Midterms aren’t the only things making Organic Chemistry students sick this semester—one premed sophomore was recently diagnosed with a case of conjunctivitis that he blames on goggles he wore during lab.
“That was a damper big time,” complains the pink-eyed Daniel E. Farrell ’10. “I couldn’t go near my girlfriend on Valentine’s Day.”
All chemistry labs require students to wear goggles, a safety regulation mandated by the American Chemical Society—but Farrell isn’t so sure that students make use of the alcohol-based lens wipes that are meant to protect undergrads from their protective goggles.
In response to the one-man epidemic, Science Safety Officer Allen D. Aloise, Ph.D looked into many alternative disinfection techniques, but found that they weren’t practical for labs that use over 100 goggles at a time and require a fast turnover.
“I think my case has started a revolution,” Farrell says. However, with no similar cases and no administrative response, the revolution seems somewhat stagnant.
Still, sucks about the pink-eye. Sweet burn!
