DailyDirt: Deadly Lab Accidents

from the urls-we-dig-up dept

Working in a scientific field can be really difficult sometimes. And sometimes it can even be life-threatening. The multitude of "CSI" TV shows don't generally portray how dangerous a laboratory can be in reality, so here are some sobering links to remind us about the importance of lab safety. By the way, StumbleUpon can recommend some good Techdirt articles, too.
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Filed Under: dangerous, mercury, plague, poisoning


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  • identicon
    Inquirer, 1 Jul 2011 @ 10:36pm

    Being humans, no matter what precautions are taken, laboratory accidents do happen occasionally.

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      Michael Ho (profile), 1 Jul 2011 @ 10:49pm

      Re:

      yes, and don't get me wrong, working in a lab is statistically a lot safer than, say, working in a coal mine or as a police officer at a crime scene....

      link to this | view in chronology ]

  • icon
    Gene Cavanaugh (profile), 2 Jul 2011 @ 11:04am

    Mercury poisoning

    Let's be clear, and discontinue the ignorant fear of mercury. The researcher died of exposure to METHYLATED MERCURY!
    Sure, mercury can be bad; even dangerous - but the extreme events listed were all due to COMPOUNDS of mercury; so, for example, mercury in vaccines and tooth fillings, while banned now, and rightfully so, are NOT the villains they are assumed
    to be by people who should know to "speak when you know something about what you are saying!"

    link to this | view in chronology ]

    • icon
      Michael Ho (profile), 2 Jul 2011 @ 3:56pm

      Re: Mercury poisoning

      Gene,

      Well... if you're going to get all technical, then vaccines usually contain a compound of mercury, too. Thiomersal isn't the same as dimethylmercury, but it's still a COMPOUND of mercury...
      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thiomersal

      The mercury in tooth fillings is usually an amalgam with silver, so that's not a compound, but a metal-metal alloy.

      But in any case, elemental mercury in the environment can be methylated by bacteria... and that's how mercury ultimately poisons people.
      http://www.epa.gov/mercury/exposure.htm#1

      link to this | view in chronology ]


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