Judy Seigel (jseigel@panix.com)
Sun, 16 May 1999 19:20:27 -0400 (EDT)
On Sat, 15 May 1999, Michael Keller wrote:
> Judy, try http://www.globeandmail.com:80/gam/Focus/19990515/FC15SACK.html for
> the story. Is this it?
>
Thanks Michael... This was one where inertia (well not inertia,
proccupation) prevailed. This morning (Sunday's) Times provided the answer
with a couple of letters to the editor on the topic, one of which was very
pertinent. I repeat it here:
===============
To the Editor:
Oliver Sacks's May 13 Op Ed article on the restriction of chemicals used
in educational chemistry sets highlights the chilling effect of
regulation.
I became enthralled by chemistry when I found my first sample of iron
pyrite ("fool's gold") 50 yrs ago. A lab was set up in my basement,
complete with a host of chemicals fr local drugstores... Copper sulfate...
was used to electroplate a host of metallic objects. With the resources of
the local library (no Internet needed) my lab was truly a world of
discovery....
Frederick E. Ziegler...
professor of chemistry at Yale.
===================
The next letter writer said he nearly blew up the house, and got
nightmares that woke him up screaming. The chemistry set of "yesteryear"
is said sould be brought back "about the same time as metal dashboards."
Meanwhile, Mike Jacobson of Artcraft explains the "ban" on copper sulfate.
It kills algae in your septic tank and/or the water system. The amount we
use (especially in a "bleach") is miniscule, a matter of grams, and reused
so long that only a few ccs of working solution would go down the drain at
any time, but chemical companies, which don't really want to deal with the
small user in any event, may take that as an excuse.
Whatever, Gene Robkin says something about getting cu sulphate in farm
country, instead of Starbucks. I don't drink coffee. But Artcraft still
has it. Hudson River is far enough west for me...
cheers,
Judy
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.0b3 on Thu Oct 28 1999 - 21:39:33