Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with chemicals

Caffiene snooze

divabat — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 17:58:53 -0800

Why does one cup of coffee make me sleepy? I've seen this thread, but it was more about confirming the effect rather than explaining it.

I've had an interesting history with coffee. I like the taste, and when I was a teenager I regularly had a cup of 3-in-1 coffee a day with no particular effects. In my late teens I was diagnosed with panic disorder, and I could no longer take any coffee without feeling jittery and anxious. Within the past five years I've slowly reintroduced coffee into my life, and now I can comfortably have a cup a day.

However, instead of either getting a buzz or being jittery, coffee makes me really really sleepy. As soon as I have a cup I have a deep need to take a nap, and I can be knocked out for a couple of hours. It's not particularly restful or refreshing sleep, but it's hard to fight back the urge to snooze. This is a recent development (and slightly annoying because there are times where I could use the buzz!!).

I'm usually described as "hyper" by my friends and peers, though that usually depends on the situation - in fun energetic environments I can be very vibrant and exuberant, though when I'm at home I'm usually sloth-like and lazy. I sleep about 7-8 hours a night; the sun awakes me, so I'm usually up just before 5, and for the first few hours (if I'm not having to be awake early for any particular reason) I vacillate between mucking around on my laptop and snoozing. I don't deal well with late nights - if I'm not distracted by something I usually clamour for my bed by midnight at the latest.

Guarana, ginseng, and other energy drinks & supplements of that ilk give me a headache. There is one particular Aussie brand of energy drink (can't recall the name offhand) that hasn't effected me either way; however I've only had a small tin so I don't know if it's a fluke. I have been suspected of having ADD but have never been on treatment for it or tested professionally.

What's happening with my hormones and my brain that makes me have the opposite reaction to caffiene? Is it something I need to worry about? If caffiene makes me tired, what can I do to get a buzz (assuming that I haven't already scared people off by being highly energetic!)?

Meat Processing and the Chemicals that Go into the Meat

watercarrier — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 13:00:46 -0800

In factory farming, what are the chemicals - additives, preservatives and colorings that are added to poultry? I'm looking for all the processing chemicals that are used in meat butchering and marketing, specifically poultry.

What are the chemicals that the carcasses are sprayed with after killing? What are the chemicals that are injected into the meat to plump them up?

I don't read Chinese, but I do speak Science.

i_am_a_fiesta — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 16:57:02 -0800

I'm thinking of getting a tattoo of a bunch of organic molecules that represent positive traits, feelings, etc. More along the lines of serotonin representing happiness than ethanol or caffeine representing happiness. What are your ideas for emotions/ traits and their corresponding chemicals?

Methanol will make you blind. The antidote is ethanol. Drink hard liquor if you can't get to a hospital.

you're a kitty! — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 14:08:49 -0800

Good resources for rules-of-thumb for laboratory dangers and chemical safety? I'm looking for an answer to this question posed in the comments section of a blog, which didn't really receive a satisfactory answer (the link to the NIOSH pocket guide was along the right lines, but not exactly easy to read). I'll just copy it down here:

Does anyone know of a resource (perhaps online) for practical warnings wrt the usage of chemicals? I've always been frustrated with the uselessness of MSDS (which makes sodium chloride sound like a hazardous substance) and the warning labels on the bottles aren't much more helpful. I wish there were some compendium of practical knowledge about how to deal with particular chemicals. For example, a colleague recently informed me that osmium tetraoxide is really bad for your eyes. I'd never have known that if he hadn't told me. Derek's TMS-diazomethane story is another example of useful knowledge that you wouldn't necessarily get from reading the label on the bottle.

