EDITORIAL pubs.acs.org/jchemeduc
Without Risk There Is Little Learning Norbert J. Pienta* Department of Chemistry, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242-1294, United States ABSTRACT: The importance of safety in the laboratory and work area is revisited. KEYWORDS: General Public, Laboratory Instruction, Safety/Hazards
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he title of this piece may sound like a caption from a mediocre inspirational poster but has its origins in a conversation about safe practices in the laboratory almost 20 years ago. This author was developing laboratory experiments for undergraduate chemistry majors and speaking with his former mentor, Edward M. Arnett, who at that time had just chaired a committee that had written the book, Prudent Practices in the Laboratory: Handling and Disposal of Chemicals.1 The National Academy of Sciences had convened the Committee on Prudent Practices for Handling, Storage, and Disposal of Chemicals in Laboratories a few years before the book was published in 1995. That book is currently also available in an online version1 and as an updated edition.2 The 1995 book had been preceded by two major reports from the National Research Council (NRC) on laboratory safety and laboratory waste disposal: Prudent Practices for Handling Hazardous Chemicals in Laboratories in 1981 and Prudent Practices for Disposal of Chemicals from Laboratories in 1983. That time, 30 years ago, marked the beginning of a heightened awareness concerning safety during activities in chemistry laboratories and surrounding environs. Unfortunately, the title becomes superficial and insensitive when people’s lives and wellbeing are at stake. In April 2011, an undergraduate physics major died tragically from asphyxia in an accident in a Yale University chemistry facility when her hair became tangled in machine-shop equipment.3 In June 2010, a hydrogen gas explosion in a University of Missouri biochemistry research lab injured four people and destroyed the laboratory.4 In January 2010, an explosion in a Texas Tech University laboratory critically injured a student who received severe burns and lacerations to his face.5 These are true tragedies with pain and suffering for the victims and their families. The lesson for the rest of us is that with appropriate preparation and diligence on the part of the victims, it is likely that the incidents all could have been avoided. Students at both the undergraduate and graduate level need to have authentic experiences, working with substances and with equipment that is part of our discipline. Experimentation with or examination of the chemical and physical properties of substances brings us in contact with materials that can be characterized ranging from benign to hazardous. In a laboratory course, choices can be made about chemicals and procedures. In the research setting, discovery is integral to the apprenticeship process, but it necessitates additional vigilance. My best recollection is that the remembered conversation focused on the word “prudent” for a long time. Merriam-Webster defines prudent as “acting with or showing care and thought for the future”.6 As Copyright r 2011 American Chemical Society and Division of Chemical Education, Inc.
instructors and mentors, we must refocus our efforts toward better vigilance. This includes educating ourselves and those we instruct or mentor. Working safely and thinking about working safely are just as important to our roles as scientists as are the studies we undertake. And prudence must have a bigger role, both in our actions and in the ways we design our research experiments and the ways we conduct our laboratory classes. Safety should not be thought of as just another requirement, a step dictated by some administrator reacting to a more litigious society. Maintaining a safe environment is indeed a responsibility, yet safe practices should become integral to the way we think about the practice of science. I urge you to re-examine your approach and thinking about safety. Educate yourself using the NRC materials,1,2 the OSHA guidelines for Chemical Hygiene Plans,7 or information from the ACS Committee on Chemical Safety.8 To do our part and to help educate our readership, the Journal is partnering with members of the ACS Committee on Chemical Safety to launch a column on safety that we hope will appear regularly. In addition, we expect to solicit more articles on related subjects and to dedicate part of a future issue to the subject.
’ AUTHOR INFORMATION Corresponding Author
*E-mail:
[email protected].
’ REFERENCES (1) Committee on Prudent Practices for Handling, Storage, and Disposal of Chemicals in Laboratories. Prudent Practices in the Laboratory: Handling and Disposal of Chemicals; National Academy Press: Washington, DC, 1995. The version available online can be freely read and searched at http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php? record_id=4911&page=R1 (accessed May 2011). (2) Prudent Practices in the Laboratory: Handling and Management of Chemical Hazards, updated version; National Academy Press: Washington, DC, 2011. More information, as well as a PDF summary and a report in brief (PDF) both available for free download, can be found online at http://www.nap.edu/catalog.php?record_id=12654#toc (accessed May 2011). (3) For a report, see this article: Foderaro, L. W. Yale Student Killed as Hair Gets Caught in Lathe. New York Times, April 13, 2011; http:// www.nytimes.com/2011/04/14/nyregion/yale-student-dies-in-machine-shop-accident.html (accessed May 2011). Published: May 16, 2011 847
dx.doi.org/10.1021/ed2002797 | J. Chem. Educ. 2011, 88, 847–848
Journal of Chemical Education
EDITORIAL
(4) For a report, see this article: Johnson, J. University Lab Accident Under Investigation—Lab Safety: Texas Tech Examination Is First for Chemical Safety Board. Chem. Eng. News, January 20, 2010; http://pubs. acs.org/cen/news/88/i04/8804notw1.html (accessed May 2011). (5) For a report, see this article: Kemsley, J. Research Lab Explosion Injures Four People—Accident: One Person Is in the Hospital after a Hydrogen Gas Blast Destroyed a University of Missouri Biochemistry Lab. Chem. Eng. News, June 29, 2010; http://pubs.acs.org/isubscribe/ journals/cen/88/i27/html/8827news3.html (accessed May 2011). (6) Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary and Thesaurus; Merriam-Webster: Springfield, MA, 2007. (7) For the U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Safety and Health Administration guidelines about toxic and hazardous substances, see http://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document? p_table=standards&p_id=10106 (accessed May 2011). (8) For activities of the American Chemical Society Committee on Chemical Safety, see http://portal.acs.org/portal/acs/corg/content?_ nfpb=true&_pageLabel=PP_TRANSITIONMAIN&node_id=2228& use_sec=false&sec_url_var=region1&__uuid=403cdc74-ff3e-4d70bf3a-851eba616e4f (accessed May 2011).
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dx.doi.org/10.1021/ed2002797 |J. Chem. Educ. 2011, 88, 847–848
