Comments on: Chemical-Free Treason

By: No chemicals

No chemicals — Wed, 30 May 2012 17:10:31 +0000

Where I work, our safety people put a sign on the refrigerators in the labs that say “No food or Drink” So they trust us to use the nasty stuff in the fridge but they think we’re too stupid to not put our lunches inside.

By: a-non

a-non — Wed, 30 May 2012 03:31:00 +0000

The terms “Wet Zone” and “Dry Zone” would do for me

By: wolfie

wolfie — Tue, 29 May 2012 23:23:45 +0000

This business is ugly. And real chemistry is not a business.

By: bad wolf

bad wolf — Mon, 28 May 2012 20:56:15 +0000

Pretty sure no matter what you call it, if you didn’t specify “NO labcoats, gloves, tlc plates, NMR samples or other chemical contaminants” you would have a room full of labcoats, gloves, tlc plates and NMR samples. Students are particularly prone to not identifying the thing they have been working with all day as a contaminant.

By: AlphaGamma

AlphaGamma — Mon, 28 May 2012 13:54:54 +0000

The problem with “no toxics” is that it’s not just toxic compounds that are an issue- even if you could eat every one of your reagents with no ill-effects, there’s still the risk of contamination with something nasty. More important is the flammability issue- the food fridges where I work are labelled “NO CHEMICALS IN THIS FRIDGE” because there’s a risk of a spark in the fridge as well as a risk of food being contaminated.

By: wolfie

wolfie — Sun, 27 May 2012 00:19:47 +0000

idiot-free cannot be such a lonely zone

By: Anonymous(i.e. Untenured Prof)

Anonymous(i.e. Untenured Prof) — Sat, 26 May 2012 19:50:38 +0000

Rebecca, I read the report – I especially liked two things: (a) “measurements represent levels detected in laboratory testing and may not represent actual exposure levels experienced with use of the product” and (b) limonene is an allergen… presumably if you are allergic to lemons then you wouldn’t buy the product that reeks of lemon?

Back on topic though, I put up “No research chemicals beyond this point” on my student’s office door. Adding “research” satisfied my own pedantry without confusing anyone.

By: Rebecca

Rebecca — Sat, 26 May 2012 13:57:29 +0000

Our lab areas have adjacent offices posted (a long time ago) as “Designated Eating Area”s. Serves a similar purpose, as well as keeping the Big Macs away from the lab bench.

p.s. Can we get some outrage going on here about the “Tide contains cancer-causing dioxane” scare? I read the activists’ report and the method detection limit was 250 ppm… the group is claiming levels far below that. Why isn’t anyone rebutting?

By: Boutros Boutros

Boutros Boutros — Thu, 24 May 2012 02:24:39 +0000

Do you complain about this to your office mates? Do any of your co-workers hang up “Pedant free zone” signs, and tell you that you can’t come around their desk?

By: Curious Wavefunction

Curious Wavefunction — Wed, 23 May 2012 21:24:23 +0000

I agree that “chemicals” in this case clearly means “laboratory chemicals”. I don’t see why it’s so bad. As ChillPill points out, the context and target audience do make this case different. But I also agree that the other option would have worked out just as well.