
Messaging via Yahoo Messenger (YM) is such an established part of petrochemical life, particularly trading and reporting, that it is already old hat to be messaging with someone on a desktop, laptop or mobile phone. The Blog can still be impressed, however, by innovation on a theme, and it was definitely impressive to get a message the other day from a trader on a plane. The chat connection was as good as normal, and the conversation only came to a halt when the plane was coming in to land.
I don't think I'll be following suit any time soon. With the cost of onboard internet still quite steep, it would have to be a very important item of information, or I'd have to be very bored, to want to go online mid-flight.

ICIS held its biggest-ever World Base Oils & Lubricants event in London recently and ICIS editor John Baker was on the spot to record interviews with keynote speakers. 


We read so much about bioplastics, but now they are appearing on our tables. Coca-Cola took out a full page advert in the Times last week to trumpet the launch of its new 
A picture is worth a hundred words and it is good to enliven PowerPoint presentations with photos of chemical plants we have visited.
Scientific researchers have come up with a failsafe way to get you up in the morning, even if you're deaf.
A plastic bottle filled with water can become a source of lighting for slum homes in the