABLE 1: INCOME BY BRANCH OF ENGINEERING Aerospace $95,800
Biomedical $102,375
Chemical $102,000
Civil $78,000
Computer $119,178
Electrical $92,240
Environmental $82,000
Mechanical $95,000
Petroleum $120,000
Systems $99,200
Source: Engineering Workforce Commission

When compared to engineers of other disciplines, Ch.E.s still boast one of the highest median salaries, as shown in Figure 1. EWC’s latest report, which found a median Ch.E. salary of $102,000, is beat out by computer engineers, and only slightly by biomedical engineers, as seen from the data in Table 1. Petroleum engineering proves to be the most profitable area of Ch.E. practice, with a median salary of $120,000, the highest of any engineering discipline.

Overall, according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE; Bethlehem, Pa., www.naceweb.org), the chemical industries boasted the second brightest outlook of any category of employer, being exceeded only by computer-software-development companies. Andrea Koncz, employment information manager of NACE, reports that companies in the CPI plan to hire 19.2% more new graduates than they did last year.

Though employers are seeking to hire a record number of Ch.E.s, an October 2007 NACE report that studied data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that engineering enrollments are decreasing at a rate of 2.2% per year. With a slowly dwindling supply of Ch.E. professionals, the demand for this expertise is higher than ever. Usha Singareddy, director of compensation for Dow Chemical Company (Midland, Mich.; www.dow.com), has seen a decreasing availability of new Ch.E.s, noting that "numbers have gone down tremendously," though the quality of Ch.E. graduates remains high. One factor that she sees as causing this is a dropping ratio of students enrolling in Ch.E. programs to other engineering programs. Despite the profitability of working in the CPI, Singareddy sees many students moving toward other engineering disciplines, including computer and electronic engineering.
TABLE 2: CHEMICAL ENGINEERS — SMOOTHED MEDIAN SALARY CURVES VERSUS YEARS OF EXPERIENCE* Years since baccalaureate degree
3 4 5 6 7 8 9.5 11.5 14.5 18.5 23 28 33 38
2004 — — — — — — 87,833 89,977 94,287 96,588 109,844 118,355 123,263 119,106
2005 — — — — — — 83,021 86,960 93,818 98,606 109,577 114,670 121,787 125,623
2006 60,577 65,231 66,495 68,289 71,849 76,789 78,848 81,020 84,971 91,068 99,648 104,657 108,463 108,822
2007 64,701 73,190 76,708 78,768 78,344 79,976 80,134 83,348 85,796 91,067 99,504 101,630 100,875 92,796
2008 59,964 64,386 65,802 67,733 71,601 77,797 79,104 81,970 84,531 90,667 96,366 101,463 105,326 106,749

*2004–2007 data adjusted to 2008 dollars

Source: Engineering Workforce Commission

The outlook for Ch.E.s in the U.K. and Ireland has brightened as well, as determined by IChemE’s 2008 salary survey (Rugby, U.K.; www.icheme.org). Like Ch.E.s in the U.S., IChemE survey participants were lucky if they didn’t see a decrease in salary earlier in this decade — from 2002 to 2004, the reported median salary did not change. Since 2004, however, salaries have steadily increased. The median salary in the 2008 report was £47,000, up 8.8% from 2006.

In the U.K., professional engineers are given the designation of "Chartered Engineers." As in the U.S., Chartered Engineers participating in the IChemE survey earned a much higher salary than non-chartered participants, with a median chartered salary of £57,500 over £36,000, a 59.7% advantage.
Looking Toward the Future

Ch.E.s may have enjoyed steadily increasing salaries over the past couple of years, but the changing economy may dictate a slowdown in the CPI and Ch.E. employment. Andrea Koncz says that this is a difficult issue to predict. "With the downward trend in the economy, perhaps all areas will be affected." However, she notes, "there is a definite demand for chemical engineers, and with gas prices rising and [engineering enrollments declining], I would like to think they will not be affected."

Kevin Swift, managing director of economics and statistics for the American Chemistry Council (ACC; Arlington, Va.; www.americanchemistry.com), explains that the outlook may not be as positive as we hope. "If you look at industries that Ch.E.s are usually employed in, they usually peak at this point in the cycle." He points out that the housing market has gone down 60% in the past year, while vehicle sales have dropped 30%, two major markets that will directly affect the CPI. While the demand for domestic sales in the chemical industries has dropped, until recently, increasing international exports had somewhat offset these losses. Now that foreign markets are entering the same economic turmoil as the U.S., Swift is seeing a drop in exports as well. All of this points to potentially rocky waters for Ch.E.s. "It will be a tough environment for a year or so," Swift says. Despite recent trends in the increasing demand for Ch.E.s, "industry might cut back production levels, and therefore, employment could drop."

Though the outlook may be grim, or uncertain at best, some sectors of the CPI may weather this economic storm better than others. John Pearson, president and CEO of Access Intelligence’s chemical business media division,* expects that the companies involved in the green revolution may bode well over the upcoming year. On the U.S. West Coast, he has noticed that start-up alternative-fuel companies have been doing quite well during this time, citing companies such as LS9 (South San Francisco, Calif.; www.ls9.com), which focuses on the area of biofuel production.

Though SNC-Lavalin’s Dua does not expect to see salaries increasing at the same rate as they have been recently, she still has a positive outlook, predicting 8 – 12% increases in 2009. She also agrees that the energy industry does indeed have a brighter future. "A significant economic growth is expected in the coming 10 to 20 years in the energy sector. This will be complemented by stricter compliance with environmental regulations, in particular, related to carbon capture and sequestration, fuel efficiency improvements, use of alternative (to fossil fuels) fuels, and minimizing the use of the scarce water resources, and so on, which will all be adding to development of newer projects." Dua points out that these new projects will require a high level of innovation, research and development, making the energy sector an area where Ch.E.s with masters and Ph.D. degrees would be in greatest demand.
Increasingly Global Workforce

As engineering enrollment continues to decline yet Ch.E. demand increases, U.S. CPI executives are becoming increasingly concerned about the global position of the U.S. CPI.

