Colleagues,

How Dangerous Is Too Dangerous?

That is a fascinating question when looking at the last several hundred years of science and the remarkable advancements made researching with extremely hazardous materials under primitive conditions or insufficient information on the hazards.

A recent publication raises this issue in the specific context of a synthetic organic chemistry procedure utilizing sodium azide in the presence of acid, transition metal salts, and a potentially reactive solvent.

https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.joc.2c01402#

“How Dangerous Is Too Dangerous? A Perspective on Azide Chemistry”

Daniel S. Treitler* and Simon Leung, J. Org. Chem. 2022, 87, 17, 11293–11295.

Besides a question of what research is too dangerous, we should also consider who is doing the research. UCLA created Policy 906 “Undergraduate Researcher Laboratory Safety” ( http://www.adminpolicies.ucla.edu/APP/Number/906.0 ) with this in mind:

Undergraduate students may not have the scientific background, technical knowledge, or practical experience to ensure that they can engage safely in all research activities. As a result, additional safety measures are necessary for some research activities.  Further, some activities that involve highly hazardous materials and/or conditions are prohibited.

I encourage researchers to examine their own research practices and ask the question: Is a research project using materials/conditions or being conducted by individuals that renders it too dangerous?

Best,

Craig

Craig A. Merlic