Is there someplace where people can separate out the really really bad stuff from the "fine as long as you don't eat it" stuff and provide specific tips on safe handling?

help my kid drop acid (on plants)

headnsouth — Sat, 15 Nov 2008 10:04:16 -0800

ScienceProjectFilter: What household chemicals can my son use to simulate acid rain for a science project? We need nonorganic acids that would remain in the soil like "real" acid rain (I'm assuming lemons and vinegar won't work because they'll break down). His control will be watered with neutral water, then he'll have samples to be watered with 5.6 pH, 4.9 pH, and 3.9 pH (I might not have those numbers right but you get the idea). He'll be logging the soil pH for three weeks.

Suggestions for nonorganic alkaline substances would be good too, in case we need them to get the pH just right. But mostly we need to create acid rain. I'm happy to shop at Home Depot for what we need, but I don't want to break the bank or buy huge lots of chemicals I'll never use again.

Also, battery acid is not an option, since another kid wanted to do a battery acid-related experiment & the teacher rejected the idea.

What is a dense/heavy transparant oil or inert/safe non-water-based liquid?

-harlequin- — Fri, 18 Jul 2008 16:28:15 -0800

I need a crystal-clear transparent liquid that is as heavy (dense) or heavier than water, not dangerous, and not difficult to obtain. The heavier the better. The catch - it can't be water-based. I'm trying to suspend (or at least swirl) a non-soluble coloured powder in a liquid as part of a gift, but I can't use water as this will react with and ruin the powder over time. Oils preserve the powder nicely, but the density of the two that I've tried (baby oil, and liquid paraffin) is too low - they are too light to float the powder for very long and so it settles to the bottom fairly quickly. I can't choose a lighter or more durable powder either, so I'm looking for a heavier liquid.

This list of the density of 150 liquids helps a little, but I don't recognize (by chemical name) most of the liquids, even though some I might already have around the house, so I was wondering if you have any insights.

As with water, reactive chemicals like acid will ruin the powder. (Also, acids are a too much of an irritant/danger to want to put into a gift)

I'm hoping for something I could buy at the local department store or hardware store. I don't really want to order something from a specialist or chemical supplier.

Realistically, I suspect my best bet is a heavy but transparent oil, so it probably won't even be as dense as water, but at least something denser than baby oil. Any idea what that might be?

And if you were wondering, it turns out that paraffin floats on baby oil :-)

Toxins: fear vs. research

paselkin — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 14:45:13 -0800

Help me find a research-based list of substances and /or ingredients that are or could be harmful to children in amounts normally found in households. I've noticed a willingness on the part of new parents and parents-to-be to believe all kinds of things regarding toxic household products. And with good reason - regulatory agencies don't seem to be doing such a great job keeping known toxins out of food, toys, etc. But one could drive oneself crazy completely avoiding the number of poorly-studied toxins in the environment. (BTW: I am aware of federal regulations on certain chemicals, but am more concerned about low-level exposure at levels usually found in household materials.)

So I'm looking for some sort of research-based list of toxins (including potential toxins). The list should point to the original studies that show how toxic the substance is, how it might affect humans, how it gets into your system, etc. Ideally, it would be nice to have a list that divides substances up into categories in a similar way to the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch list, with one category for substances found at acutely toxic levels in the home (bleach, pesticides, etc.), another category for toxins normally found in low levels in households but accumulated throughout one's lifetime, and maybe another for "safer alternatives." It would also be nice to have substances categorized by how clear the danger is - is it well-documented (e.g. lead), hypothesized based on similar substances, etc. The most important parts of what I'm looking for, though, are references to primary scientific studies - hopefully peer-reviewed or government pubs.

If no such list exists, I'm willing to start putting one together if there's somewhere I can get a hold of a big chunk of this info. I'd also need a pointer toward where the studies are usually published. I am an environmental scientist (loosely classified, not a toxicologist or a chemist), and have access to a very good library. Any pointers to individual references (primary studies or reviews) would be very welcome.