In a Bayer survey of Fortune 1000 science and technology company CEOs, concerns about the science technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) workforce showed up strongly. At 95%, nearly all of the executives are concerned that the U.S. is in danger of losing its global leadership position in science and technology due to a shortage of STEM talent, with more than half reporting that their companies are already experiencing such a shortage. When it comes to rising international competition, 68% are concerned that other countries’ increasing access to STEM talent is giving rival companies based in these countries a competitive advantage over those in the U.S., with 20% of respondents saying they are "very concerned." Dow’s Singareddy notices this trend as well, explaining that she is seeing a significant drop in American students, while the international student population continues to grow.
TABLE 3: CHEMICAL ENGINEERS — SMOOTHED MEDIAN SALARY CURVES VERSUS YEARS OF EXPERIENCE Years since baccalaureate degree

Source: Engineering Workforce Commission
3 4 5 6 7 8 9.5 11.5 14.5 18.5 23 28 33 38
90th percentile 61,800 72,166 75,981 77,627 83,463 90,135 96,912 100,827 112,183 121,975 135,474 152,879 156,522 145,526
75th percentile 60,762 67,058 70,382 72,665 77,172 82,969 89,133 93,885 101,227 108,494 114,401 122,724 127,525 129,976
Median 59,964 64,386 65,802 67,733 71,601 77,797 79,104 81,970 84,531 90,667 96,366 101,463 105,326 106,749
25th percentile 59,015 61,272 61,204 62,676 63,244 66,466 64,893 70,291 72,985 79,729 82,445 87,899 89,123 89,042
10th percentile 55,474 56,175 57,130 56,567 59,884 61,030 59,847 63,159 62,835 66,349 68,591 73,976 72,764 64,105

In the past few years, the CPI has seen an interesting change in the Ch.E. workforce worldwide. Andreas Beckers, head of corporate communications at Uhde GmbH (Dortmund, Germany; www.thyssenkrupp.com) points toward the increasing workforce in Asia. Just a few years ago, engineering firms could attract Ch.E.s in Asia for relatively low salary. "Now," Beckers notes, "the engineering workforce is growing across India and China." Their demand is growing at the same time, and U.S. and European firms can no longer secure these professionals as easily. "Salaries must now be much higher in order to hold on to these engineers," Beckers explains. SNC-Lavalin’s Dua, too, sees this change in the global Ch.E. workforce affecting the U.S, saying that the situation has changed drastically in the last 2 – 3 years with respect to the availability of good process engineers from China and especially India. "The demand for them has increased tremendously, and hence, their expectations [have too]," she says. Furthermore, she warns that "the downturn in the industrialized world will be made by growth in the developing world, namely India, China and South America."

Despite a high demand and increasing salaries for engineers in Asia, there appears to be a surplus of Ch.E.s in Nigeria. Using her own country as an example, one reader explains that "there are up to 30,000 chemical engineers in Nigeria without a job, despite [all of] the petroleum companies in the country." With the focus of the rising global Ch.E. workforce in Asia, the CPI may be overlooking an untapped resource in African countries and other areas of the world.

SNC-Lavalin’s Dua provides insight into the negligence of the U.S. to explore talent in such areas. "I have dealt with a few chemical engineers from some untapped resources and have mixed opinions — not all have the right skill set and experience to fit directly into the North American markets — some need extensive on-the-job training."

What doesn't GPS do?

