The Secret Investment Formula of a Chemical Genius - Chapter 161



Only Krnovel

Episode 161 Special Lecture

A face completely devoid of smile.

President Larry Selden, who had been lost in thought for a while after hearing what I said, raised his head.

“I think I have a rough idea of ​​what Han Yu-jin is talking about.”

He fiddled with the water jug ​​in his hand.

“However, I understand the ‘meaning’ of the question that Ms. Han Yu-jin just gave, but I do not understand the ‘intention.’ Could you explain it in a little more detail?”

It’s a question… … .

A witty expression referring to my former university lecturer background.

I guess you could say it’s definitely typical of American politicians.

President Larry Selden also knew how to incorporate wit into serious speech.

“I didn’t say it with any special intention.”

“Really?”

“I said this because the thought just occurred to me, so you can just ignore it.”

“Well, I think it would be good to maintain a balanced perspective and not be biased towards one side while being president. Thank you for the advice.”

President Larry Selden nodded slightly, as if to say he would move on without asking any further questions.

“What are your plans for the future? Are you planning to return to Korea right away?”

“No, that’s not it. I still have one thing to do.”

“What if there’s something to do?”

“I was asked by Professor Jennon Smith to give a special lecture at Stanford. I plan to complete that schedule and then return to Korea.”

President Larry Selden smiled.

“Could you tell me the topic of the lecture?”

“The Present and Future of the Carbon Economy.”

“That’s an interesting topic. Would it be possible for me to attend and listen to the lecture?”

“I think you should ask the person next to you, not me.”

President Larry Selden turned his head slightly.

“Do you have time?”

White House Chief of Staff John Larry Kroos shook his head, his mouth tightly shut, as if to say, “Absolutely not.”

“That guy doesn’t allow it.”

President Larry Selden shrugged his shoulders, as if expressing regret.

“Then, unfortunately, today will be the last time I will be here with Han Yu-jin.”

Right hand extended forward.

“Thank you for your hard work, Mr. President.”

I firmly held the hand he extended to me.

* * *

West of Washington, D.C., Dallas, Virginia.

We boarded a flight from Washington Dulles International Airport and headed straight to California.

-Is your schedule in the US going smoothly?

“Yes. I hope you are doing well, Manager.”

-I’m doing well, sir. But… … When do you plan on returning to your country?

“I will probably go to Korea in two days at the latest.”

-okay!

A little while ago.

As the call began, Manager Kim Seong-jae’s voice, which had been faint like a matchstick flame, suddenly came to life.

“You must be having a hard time.”

-No. Even if I have a hard time in Korea, I can’t compare it to the CEO and Vice-CEO who are having a hard time in the US.

“Please endure a little longer.”

-Yes. I’ll see you in two days, sir.

Let’s end the call.

“Why? Are you having a hard time?”

“Well, he doesn’t say anything directly, but it seems like he’s having a hard time dealing with government officials who keep coming to visit.”

“Where did you come from again?”

“Ministry of Environment.”

“Yesterday it was the Ministry of Finance. The day before yesterday it was the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It must have been hard for an already timid gentleman to deal with such high-ranking officials.”

Taekang clicked his tongue lightly.

“Professor Han!”

On the way out of the airport, chatting with the guy.

Professor Jennon Smith, who was waiting for us at the airport, waved warmly.

He came to me with a bright smile, grabbed my hand, and shook it up and down vigorously.

“I enjoyed the press conference!”

“Was it so?”

Faint wrinkles around the eyes.

I smiled faintly at the sincere hospitality.

“Aren’t you busy?”

“No matter how busy you are, you have to make time for Professor Han. I have prepared a car over there.”

We boarded a black sedan prepared by Professor Jennon Smith.

“Your schedule seems really tight. Are you okay?”

“I sat still and relaxed on the plane, so I’m not particularly tired.”

“That’s fortunate.”

The car took us from the San Francisco airport where we landed to Stanford University.

