/oss/taxonomy/term/138/all en /oss/article/contributors-general-science/why-scary-lab-accidents-happen <p>If a chemist has never been in a lab accident, he has been lucky. Of course, luck is more likely to come to those whose mentors have learned from bad experiences and to those who have taken preventive measures seriously, despite their anal nature. Chemical reactions create products with behaviors that differ from those of the ingredients. That’s what makes them intriguing, and it’s also what makes them potentially dangerous. No matter how simple and controllable a reaction seems on paper, when it’s carried out in real life, the exact conditions determine its rate.</p> Fri, 21 Jun 2024 20:57:40 +0000 Enrico Uva B.Sc. Dip. Ed. 9986 at /oss /oss/article/thermite-reaction <p>The place was Edinburgh, Scotland. The occasion, the Edinburgh Science Festival. There were a number of captivating presentations, but my biggest thrill came from looking out the hotel window. A light rail track was being constructed just outside and the workers were busy welding. My eyes popped when I saw what they were doing. I was looking at a live thermite reaction! I had talked about this reaction in class on numerous occasions and marvelled on it in videos, but had always deemed it too dangerous to perform.</p> Fri, 20 Jan 2017 19:30:39 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 1405 at /oss