	my profile my cabinet my tracker my labels my bookmarks my notes GPS can be effectively used in almost any business that relies on precise location information. B Ashok Kumar demystifies the popular technology Global Positioning System or GPS, is a technology that can give your accurate position anywhere on earth (latitude/longitude). To avail of this technology, you need a special GPS receiver that can receive signals from satellites. It works anywhere on the planet where you can receive satellite signals. You will need a clear view of the sky for the GPS to work. It will not work inside buildings, underground or even in a forest. The Global Positioning System is owned and operated by United States Department of Defence, but it is freely available for the use of anyone in the world. Other countries have developed similar Satellite Navigation Systems of their own. For example, the European Union is developing a system called Galileo, while Russia has an operational system called GLONASS. Many modern receivers are capable of using signals from all these systems. A GPS receiver calculates its position by carefully timing the signals sent by the constellation of GPS satellites high above the Earth. Each satellite continually transmits messages containing the time the message was sent, a precise orbit for the satellite sending the message (the ephemeris), and the general system health and rough orbits of all GPS satellites (the almanac). These signals travel at the speed of light. The receiver uses the arrival time of each message to measure the distance to each satellite, from which it determines the position of the receiver. The resulting coordinates are then converted to more user-friendly forms such as latitude and longitude, or the location on a map, before being displayed to the user. Although four satellites are required for normal operation, fewer satellites may do the job in special cases. If one variable is already known (for example, a plane knows its altitude), a receiver can determine its position using only three satellites. Some GPS receivers may use additional clues or assumptions (such as re-using the last known altitude, dead reckoning, inertial navigation, or including information from the vehicle computer) to give degraded answers when fewer than four satellites are visible. As of March 2008, there are 31 actively broadcasting satellites in the GPS constellation. The additional satellites improve the precision of GPS receiver calculations by providing redundant measurements. With the increased number of satellites, the constellation was changed to a non-uniform arrangement. Such an arrangement was shown to improve the reliability and availability of the system, relative to a uniform system, when multiple satellites fail. GPS receivers come in a variety of formats, from devices integrated into cars, phones, and watches, to dedicated devices. They can cost a few thousand rupees to lakhs, depending on the use. In general, GPS receivers are composed of an antenna, tuned to the frequencies transmitted by the satellites, receiver-processors, and a highly stable clock (often a crystal oscillator). They may also include a display for providing location and speed information to the user. A receiver is often described by its number of channels: this signifies how many satellites it can monitor simultaneously. Originally limited to four or five, this has progressively increased over the years so that, as of 2007, receivers typically have between 12 and 20 channels. Receivers can interface with other devices using methods including a serial connection, USB or Bluetooth. The position calculated by a GPS receiver requires the current time, the position of the satellite and the measured delay of the received signal. The position accuracy is primarily dependent on the satellite position and signal delay. To measure the delay, the receiver compares the bit sequence received from the satellite with an internally generated version. By comparing the rising and trailing edges of the bit transitions, modern electronics can measure signal offset to within about one percent of a bit time, or approximately 10 nanoseconds for the C/A code. Since GPS signals propagate at the speed of light, this represents an error of about three metres. Position accuracy can be improved by using the higher-chiprate P(Y) signal. Assuming the same one percent bit time accuracy, the high-frequency P(Y) signal results in an accuracy of about 30 centimetres. Since GPS signals at terrestrial receivers tend to be relatively weak, it is easy for other sources of electromagnetic radiation to desensitise the receiver, making acquiring and tracking the satellite signals difficult or impossible. Solar flares are one such naturally occurring emission with the potential to degrade GPS reception, and their impact can affect reception over the half of the Earth facing the sun. GPS signals can also be interfered with by naturally occurring geomagnetic storms, predominantly found near the poles of the Earth's magnetic field. In automotive GPS receivers, metallic features in windshields, such as defrosters, or car window tinting films can act as a barrier, degrading reception just inside the car. Man-made EMI (electromagnetic interference) can also disrupt, or jam, GPS signals. In one well-documented case, the entire harbour of Moss Landing was unable to receive GPS signals due to unintentional jamming caused by malfunctioning TV antenna preamplifiers. Intentional jamming is also possible. Generally, stronger signals can interfere with GPS receivers when they are within radio range, or line of sight. In 2002, a detailed description of how to build a short- range GPS L1 C/A jammer was published in Phrack, an online magazine. The Global Positioning System, while originally a military project, is considered a dual-use technology, meaning it has significant applications for both the military and the civilian industry. The military applications of GPS span many purposes: Navigation: GPS allows soldiers to find objectives in the dark or in unfamiliar territory, and to coordinate the movement of troops and supplies. The GPS-receivers used by commanders and soldiers are called the Commander's Digital Assistant and the Soldier's Digital Assistant, respectively. Target tracking: Various military weapons' systems use GPS to track potential ground and air targets before they are flagged as hostile. These weapon systems pass GPS co-ordinates of targets to precision-guided munitions to allow them to engage the targets accurately. Military aircraft, particularly those used in air-to-ground roles use GPS to find targets. Missile and projectile guidance: GPS allows accurate targeting of various military weapons including ICBMs, cruise missiles and precision-guided munitions. Artillery projectiles with embedded GPS receivers able to withstand accelerations of 12,000G have been developed for use in 155 mm howitzers. Search and Rescue: Downed pilots can be located faster if they have a GPS receiver. Reconnaissance and Map Creation: The military uses GPS extensively to aid mapping and reconnaissance. The GPS satellites also carry a set of nuclear detonation detectors consisting of an optical sensor (Y-sensor), an X-ray sensor, a dosimeter, and an Electro-Magnetic Pulse (EMP) sensor (W-sensor), which form a major portion of the United States Nuclear Detonation Detection System. Civilian uses: Many civilian applications benefit from GPS signals, using one or more of three basic components of the GPS: absolute location, relative movement, and time transfer. You can make accurate maps by yourself using a simple GPS device! Say you like to go trekking in mountains and want to map out the trails. Just carry the receiver with you and it will record your path. You can then download and process this data using any of the software and make a map of the area. You can fit a GPS device in your car and can track where your car has been, how much distance you travelled etc. For real-time positioning, you would need a 'transmitter' too. GPS devices cum transmitters are also available in small sizes, which can be fitted into a shoe or a watch. These are popular to keep a watch on children. These devices would automatically send you a message when your child goes outside a defined perimeter, or allow you to know where your child is at any time. GPS has become very popular in India among fleet management companies. GPS allows real-time vehicle tracking which enable transportation industry and delivery services. GPS can be effectively used in almost any business that relies on precise location information. Surveying, field data collection, yellow pages, tourism, infrastructure, communication -- GPS has applications in all these areas. Most of you would have also heard of A-GPS or Assisted GPS. A-GPS enhances the start-up performance of a GPS satellite-based positioning system. It is used extensively with GPS-capable cellular phones, as its development was accelerated by the US FCC's 911 mandate making the location of a cell phone available to emergency call dispatchers. Conventional GPS has difficulty providing reliable positions in poor signal conditions. For example, when surrounded by tall buildings (resulting in multipath), or when the satellite signals are weakened when a GPS device is indoors or under trees. Some newer receivers are better at handling these situations. In addition, when first turned on in these conditions, some non-assisted GPS units may not be able to download the almanac and ephemeris information from the GPS satellites, rendering them unable to function until a clear signal can be received continuously for up to one minute. An A-GPS receiver can address these problems in several ways, using an assistance server: The assistance server can locate the phone roughly by the cell site it is connected to on the cellular network. The assistance server has a good satellite signal, and lots of computation power, so it can compare fragmentary signals relayed to it by cell phones, with the satellite signal it receives directly, and then inform the cell phone or emergency services of the cell phone's position. It can supply orbital data for the GPS satellites to the cell phone, enabling it to lock to the satellites when it otherwise could not, and autonomously calculate its position. Simply capturing a brief snapshot of the GPS signal, with approximate time, for the server to later process into a position. By having accurate, surveyed coordinates for the cell site towers, it can have better knowledge of ionospheric conditions and other errors affecting the GPS signal than the cell phone alone, enabling more precise calculation of position. A typical A-GPS-enabled cell phone will use an Internet connection to contact the assistance server. Alternatively, it may use standard non-assisted GPS, which is slower and less accurate, but does not lead to network charges for data traffic, which can be considerable. Some A-GPS solutions do not have the option of falling back to conventional GPS. Most of the new high-end multimedia phones offer GPS with some pre-loaded map software. Some of them offer A-GPS too. Technically, those with A-GPS are better since they are more failsafe.

