“I’ve reached the boiling point with the situation.” This is an idiom we all use from time to time to express feelings of being overwhelmed, often accompanied by anxiety. However, what I’ve been experiencing over the last two days is much more intense. To describe it, I thought it might be fitting to draw on my long-forgotten days of studying chemical engineering. While many people think of the boiling point as the hottest state a substance can experience, every thermodynamics reference explains that the critical point is what we should be looking for. This state is achieved by controlling both pressure and temperature, rendering the substance unidentifiable as a solid, liquid, or gas. In other words, it loses its distinct characteristics. ...

Welcoming Nowruz 1401/01/01: A Time for Renewal and Goals Nowruz marks the first day of the first month of the Iranian calendar, and this year is extra special—it’s also the first day of the 15th century on the Solar Hijri calendar. For many, this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity is the perfect moment to set new goals and open new chapters in life. Interestingly, so many parents have scheduled the birth of their child to coincide with this day that the government reports a tripling in birth rates! ...