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> I remember holding it in my bare hand in chemistry lab (encouraged by the teacher). At a (not so remote) time, students used to put their hands into mercury
by emillon 13y ago
> I remember holding it in my bare hand in chemistry lab (encouraged by the teacher).
At a (not so remote) time, students used to put their hands into mercury to demonstrate that it is liquid but not wet.
- ScotterC 13y agoYea. And unlike cobalt 60, mercury doesn't decay. Hard to get that stuff out of your system.
- kps 13y agoFortunately, it's also hard to get that stuff into your system. Elemental mercury is usually quite harmless if touched or swallowed. It is so thick and slippery that it usually falls off your skin or out of your stomach without being absorbed.¹ ¹ http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002476.htm http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/002476.htm
- oakwhiz 13y agoNot all mercury is pure, though. Organic mercury compounds exist which behave similarly to elemental mercury but they have a greater health risk associated with them.
- tedunangst 13y agoAFAIK it's not absorbed through skin, so that's not usually a problem as long as you don't aerosolize it. If you drop the droplet onto the floor, that's when the fun begins.