The Philosophy of Chess and Life

The Philosophy of Chess and Life

1. Chess celebrates the creativity of the human mind – marvelous combinations, smashing sacrificial attacks, and ingenious strategies bring to life great imagination and creativity from within us. How can we not create, we who are made the image of the Creator God?

2. The harmony of the chessmen– Each piece is different, Knight, Bishop, Queen, Rook, Pawn and King, each one has their own intrinsic values which make them special. On their own, they can do little, but when combined together, working in tandem and unity, they create a powerful irresistible synergy in the hands of the Master. Likewise, each person is different, specially created by God in a way like no other. Each have their own strengths and weaknesses, but when united together, with the same mind and purpose, they can become a truly powerful force to be reckoned with. United we stand, divided we fall. A threefold cord is not easily broken.

3. The miracle of the pawn – The pawn is the most humble piece on the board. It is easily sacrificed, and the loss of one or two may not give one much to worry. However, as the end approaches, each pawn becomes more and more powerful, with the awesome potential of becoming any piece the Master wishes him to be. Most of us, as we stand here on the face of the billions on the earth, may appear insignificant and small in the grand scheme of things. However, in the hands of the Master, we have unlimited potential to become the star he wishes us to be. Like em hobbits of old, small and little we may be. Yet in the Master’s plan, we shall be much more than we can be.

4. The power of the centre – One of the main principles in chess, is the control of the centre. Among master players, he who controls the centre almost inevitably wins the game. From the centre, he exudes power in every direction of the board. In life, we too must focus our attention on the centre. With the truth as our centre, we are able to face all difficulties in life resolutely. If we focus on less important things on the side, sooner or later, our centre will be blown open, leaving our life in tatters. He was created before all things, and in Him all things hold together.

5. The order of the game – Part of the beauty of the game lies in its order. Each piece and movement in chess is based on the conditions set by her ingenius inventor. Without this order, the game would become illogical and meaningless. So too in life, there is a certain order to things. Where there is total freedom to do what one feels like, it will only lead to anarchy and chaos. Imagine if there was no law of gravity on the earth. How then could life maintain its existence? To find our place in life hence, we must understand our place and our Creator, and live in humble reverence and prayer.

6. The principles of the game – Over the centuries, the masters of the game developed clear principles necessary to increase the chances of winning in a game- rook on the 7th rank, establishment of a knight in the centre, the control of the white or black squares, the seizing of open files and diagonals, etc. In life too, there are good and important principles found in the Word by which men who live by it have the greater chance to find fulfillment and the purpose of life.

7. Finishing the endgame – Often time, we hear of a player who comes out of the opening with an incredible advantage, dominates the middle game and then inexplicably loses the endgame. What good would his excellent opening and middle game play do then? In life too, it is not so much how we start but how we finish that is most important.

શુકનમાં લાપસી જ શા માટે ? – વૈદ્ય રામ ભારતેન્દુ શુકલ

આપણા વડવાઓ બહુ જ હોંશિયાર, સમજદાર, દીર્ધદષ્ટિવાળા, હિતેચ્છુ અને શુભ ભાવનાઓવાળા હતા. આપણે પ્રત્યેક પર્વ અને વ્રત તેમજ શુભ પ્રસંગોએ ખાવામાં પીવામાં અને આહાર-વિહારમાં જે પણ રિવાજો દાખલ કરવામાં આવ્યા છે, તેની પાછળ શારીરિક તંદુરસ્તી અંગે પૂરેપૂરો વિચાર કરવામાં આવેલો છે. તેની પાછળ સંપૂર્ણપણે આયુર્વેદનો યુક્તાહારનો પૂરેપૂરો ખ્યાલ રાખવામાં આવ્યો છે. આની પાછળ પણ વાસ્તવમાં સંપૂર્ણ વિજ્ઞાન જ રહેલું છે. પ્રત્યેક પરિવારોમાં અને ખાસ કરીને બ્રાહ્મણોમાં તો વિશેષ, દરેક શુભ પ્રસંગોએ જમણવારમાં બીજી કોઈ પણ મીઠાઈને બદલે હંમેશા ઘઉંની લાપસી અથવા ચૂરમું (છૂટો લાડુ) પીરસવામાં આવે છે એનું અનેકમાંનું એક કારણ એ છે કે લાપસી એ સલામત રીતે પૌષ્ટિક આહાર છે. લાપસીની બનાવટમાં વપરાતી ઘઉંની અંદરના બીજ, ગોળ અને ઘીની પૌષ્ટિકતાને દૂધપાક, શ્રીખંડ, બાસુંદી, ઘેબર, લાડુ, મોહનથાળ, મેસુર, પૂરણપોળી કે બીજી કોઈપણ માવા મીઠાઈ પહોંચી શકે તેમ નથી.

જેને આપણે વિટામિન્સ તરીકે ઓળખીએ છીએ તે વિટામિન્સ આપણી જીવનશક્તિ વધારે છે. વૈજ્ઞાનિક સંશોધન દ્વારા એ વાત સિદ્ધ થયેલી છે કે ઘઉંનો લોટ જેમ જેમ બારીક દળવામાં આવે છે તેમ તેમ તેની અંદર રહેલા બીજગુણોનું આયુષ્ય પૂરું થઈ જાય છે. મશીન વડે ચાલતી લોટ પીસવાની ઘંટીમાં દળેલો લોટ એકદમ બારીક લોટ હોવાને લીધે તેમાંથી બનેલ ચીજોનું પાચન ત્વરાથી થતું નથી. એક વાત ખાસ યાદ રાખો કે વિટામિન ‘બી’ નો નાશ ઘણી જ સખત ગરમી સિવાય ક્યારેય થતો નથી. મશીનથી ચાલતી ઘંટીમાં જ્યારે ઘઉંને એકદમ બારીક પીસવામાં આવે છે ત્યારે તેમાં એટલી બધી ગરમી થઈ હોય છે કે જેથી તેની અંદરનાં પોષક તત્વો નષ્ટ થઈ જાય છે. આપણે આવી દોષયુક્ત વસ્તુઓનો ઉપયોગ કરી બીમારીઓને આમંત્રણ આપીએ છીએ અને પછી થયેલાં દરદોના ઉપાય માટે હેરાન થઈએ છીએ. આજનું વિજ્ઞાન પણ મશીનના દળેલા લોટમાં થોડુંક ભૂસું નાખીને રોટલી બનાવવાની સલાહ આપે છે. એટલે કે લોટના ચારણને ફેંકી દેવા કરતાં બચાવીને વાપરવું ડહાપણ ભરેલું છે. તેમ કરવાથી આપણને તેનો પૂરેપૂરો લાભ મળે છે અને તેના અભાવે થતી બીમારીઓથી પણ બચી શકીએ છીએ.

