The 2009 Christmas Diaries II

On of my courses this term has been Chemical Equilibria. I find there is something fascinating about equilibria. It's all about finding the right balance - in contrast to humans, this seems to be intrinsic to nature. In Chemistry there is a constant relationship between products and reactants at equilibrium, at set conditions (temperature, pressure etc.) Somehow the reaction will always give the same percentage yield - there is something natural about the equilibrium, in a sense it is the way it was meant to be. Though as with all equilibria, chemical equilibria can be manipulated by changing variables. As long as one knows what one is doing this is very useful, it is in fact the very foundation of chemical indusrry. In some cases it is very useful that equilibria are fragile, yet in other instances it can create serious problems. Nature is perhaps the best example of this. Though the environmental issues we face today are far more complex than a simple chemical reaction, the equilibria of nature are manipulated just as easily as the chemical reactions in industry.

Other equilibria are also easily disturbed. Relationships within a group of friends can be disturbed dramatically by the addition of another member. Friendships are highly dynamic and although we may not want our new friends to impact the relationships we already have, they tend to do so. Obviously this needn't be a bad thing - it just somehow seems that it often is. In our daily lives we are constantly juggling responsibilities, the natural equilibria of nature seem far away. How easy it is to overprioritize one thing, only to overcompensate later.


Christmas Cliché II: Prioritising work may seem important, but make sure it doesn't affect the things you care about the most. And remember, there's seldom a better time than the present, though the pastures of the future may look greener; you only live once!