Estimate: Academic Labs 11 Times More Dangerous Than Industrial Counterparts

Jim_Austin writes "Academic science labs are generally far less safe than labs in industry; one estimate says that people working in academic labs are 11x more likely to be hurt than their industrial counterparts. A group of grad students and postdocs in Minnesota decided to address the issue head-on. With encouragement and funding from DOW, and some leadership from their department chairs, they're in the process of totally remaking their departments' safety cultures."

Comments

Depends on what they are doing

[Carewolf]

It is anything like my university, the chemistry labs keep blowing up due to students trying to make illegal drugs off hours.

Re:Depends on what they are doing

[ameoba]

Our problem was Electrical Engineering grad students continually burning popcorn in the microwave.

Yeah... the admissions standards were a little soft.

Really?

[rebelwarlock]

Students less likely to follow safety procedures. News at 11.

Re:I must have taken the wrong courses

[fuzzyfuzzyfungus]

I never saw anyone get hurt in the Math, CompSci, or Stats Labs when I was in college

Don't get too complacent, though. Even in the worst cases, the chem labs always send you home to mommy in a finite real number of small boxes. That...isn't always true... after certain classes of mathematics accident.

Re:I must have taken the wrong courses

[rsmith-mac]

That...isn't always true... after certain classes of mathematics accident

Quantum physics isn't any better. Oh sure, they send you home in one piece; but you're in a state of quantum superposition. As a result no one is willing to open the box and let you out, for fear of collapsing the superposition and killing you.

Re:I must have taken the wrong courses

[ericloewe]

I sure as hell hope that's a natural number of boxes, otherwise my whole world is a lie...