લાપસી માટે વપરાતા ઘઉંના ફાડા અગત્યના એટલા માટે છે કે તે ઘઉંની બનાવટ હોવા છતાં પણ તેનું પૌષ્ટિક મૂલ્ય ઘઉં જેટલું જ રહે છે, જ્યારે બીજી બનાવટોમાં થોડુંઘણું પોષણ ઓછું થાય છે. ઘઉંના ફાડામાં ખરેખર આખા ઘઉંના દાણાનો બધો જ ભાગ આવી જાય છે. ઘઉંના ઉપરના થૂલાના પડમાંથી સ્નાયુઓ માટે ઉત્તમ જાતનું પ્રોટીન મળે છે. વચલા ભાગ કરતાં તે દશ ગણો ક્ષાર પૂરો પાડે છે. જ્ઞાનતંતુ તથા હાડકાં માટે ફોસ્ફરસ અને કાળી દ્રાક્ષ કરતાં બમણા પ્રમાણમાં શરીરમાં રતાશ લાવનારું લોહી પૂરું પાડે છે તેમજ કબજિયાત અટકાવવા માટે તે જરૂરી કૂચો પૂરો પાડે છે. ઘઉંના છોડમાં રફેજ અથવા રેસા અથવા ફાઈબર સારું મળે છે જે પેટ સાફ રાખવામાં અગત્યનો ભાગ ભજવે છે. ઘઉંની મીઠાશ- મધુરતા પણ તેમાં જળવાય છે. ઘઉં રસમાં મધુર અને વીર્ય તેમજ વિપાકમાં શીતલ છે. ઘઉંમાં રહેલાં પ્રોટીન, સ્ટાર્ચ, ફેટ તથા તંતુ મનુષ્યનાં શરીર માટે બળદાયી, પોષક, વીર્યવર્ધક અને પુન:જીવનદાતા છે. લોહીને શુદ્ધ રાખવા માટે તથા બીજી કેટલીક ક્રિયાઓ માટે શરીરને મોટા પ્રમાણમાં કેલ્શિયમ, મેગ્નેશિયમ, સોડિયમ, પોટેશિયમ, ફોસ્ફરસ, કલોરિન, સલ્ફર અને આર્યન – આ આઠ જાતના ક્ષારની જરૂરત હોય છે.

ઘઉંમાં આ આઠે આઠ જાતના ક્ષાર સારા પ્રમાણમાં મળી રહે છે અને શરીરને તે થૂલા, ફાડા વગેરે દ્વારા પૂરા પાડી શકાય છે. કબજિયાત અટકાવવા અને આંતરડાંના ખોરાકને ગતિ આપવા ‘કૂચા’ અથવા રેસાવાળા પદાર્થની જરૂરત છે. તે કૂચા પૂરા પાડનારા પદાર્થોમાં થૂલું, ફાડા તથા ફોતરાં ઉત્તમ છે. કારણ કે તે આંતરડાંને છોલતાં નથી. જ્યારે પાચક દવાઓ આંતરડાંને છોલીને દસ્ત લાવતી હોવાથી છેવટે ભયંકર રોગ ઉત્પન્ન કરે છે. થૂલું કાઢી નાંખવાથી લોટમાંથી એવી જાતનાં તત્વો નીકળી જાય છે જેની ઉણપ બીજા કોઈપણ જાતના ખોરાકથી પૂરી કરી શકાતી નથી. આને પરિણામે રોગ ઉત્પન્ન થવાનાં જોખમો વધી જાય છે. પ્રોટીન્સ, વિટામિન્સ અને ક્ષારો એ રક્ષણાત્મક આહાર છે. બાળપણ અને યુવાનીમાં પ્રોટીન વિશેષત જરૂરી છે. લેવાતા આહારમાં ફક્ત પ્રોટીનના અલ્પ પ્રમાણના કારણે જ સમાજમાં માંદગીનું મોટું ચિત્ર છે. ખોરાકના છ ઘટકો કાર્બોહાઈડ્રેટ્સ, ચરબી, પ્રોટીન, ક્ષાર, વિટામિન્સ અને પાણી આ તમામે તમામ ઘટકો ઘઉંમાં સમાયેલા છે અને તેનાથી દુર્બળ-અશક્ત મનુષ્ય પુષ્ટ થાય છે, તેનું વજન વધે છે અને તેની ગેસ તથા કબજિયાતની ફરિયાદ દૂર થાય છે.

