From: Robert W. Schramm (schrammrus@hotmail.com)
Date: 11/17/00-09:05:51 PM Z
I don't want to start a flame war about this but pure mercury metal can be
and has been ingested with little or no effect. It is the
compounds of mercury that are dangerous when ingested. At room
temperature it will take a long time before a teaspoon of mercury in
a normal sized room results in a level of mercury vapor that is dangerous.
You have sufficient time to clean it all up. Mercury is
very dangerous in the vapor state. Mercury, when heated, vaporizes very
quickly. Then it is very toxic to inhale. Please note that mercurochrome
gets its name from the mercury it contains. Think
of all the kids that had it put on their scrapped knees. Mercuric
oxide ointment was, at one time, also fairly common. We use to play
with mercury when we were kids. Use to rub it on silver coins to make them
shiny and theres nothing wrong with us...heh, heh, heh, heh...
People tend to panic when it comes to mercury. The most recent panic
attack concerned the mercury amalgam used by dentists for fillings.
Bob Schramm
>From: Greg Schmitz <gws1@columbia.edu>
>Reply-To: alt-photo-process-l@sask.usask.ca
>To: alt-photo-process-l@sask.usask.ca
>Subject: Re: Mercury WARNINGS
>Date: Thu, 16 Nov 2000 21:59:11 -0500 (EST)
>
>On Thu, 16 Nov 2000 bmaxey1@juno.com wrote:
>
> > >>How do those of you using mercury protect yourselves against mercury
> > poisoning?
> >
>some deleted - snip %<
>
> > God help you if you take it internally by mistake. I am not sure what
>the
> > medical solution is, but it will decompose when in your system thereby
> > creating health problems you do not want.
> >
>
>Bob:
>
>!Good Advice! Though it is my understanding that ingestion of mercury
>presents much less of a threat than most people think. The much
>greater risk comes from absorbing mercury through skin contact and
>also via low pressure vapor - through the lungs (and not surprisingly
>the eyes). That teaspoon of mercury dropped on the floor will
>vaporize at room temperature.
>
>-greg schmitz
>
>
>
>----------
>Thus, if it be true that death is annihilation, then the man who
>believes that he will certainly go straight to heaven when he dies,
>provided he have fulfilled certain simple observances in this life,
>has a cheap pleasure which will not be followed by the least
>disappointment.
>
> Charles Sanders Peirce
> "The Fixation of Belief" (1877)
>
>----------
>
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