Something nasty in the attic

low_horrible_immoral — Mon, 10 Mar 2008 09:58:27 -0800

SilentHillFilter - what would the previous owners of our house want with a large, half-empty bottle of chloroform? Investigating our attic a few months back, my husband discovered a large (two litre), half-empty bottle of chloroform in a dusty corner. (He looked, but there weren't any dead bodies.) The bottle is fairly new and is labelled 'chloroform BP trichloromethane' and 'restricted to professional users'.

We know a doctor lived at the address before, so presumably it's his. But what would he want with an enormous bottle of chloroform? The only suggestions we have is "racy" parties. Any one got any better ideas?

Why do cigarettes have 4000 chemicals in them?

Effigy2000 — Wed, 21 Feb 2007 17:26:00 -0800

OK, so there are apparently 4000 different chemicals in a cigarette, right? But as I understand it, the only substance that makes it addictive is nicotine. So why don't cigarette companies simply not include all these various chemicals? Does their removal lessen the 'joy' smokers get from smoking a cigarette? What's their purpose? I'm a non-smoker, so I don't know why anyone would get a kick out of smoking in the first place. But it seems to me that from a list of around 4000 chemicals, a list which the anti-smoking ads tell me include chemicals like formaldehyde, arsenic and cyanide, none of them seem neccessary to the proper functioning of a product that at its simplest only needs nicotine for addiction and paper to hold it in and help burn it.

So why include them in the first place? Are they really neccessary or are they there for some more sinister purpose?

Industrial Chemical Usage: 101

a_green_man — Sat, 07 Oct 2006 13:02:42 -0800

Help me learn everything(!) about sulfuric and nitric acid: production, purity and distribution I'm charged with learning all I can about sulfuric acid and nitric acid for a startup I am being drawn into.

I need to know:
-Who produces it
-Who buys it
-Where it is produced
-What purities they use for what purposes
-Who to talk with about purchasing it from us(initially small quantities)
-Handling and distribution info
-Are there "Alternative" uses forming or on the horizon?

Textbook and/or journal recomendations would be highly useful as well. Perhaps also university departments that work closely with this subject. maybe a footrub and some grapes, too?

With these(especially sulfuric acid) being so widely used, I'm getting way too much chaff/old-info/highschool-info with my searches. The vetting process for the sources is also something I'm finding tedious, especially not being familiar with the industry. I've found a fair bit, but I need to be comprehensive and ask any of you familiar with this topic to fill in the areas I have inevitably missed. After this round of web crawling I will head over to the library and go through the ref area for the info I won't find on the web.

What do I do when a medication changes everything?

Anonymous — Wed, 26 Apr 2006 06:43:54 -0800

If you're taking medication that alters your personality, do you let people know? What kind of pitfalls or issues do you face with this kind of thing? Just started taking a medication that makes me a little hyper, and apparently very cheerful. I can't help but think that coworkers and friends are going to wonder if I started taking speed, or if I'm going crazy. Should I let them know? Or would that be weird?

I'm also finding it a little bizarre to be acting in ways that I have never acted. Although in a way I feel like this is the way life should have really been all along, I'm sure that people who go through chemically-induced personality changes have to grapple with some identity issues. Is there any good writing on this? How have you dealt with it, or have you been able to just enjoy the ride?

Do I want reagent-grade chemicals on my face?

needs more cowbell — Sun, 06 Nov 2005 18:50:17 -0800

FormularyFilter? Compounding my own salicylic acid facial peels: do I need to use pharmaceutical grade ingredients? I'm planning to make a salicylic acid facial peel (for my own use, not to sell) using ingredients I'll buy online--namely, powdered salicylic acid.

Looking at chemical supply websites (Sigma-Aldrich, Gallade, Cole-Parmer) I assumed that I should buy USP or pharmaceutical grade, since those would be the most pure and (I figure) the safest. I don't need a whole kg or even the 125 grams that companies offer, and the stuff (especially pharmaceutical grade) isn't cheap, so I checked out ebay. I emailed someone selling small amounts of salicylic acid to ask what grade it was, and she replied that it was reagent grade, "for topical use and I do not recommend ingesting it." (Why I'd want to ingest salicylic acid is beyond me, but anyway...)