A view of the city passing quickly outside the car window.

however.

“Eugene. Look over there.”

I was looking at my tablet and organizing the lecture content in my head, which was about to begin.

Taekang tapped my body and pointed somewhere with his finger.

In the middle of the city.

A person who is dressed in shabby clothes and has a stooped posture, like a plaster statue.

I frowned.

At first glance, it looks like performance art… … .

“Addict… … .”

“Hey, there it is too.”

Let’s turn our gaze a little.

People leaning against the walls of buildings with bloodshot eyes were sprawled out, oblivious to the gazes of passersby.

“San Francisco is also having a headache because of that problem these days.”

“It’s really… … severe.”

Professor Jennon Smith grimaced.

“Just a few years ago, this would have been unimaginable.”

San Francisco is one of the representative cities of the United States.

If Washington and New York symbolize American politics and finance, respectively.

San Francisco is a city that symbolizes American technology.

Because it is adjacent to Silicon Valley, which is called the center of America’s high-tech industry.

Many of the IT companies that currently support the U.S. economy grew up based in San Francisco.

How did that city become like that…?

“Do you know about ‘Proposal 47’?”

“Are you talking about lowering the felony threshold for theft to $950?”

“You know very well.”

The official name of the United States is the United States.

If we break it down, it means a country established through a union of states.

In fact, the 50 states that make up the United States are different from our local governments.

Each state has its own distinct identity, so much so that it can be considered virtually an independent country.

For example.

In some states, marijuana is legal, but in others, possession of it is punishable by law.

I turned my head and looked at the homeless people of the city.

2014.

In California, one issue was put to the vote.

In the crime of theft, the standard for sentencing is the price of the stolen goods.

Proposal 47.

A bill that would raise the misdemeanor fine for theft from $400 to $950.

Ultimately, after a referendum, the law was passed.

And as time passed, the side effects of the law began to appear little by little.

“I didn’t know at first that Proposition 47 would lead to the downfall of San Francisco.”

San Francisco is a city with significant economic power in the United States.

At that time, theft was not that rampant.

But things changed when hyperinflation hit the United States.

People who were struggling financially began to commit theft one by one.

Petty theft, which is mostly classified as a misdemeanor under Proposal 47.

As the number of police officers failed to keep pace with the increase in crime, security problems began to arise.

Then, strange phenomena began to occur.

As for petty theft, companies are starting to turn a blind eye to it.

Since the police do not investigate properly, no one reports it.

There is no punishment for stealing!

The thieves began to become more rampant.

As the situation became increasingly serious, companies also came to their senses.

But when I realized what was happening, the situation had gotten so bad that there was nothing I could do about it.

Eventually, department stores, supermarkets, and other retail stores in San Francisco began to close their doors one by one, unable to withstand the losses caused by theft.

As the retail stores closed, residents who felt inconvenienced in their lives began to leave the city one by one.

The exodus procession continues, so much so that it is called the Exodus.

The spaces left by businesses and residents were filled by homeless people and drug addicts.

That’s how San Francisco fell.

“That’s why there are high expectations for a professor in California. After all, companies need to come in to create quality jobs, and people who left because of the jobs will come back.”

… … Will that really solve this problem?

I stared blankly out the car window without saying anything.

* * *

“Is this a real university?”

The guy who saw Stanford University was speechless.

A huge size comparable to an average district in Seoul.

Taekang was astonished at how it looked like a city had been transplanted instead of a campus.

… … Shut your mouth, my jaw is going to fall off.

The car entered the campus and went straight to Memorial Auditorium.

“Isn’t it too big a place to hold the lecture?”

The Memorial Auditorium has a seating capacity of a whopping 1,700.

It is a place that boasts a large scale that can be used as an indoor performance venue.

“This size is not enough. The number of students and undergraduates who applied to hear a special lecture by one professor exceeded 10,000. To be honest, this is too small. I barely managed to stop them from renting a much larger lecture hall.”