આપણા દેશમાં શ્રીમંત વર્ગમાં માલ-મલીદા ખાવા છતાં પણ નિ:સંતાનપણું વિશેષ જોવામાં આવે છે, જ્યારે ગામડામાં ગરીબ લોકોને ત્યાં લૂખો-પાંખો ખોરાક લેવા છતાં પણ બાળકની કતાર લાગેલી હોય છે. તેમના ખોરાકનો અભ્યાસ કરવાથી વૈદ્યો અને વિજ્ઞાનશાસ્ત્રીઓને વિટામિન ‘ઈ’ સંબંધી વિશેષ જ્ઞાન લાધ્યું છે. આ વિટામીન ‘ઈ’ ઘઉંમાં સારા પ્રમાણમાં હોય છે. વિજ્ઞાનશાસ્ત્રીઓએ વિટામીન ‘ઈ’ને રિપ્રોડકટીવ (સર્જક) વિટામિન તરીકે ઓળખાવેલ છે. બીજી રીતે શરીર બરાબર હોવા છતાં વિટામીન ‘ઈ’ના અભાવે નિ:સંતાનપણું આવે છે તેમ તેઓનું માનવું છે. આજે જગત અનેક પ્રકારની વ્યાધિઓથી પીડિત છે. ડૉક્ટરો વધતા જાય છે, રોજબરોજ નવી દવાઓ અને દવાખાનાં વધતાં જાય છે અને તેમ છતાં માનવીને સાચાં સુખશાંતિ દુર્લભ થતાં જાય છે. આનું કારણ એ છે કે, અથર્વવેદના એક અંગ આયુર્વેદમાં દર્શાવેલા તંદુરસ્તી જાળવવાના નિયમોની ઘોર ઉપેક્ષા થઈ રહી છે અને ખોરાકમાં પૌષ્ટિક તત્વો અથવા તો ઉપયોગી તત્વો જો પૂરતા પ્રમાણમાં લેવામાં ન આવે તો કેટલીક જાતનાં ખાસ દરદો થાય છે અને તેની ખાસ ચિકિત્સા પણ, એ જ ઉપયોગી તત્વોની ખામી દૂર કરવાથી દરદો દૂર થઈ જાય છે. તાત્પર્ય કે, આરોગ્યસંપત્તિ અને સૌંદર્ય સર્વે પૌષ્ટિક આહારથી જ પ્રાપ્ત થાય છે.

શરીર તંદુરસ્ત રહે તેમ દરેક માનવી ઈચ્છે છે, તેમ છતાં તેમ કરવા માટે તે આહારના નિયમોનું પાલન કરતો નથી તે હકીકત છે. અત્યારની નવી પેઢીઓનાં માનવીઓ આ રિવાજોનું પાલન કરતાં નથી. પહેલાં બાળકનું નામ પાડતી વખતે બારમા દિવસે આખા ઘઉંને બાફીને તેની ઘુઘરી બનાવી, ઘુઘરીમાં પણ ગોળ-ઘી નાંખી આપવામાં આવતી હતી. વૈજ્ઞાનિક દષ્ટિકોણથી આ ઘુઘરી તો લાપસી અને ચૂરમા કરતાં પણ વધુ પૌષ્ટિક છે તેમ છતાં, આજના જમાનામાં પોતાને સુધરેલા ગણાવતાં લોકો આટલું નગ્ન સત્ય સમજી શકતાં નથી અને તેઓના શુભ જમણવારોમાં લાપસીને યાદ કરી તે જમાડવાને બદલે લાપસીને રાંધનારા, પીરસનારા અને જમાડનારાની મશ્કરી કરે છે. તેમને વહેમીલા ગણાવી તેમના ઉપર અંધશ્રદ્ધાળુનો આક્ષેપ મૂકી તિરસ્કારની નજરે જોઈ પોતાને આધુનિક ગણાવી ગૌરવ અનુભવવાનો દેખાવ કરે છે અને બાપદાદાઓને મૂર્ખમાં ખપાવવાનો પ્રયત્ન કરે છે.

આ બધાના પરિણામે અત્યારે મેંદાના લોટનો વપરાશ દિનપ્રતિદિન વધી રહ્યો છે. પણ પ્રયોગથી એ વાત સાબિત થઈ ચુકેલી છે કે મેંદો શરીરને પોષવાને બદલે નુકશાન પહોંચાડવાનું કાર્ય કરે છે. એટલા માટે આપણા વડવાઓ આજે પણ કહે છે કે આડા દિવસોમાં તમે એવો પોષ્ટિક આહાર નિયમિત ખાતા જ નથી પણ સારા પ્રસંગોમાં શુભ અવસરે શુકનમાં તો આ લાપસી કે ચૂરમું ખાઓ ! આવાં જીવનતત્વ અને વિટામીનથી ભરપૂર લાપસી જેવા ખોરાકને શુભ પ્રસંગોએ જમણવારમાં તો સમાવીએ ખરા જ પરંતુ નિયમિત ખોરાકમાં પણ તે અપનાવી લેવામાં જ શાણપણ છે એવું નથી લાગતું ?

To All Chemical Engineering Students Who Wish To Join UOP...esp. for students of Faculty Of Technology & Engineering,The M.S.University of Baroda,

Business & Economics :: Latest News

October 28, 2008

UOP and partners to develop 2nd-generation biofeedstock technology under U.S. DOE award

Dorothy Lozowski

UOP LLC (Des Plaines, Ill.; www.uop.com), a Honeywell company, announced that it was awarded a $1.5-million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to develop economically viable technology to stabilize pyrolysis oil from second-generation biomass feedstocks for use as a renewable fuel source. Biomass pyrolysis oil is made from second-generation feedstocks like the residuals from agricultural and forestry industries or wood-based construction and demolition materials. The oil can be combusted in industrial burners and furnaces for power and heating or further refined into transportation fuels such as gasoline, diesel and jet fuel. However, the oil is corrosive and unstable, making it difficult to store and transport.

UOP and its partners, using funding from the DOE’s National Biofuels Action Plan, will work to modify the composition of biomass pyrolysis oil to solve those issues. “The development of second-generation biofeedstock conversion technology is critical for biofuels to support our growing energy needs,” said Jennifer Holmgren, general manager for UOP’s Renewable Energy and Chemicals business. “Finding a cost-effective solution will ensure that pyrolysis oil is a viable renewable source for power and transportation fuels.”

UOP will work with Ensyn Corp. (Renfrew, Ont.; www.ensyn.com), the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL), Pall Corp. and the Crop Conversion Science and Engineering Research Unit of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agriculture Research Service on the project. It is expected to be completed by the end of 2010.