Are reagent grade (or other non-pharmaceutical grade--CP grade, NF grade) chemicals safe to put on my skin, in the appropriately dilute concentrations (20-30% by weight in the case of salicylic acid peels)? I'd assumed that using pharmaceutical grade chemicals would be necessary for topical pharmaceutical use in addition to enteric use, but the ebay lady's response suggests otherwise. When I think about it, it's probably an issue of purity, and potential contaminants may be dangerous to ingest but fine topically.

Alternatively, where can I buy very small amounts of pharmaceutical-grade salicylic acid? A few grams of it would probably be inexpensive enough that I'd just spring for the higher grade whether or not it's necessary. I also welcome suggestions of where to buy larger amounts--i.e. if there are chemical companies that are particularly pleasant to buy from, name 'em!

I understand the risks involved in doing a facial peel myself, and I believe I have enough experience with chemicals to calculate and mix things correctly, so please don't lecture me about those aspects of safety.

Use of Roundup in Sweden

Danf — Tue, 27 Sep 2005 10:47:50 -0800

My boss gave me an interesting assignment. . .Do they use Roundup (herbicide) in Sweden? I am involved in decisions about the use of chemicals in my agency, and living in Oregon, it's always controversial. I am forever hearing how progressive Sweden is, and for that matter, Europe in general, in the realm of regulations and general caution about chemicals.

The reason I come here with this question is because I am betting on someone reading this having an English speaking contact in Sweden who might at least be able to steer me in a direction that might answer is question for me.

So, anyone know anyone in Sweden with a knowlege of landscaping or agricultural practices?

As usual, thank you for reading this even if you are as stumped as I am, right now.

Sticky Stinky Cat

eatcherry — Sun, 06 Feb 2005 02:47:28 -0800

CatFilter: Kitty + Nasty chemicals = Disaster. More inside. Last night my cat came inside (he is mostly an indoor cat, but he likes to sit in the garden for awhile at night) smelling of paint remover and with a thick, nasty-smelling residue on his paws (mainly on one back paw). It seems he managed to stand in a half-open and almost empty can of the stuff that was left in our garden yesterday after my dad was working with it. (I was not aware that it was left like this.)

We called the emergency vet who said that he would probably be OK, to try to get as much of the stuff off his paws as possible and to watch for any signs that he might have ingested any of it. I got him in the shower last night and got some of it off, but not all. It definitely stills smells strongly and he keeps trying to lick his paw, but he's not acting any different than usual and he's eating and drinking normally.

I'm wondering if there's any other way to get this stuff off. I'm mostly worried because he's pretty old - 14, though in good general health, except for some arthritis in same paw that he stood in the paint remover with (which he doesn't like being touched, much less washed). No need for lectures about leaving unsecured chemicals in the open - that's already been taken care of!

Can someone please explain to me the argument against genetically-engineered foods?

BuddhaInABucket — Mon, 31 Jan 2005 19:22:16 -0800

Can someone please explain to me the argument against genetically-engineered foods? If science can increase our agricultural output, why shouldn't we take advantage of it? What are the hidden consequences of growing GE crops and raising GE animals?

Constipation - am I ok?

Mayor Curley — Fri, 21 May 2004 06:03:05 -0800

Health question involving constipation. More inside to prevent offending delicate sensibilities. I haven't pooped for three days. I'm generally at least a once-a-day guy. I took my favorite fiber-based laxative last night and this morning, but I'm still waiting. How long do I have before I have to worry?

I don't want to take a chemical laxative because they usually work better than I want them to, but I don't want to wait so long that the solution is worse than the runs for a couple days. I feel pretty much fine right now but this is, as far as I can recall, the longest I've ever gone without a BM. Can I wait safely?