Many first year students, scientists especially, succumb to party peer pressure and fail or drop out of their programs before the subject matter gets really juicy. More specifically, when I say "party peer pressure", I mean "drinking peer pressure". But why not take that love of drinking and keep it with science where it belongs? It's so simple: start up a science-themed bar franchise in major academic centers.

Especially with the success of Cafe Scientifique across the globe, the need for an intellectual refuge, away from the blaring racket of top40 hits at clubs and the rowdiness of pubs, is greater than ever. The name of the drinking establishment is really what inspired me in the first place, Dirac's Constant, ħ (pronounced h-bar). Waterloo has a club called Fubar, Guelph has a bar called eBar, so what's one more "consonant"-bar? I'll tell you what it is, an entrepreneurial goldmine.

The gimmicky nature of a science bar could easily get out of control in the wrong hands. Like so:

• Drinks should only be stirred with a magnetic stirrer and come with a guaranteed volume error less than 5%.
  
• Waiters and Waitresses must be familiar with the science of food and drink (and should be tipped accordingly!)
• I'm sure Jennifer Ouellette at Cocktail Party Physics would be honored to have her physics cocktails served (scroll down on the left sidebar)
• Drinks must be served in laboratory glassware of all shapes and sizes ("I'll have a rum and coke, yep my usual, in a Burette please")
• Walls would be lined with scientific texts (in order to settle drinking bets)

And those are just the first things that came to mind. I admit its a fun concept, but I'm not sure how well it would work in practice. Professional scientists may be more interested in keeping science separate from their leisurely activities. Well, at least I'll know what to try when I fail out of my program!