Talk:Karen Wetterhahn
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Biography. For more information, visit the project page. | ||
| Start | This article has been rated as start-Class on the project's quality scale. [FAQ] | ||
 |
This article is within the scope of WikiProject Dartmouth College, which collaborates on articles related to Dartmouth College. | |
| Start | This article has been rated as Start-Class on the assessment scale. | |
| Low | This article is on a subject of low importance within WikiProject Dartmouth College. | |
|
This article has been rated but has no comments. If appropriate, please review the article and leave comments here to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the article and what work it will need. |
||
Contents |
[edit] Irony
With all due respect, how is her death "ironic"? Would the death of a firefighter in a fire be considered ironic? Or a policeman who was shot on duty? It seems to me that her demise would be expected, not ironic. -Alcalde 18:55, 8 March 2006 (UTC)
- I think the point was that she's a specialist in toxic metal exposure. It would be more akin to doctor dying from the disease he developed a vaccine for or a workplace safety inspector being killed by an on-the-job accident. Acegikmo1 00:23, 9 March 2006 (UTC)
-
- Honestly, I do see your point, but there is a subtle, yet critical distinction between the examples you you give and mine and the article subject.
If you look at Webster's definition 3:
- "incongruity between the actual result of a sequence of events and the normal or expected result"
With your examples, you would not expect a doctor to die from a disease he has created a cure or vaccine for, nor would you expect a safety inspector to die in an on the job accident. In mine, the high risk nature of the jobs cited tend to beg the question of not if, but when. I know that many untold thousands of police officers and firefighters come home after their shift every single day, but the very real possibility of tragedy looms over them every time they go in to work. I just think that in the case of the article, this kinda fell into a high risk, the-possibility-was-always-there kinda thing.
I'm not (consciously) trying to be bull headed...I just think that subtle distinction I mentioned is very important. Of course a hundred years from now, nobody's going to really care what I thought... :-) --Alcalde 14:16, 9 May 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Lethal vs. Toxic
The Wikipedia entry mentions that Wetterhahn had 80 times the lethal level of mercury in her blood; however, the linked article from Dartmouth Alumni Magazine states that she had 80 times the toxic threshold, not 80 times a lethal level. In fact, a dose four times that amount is specifically mentioned to be "not necessarily lethal." I'm changing the Wikipedia entry to match the article.
[edit] Dartmouth has established an award in her name to encourage other women in science.
Dartmouth has established an award in her name to encourage other women in science. Really? Shouldn't this be an indication that women better stay away from science? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.39.125.229 (talk • contribs) 07:45, 7 September 2006
- I'm not sure about the rationale behind it, only that it happened. 68.39.174.238 06:02, 8 February 2007 (UTC)
- It's because she was a student while she died, not because of the reason for her death. 137.22.3.177 20:49, 18 May 2007 (UTC)
Who says it's to encourage women specifically? The linked page about the award does not say that the award is only for women, or that it has this particular purpose. Gthb 03:41, 4 June 2007 (UTC)
[edit] Errors
A couple of notes. First, the blood mercury content was 20 not 80 times the threshold, 200 mkg/L being the limit. Second, the discovery of dimethylmercury toxicity is in no way due to this accident. Earlier fatalities have been reported, which fact was well known at Dartmouth. In addition, organic mercury compounds were resposible for multiple deaths in Minamata, so the outcome could hardly have been a surprise. I'll make the changes. Gauche 16:58, 19 September 2006 (UTC)
[edit] Reference in Spooks
Her death was referred to in the BBC television drama, Spooks, to illustrate the toxicity of dimethylmercury. Is this worth adding? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 138.251.227.89 (talk) 13:16, 9 February 2008 (UTC)