“… … .”

* * *

“It’s really over now.”

“I know.”

“Are you really going to announce ‘that’?”

“I think so.”

Taekang chuckled as he watched me pack my belongings.

“why?”

“No, I just think it’s fun to think that it’s going to flip over here in a bit.”

While I was giving the guy the cold shoulder.

“Professor Han, are you ready?”

“Yes, Professor.”

“Follow me.”

“Good job!”

Leaving Taekang behind and cheering, I headed to the podium.

* * *

It’s crowded.

I have been teaching classes at university for several years now.

This is my first time standing in a place with so many people.

Knock knock! He hit the mic and brought it to his mouth.

“Hello. I am Han Yu-jin, the CEO of CZTERA, who will be giving a special lecture today.”

Clap clap clap!

The lecture began in earnest in a calm atmosphere.

“Before we get into today’s topic, let’s talk briefly about organic chemistry. What is organic chemistry?”

In response to my question, several students in the front row raised their hands.

When I pointed to one of them, a staff member approached and handed him the microphone.

“It is an academic discipline that studies ‘materials that form a carbon skeleton’ through covalent bonds between carbon and hydrogen.”

“It was such a neat and accurate answer that I would have given extra points if I had been a student in your class.”

The curly-haired black student sat down with a proud expression after hearing the compliment.

“That’s right. Organic chemistry is the study of substances made of hydrocarbons. So where do these organic compounds come from?”

I pressed down on the laser pointer in my hand.

Black water rising from the floor.

Looking at the screen, I opened my mouth.

“As everyone here knows, a significant portion of organic compounds come from petroleum. The clothes we wear, the medicine we take when we’re sick, the carbonation in the soda that the student in the blue shirt is drinking right now… … We eat, use, drink, wear, and wear. In fact, almost every product we use in our daily lives uses petroleum.”

The seats suddenly became quiet.

“Petroleum is a truly useful organic compound. In fact, it would not be wrong to call it the substance that supports modern civilization.”

“… … .”

“… … .”

“Among the organic compounds made from petroleum, the most widely used substance in our daily lives is ‘plastic.’ Everyone, would you like to take a moment to look down and find the plastic products you currently own?”

The students and undergraduates sitting in the audience began to feel around and examine their bodies as I said.

After some sufficient time has passed.

“Is there anyone sitting here who doesn’t currently own a plastic product?”

About 1/6th of them raised their hands.

“Just in case, this is what I’m holding.”

I raised my phone high.

“Plastic is also used in the exterior of this smartphone.”

The hand that immediately goes down after hearing my words.

How many modern people don’t have a cell phone?

“So everyone here, big or small, is carrying plastic on their person. So what happens if oil disappears?”

I scanned the audience with my eyes.

“If a situation arises where we cannot use plastic, are we fully prepared for it?”

“… … .”

“… … .”

No one in the audience opened their mouth.

Currently, many studies are being conducted to find alternatives to plastic.

Due to various issues such as price and commercialization, a perfect substitute has not been found.

Let me beckon.

The staff brought in a whiteboard.

I took a marker and drew a chemical formula on it.

Then he turned around and looked at the audience.

“Does anyone know what the chemical formula I wrote is?”

Again, arms jutting above the head.

I pointed to a female student.

“Could it be polyethylene?”

I laughed softly.

“Right. Then what is this?”

I drew another chemical formula next to it.

The female student, holding the microphone tightly with both hands, opened her eyes half-closed as if trying to concentrate.

The female student, who had been watching for a while, sighed and shook her head.

“I’m not sure. It looks like some kind of plastic… … .”

He smiled slightly at the discouraged schoolgirl.

Of course, I couldn’t know.

“Exactly, this is the chemical structure of the substance I am holding in my hand.”

He took the dark, rectangular object out of his pocket and held it up high for people to see.

Made from carbon extracted from CZTREA.

… … which has properties surprisingly similar to polyethylene.

‘New material’.