Biomass pyrolysis oil is a greenhouse-gas-neutral, renewable resource that is produced when biomass is rapidly heated in the absence of oxygen. The oil is acidic and its viscosity increases over time making the substance unstable, which limits storage and transportation options, as well as its compatibility with some industrial equipment. UOP has formed a joint venture with Ensyn to offer technology and equipment to convert second-generation biomass into pyrolysis oil for power generation and heating fuel. The joint venture will also accelerate research and development efforts to commercialize next-generation technology to refine the bio-oil into transport fuels such as green gasoline, green diesel and green jet fuel.

Speech Of Chetan Bhagat

Good
Morning everyone and thank you for giving me this chance to speak to
you. This day is about you. You, who have come to this college, leaving
the comfort of your homes (or in some cases discomfort), to become
something in your life. I am sure you are excited. There are few days
in human life when one is truly elated. The first day in college is one
of them. When you were getting ready today, you felt a tingling in your
stomach. What would the auditorium be like, what would the teachers be
like, who are my new classmates - there is so much to be curious about.
I call this excitement, the spark within you that makes you feel truly
alive today. Today I am going to talk about keeping the spark shining.
Or to put it another way, how to be happy most, if not all the time.
Where
do these sparks start? I think we are born with them. My 3-year old
twin boys have a million sparks. A little Spiderman toy can make them
jump on the bed. They get thrills from creaky swings in the park. A
story from daddy gets them excited. They do a daily countdown for
birthday party â€" several months in advance â€" just for the day they
will cut their own birthday cake.
I see students like you, and I still see some sparks. But when I see older people, the spark is difficult to find. That means as we age, the spark fades.
People whose spark has faded too much are dull, dejected, aimless and
bitter. Remember Kareena in the first half of Jab We Met vs the second
half? That is what happens when the spark is lost. So how to save the
spark?
Imagine the spark to be a lamp's flame. The first aspect is
nurturing - to give your spark the fuel, continuously. The second is to
guard against storms.
To
nurture, always have goals. It is human nature to strive, improve and
achieve full potential. In fact, that is success. It is what is
possible for you. It isn't any external measure - a certain cost to
company pay package, a particular car or house.
Most of us are
from middle class families. To us, having material landmarks is success
and rightly so. When you have grown up where money constraints force
everyday choices, financial freedom is a big achievement. But it isn't
the purpose of life. If that was the case, Mr. Ambani would not show up
for work. Shah Rukh Khan would stay at home and not dance anymore.
Steve Jobs won't be working hard to make a better iPhone, as he sold
Pixar for billions of dollars already. Why do they do it? What makes
them come to work everyday? They do it because it makes them happy.
They do it because it makes them feel alive. Just getting better from current levels feels good. If
you study hard, you can improve your rank. If you make an effort to
interact with people, you will do better in interviews. If you
practice, your cricket will get better. You may also know that you
cannot become Tendulkar, yet. But you can get to the next level.
Striving for that next level is important.
Nature designed with a
random set of genes and circumstances in which we were born. To be
happy, we have to accept it and make the most of nature's design. Are
you? Goals will help you do that. I must add, don't just have career or
academic goals. Set goals to give you a balanced, successful life. I
use the word balanced before successful. Balanced means ensuring your
health, relationships, mental peace are all in good order.
There
is no point of getting a promotion on the day of your breakup. There is
no fun in driving a car if your back hurts. Shopping is not enjoyable
if your mind is full of tensions.
You must have read some quotes - Life is a tough race, it is a marathon or whatever. No, from what I have seen so far,
life is one of those races in nursery school, where you have to run
with a marble in a spoon kept in your mouth. If the marble falls, there
is no point coming first.
Same with life, where health and relationships are the marble. Your
striving is only worth it if there is harmony in your life. Else, you
may achieve the success, but this spark, this feeling of being excited
and alive, will start to die.
One
last thing about nurturing the spark - don't take life seriously. One
of my yoga teachers used to make students laugh during classes. One
student asked him if these jokes would take away something from the
yoga practice. The teacher said - don't be serious, be sincere.
This quote has defined my work ever since. Whether its my writing, my
job, my relationships or any of my goals. I get thousands of opinions
on my writing everyday. There is heaps of praise, there is intense
criticism. If I take it all seriously, how will I write? Or rather, how
will I live? Life is not to be taken seriously, as we are really
temporary here. We are like a pre-paid card with limited validity. If
we are lucky, we may last another 50 years. And 50 years is just 2,500
weekends. Do we really need to get so worked up? It's ok, bunk a few
classes, goof up a few interviews, fall in love. We are people, not
programmed devices.
I've
told you three things - reasonable goals, balance and not taking it too
seriously that will nurture the spark. However, there are four storms
in life that will threaten to completely put out the flame. These must
be guarded against. These are disappointment, frustration, unfairness
and loneliness of purpose.
Disappointment
will come when your effort does not give you the expected return. If
things don't go as planned or if you face failure. Failure is extremely
difficult to handle, but those that do come out stronger. What did this
failure teach me? is the question you will need to ask. You will feel
miserable. You will want to quit, like I wanted to when nine publishers
rejected my first book. Some IITians kill themselves over low grades
â€" how silly is that? But that is how much failure can hurt you. But
it's life. If challenges could always be overcome, they would cease to be a challenge. And remember - if you are failing at something, that means you are at your limit or potential. And that's where you want to be.
Disappointment'
s cousin is frustration, the second storm. Have you ever been
frustrated? It happens when things are stuck. This is especially
relevant in India. From traffic jams to getting that job you deserve,
sometimes things take so long that you don't know if you chose the
right goal. After books, I set the goal of writing for Bollywood, as I
thought they needed writers. I am called extremely lucky, but it took
me five years to get close to a release. Frustration saps excitement,
and turns your initial energy into something negative, making you a
bitter person. How did I deal with it? A realistic assessment of the
time involved â€" movies take a long time to make even though they are
watched quickly, seeking a certain enjoyment in the process rather than the end result
â€" at least I was learning how to write scripts, having a side plan
â€" I had my third book to write and even something as simple as
pleasurable distractions in your life - friends, food, travel can help
you overcome it. Remember, nothing is to be taken seriously.
Frustration is a sign somewhere, you took it too seriously.
Unfairness
- this is hardest to deal with, but unfortunately that is how our
country works. People with connections, rich dads, beautiful faces,
pedigree find it easier to make it â€" not just in Bollywood, but
everywhere. And sometimes it is just plain luck. There are so few
opportunities in India, so many stars need to be aligned for you to
make it happen. Merit and hard work is not always linked to achievement
in the short term, but the long term correlation is high, and
ultimately things do work out. But realize, there will be some people
luckier than you. In fact, to have an opportunity to go to college and
understand this speech in English means you are pretty damm lucky by
Indian standards. Let's be grateful for what we have and get the
strength to accept what we don't. I have so much love from my readers
that other writers cannot even imagine it. However, I don't get
literary praise. It's ok. I don't look like Aishwarya Rai, but I have
two boys who I think are more beautiful than her. It's ok. Don't let
unfairness kill your spark.
Finally,
the last point that can kill your spark is isolation. As you grow older
you will realize you are unique. When you are little, all kids want Ice
cream and Spiderman. As you grow older to college, you still are a lot
like your friends. But ten years later and you realize you are unique.
What you want, what you believe in, what makes you feel, may be
different from even the people closest to you. This can create conflict
as your goals may not match with others. . And you may drop some of
them. Basketball captains in college invariably stop playing basketball
by the time they have their second child. They give up something that
meant so much to them. They do it for their family. But in doing that,
the spark dies. Never, ever make that compromise. Love yourself first,
and then others.
There you go. I've told you the four
thunderstorms - disappointment, frustration, unfairness and isolation.
You cannot avoid them, as like the monsoon they will come into your
life at regular intervals. You just need to keep the raincoat handy to
not let the spark die.
I
welcome you again to the most wonderful years of your life. If someone
gave me the choice to go back in time, I will surely choose college.
But I also hope that ten years later as well, your eyes will shine the
same way as they do today. That you will Keep the Spark alive, not only
through college, but through the next 2,500 weekends. And I hope not
just you, but my whole country will keep that spark alive, as we really
need it now more than any moment in history. And there is something
cool about saying - I come from the land of a billion sparks.

How to build a good Vocabulary ?

Be sure you have the communication
skills needed for a successful MBA

The Ten Best Vocabulary Learning Tips

• Step 1. Read, Read, Read! Most vocabulary words are learned from context. The more words you're exposed to, the better vocabulary you will have. While you read, pay close attention to words you don't know. First, try to figure out their meanings from context. Then look the words up. Read and listen to challenging material so that you'll be exposed to many new words.

• Step 2. Improve your context skills. Research shows that the vast majority of words are learned from context. To improve your context skills pay close attention to how words are used. Doing a search on a word using dejanews.com (for searching newsgroups) will give you many examples of how that word is used in context. Play our Daily Context Vocabulary Quiz.
  

• Step 3. Practice, practice, practice. Learning a word won't help very much if you promptly forget it. Research shows that it takes from 10 to 20 repetitions to really make a word part of your vocabulary. It helps to write the word - both the definition and a sentence you make up using the word - perhaps on an index card that can later be reviewed. As soon as you learn a new word, start using it. Review your index cards periodically to see if you have forgotten any of your new words. Also, do a search on a word using dejanews.com (for searching newsgroups) to get many examples of how the word is actually used.
  

• Step 4. Make up as many associations and connections as possible. Say the word aloud to activate your auditory memory. Relate the word to words you already know. For example, the word GARGANTUAN (very large) has a similar meaning to the words gigantic, huge, large, etc. You could make a sequence: small, medium, large, very large, GARGANTUAN. List as many things as you can that could be considered GARGANTUAN: Godzilla, the circus fat lady, the zit on your nose, etc. Create pictures of the word's meaning that involve strong emotions. Think "the GARGANTUAN creature was going to rip me apart and then eat me!"

• Step 5. Use mnemonics (memory tricks). For example, consider the word EGREGIOUS (extremely bad). Think EGG REACH US - imagine we've made a mistake so bad that they are throwing eggs at us and a rotten EGG REACHes US. Such funny little word pictures will help you remember what words mean, AND they are fun to make up. Also, find out which learning style suits you best. Everyone learns differently!

• Step 6. Get in the habit of looking up words you don't know. If you have a dictionary program on your computer, keep it open and handy. America Online and other internet services have dictionaries and thesauruses on their tool bars. Find them and look up any word you are not absolutely sure of. Use a thesaurus when you write to find the word that fits best.

• Step 7. Play with words. Play Scrabble, Boggle, and do crossword puzzles. These and other word games are available for the computer, so you are not dependent on a partner to play. Also, try out the Franklin Electronic Dictionary that features built-in word games.

• Step 8. Use vocabulary lists. For the serious vocabulary student, there are many books that focus on the words most commonly found in standardized tests, such as the SAT and GRE. There are also many interesting word sites on the Internet, many of which will send you a word a day by email.

• Step 9. Take vocabulary tests. Playing games, such as the ones on this site, that test your knowledge will help you learn new words and also let you know how much progress you're making. Offline sources for vocabulary tests include SAT prep books (we recommend "10 Real SATs" by ETS), and the Reader's Digest Wordpower section. For more, check out Amazon.com or your local bookseller.
  

• Step 10.Get excited about words! Come to appreciate the sometimes- subtle differences between them. Do you know the difference between something that denotes something else and something that connotes something else? If not, go look it up. Learn to say what you really mean and discover the joys of being able to express yourself in writing. Your future can depend on how rich your vocabulary is. A good vocabulary will make a difference on the standardized tests, like the SAT and GRE, that could determine whether or where you go to college. It will also determine the quality of your communication. So be in it for the long pull. Let building your vocabulary be a lifelong proposition. Remember: "In the beginning was the word." Until you have a word for something, it does not exist for you. Name it, and you have made your reality richer.