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Joined 1 year ago
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Cake day: July 18th, 2023

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  • So my team lead ordered a bottle of a particularly nasty chemical (don’t remember what, this was long ago) Thing is, he went on holiday immediately after and didn’t tell anyone about it. The bottle had to be shipped and kept at -20℃ otherwise it would decompose into a deadly gas; one of those lovely CMR types. So next thing that happens is, I get called on my day off by the boss saying that there is a scary box in the lab and if I could check it out. I was reluctant but I figure I’ll check it out. I though to myself that it was a little unusual that they would ship it in a styrofoam box without any dry ice (it had evaporated) so I take out a slightly bloated bottle which seems to be filled with some liquid. I then tear of the package label and read the MSDS. At this point I read all the scary labels and realize that this thing has been out here for a while, all the dry ice has evaporated, the bottle is bloated and filled with gas which I am sitting right next to. So I turn on ventilation and GTFO. I inform the boss who immeditally got his home freezer to cool it down. I meanwhile started to notice a stinging in my eyes (which was one of the effects) We wash out my eyes, stinging goes away, lungs are fine and everything ends without injury.

    TLDR

    Coworker orders deadly chemicals, goes on holiday, doesn’t tell anyone, almost kills me.












    • Laser holography and optics. After I took an photonics course I became obsessed. I am attempting to build a laser holography setup to capture “true” 3D reflections on a piece of film. Even getting cheap diode lasers to lase coherently at high currents is a challenge. It’s a black hole for money so I need to limit myself but it is just so fucking interesting.
    • Cameras. I am not a good photographer but I love cameras. I can ramble on and on about every single function detail and the history too. I even built a scientific camera for my job from scratch. And beyond that I even started getting into the math behind distortion correction, stereo, panorama etc.
    • 3D printing is a major rabbit hole. Especially if you’ve built your own printer.


  • Don’t you think that this “men are here to be practical” theory has some gaps? Like there are plenty of men who do the things that you describe as unnecessary

    • What if you just likes cooking or fancy meals?
    • What if your cleanliness standards are just higher?

    I’m not saying that barns should be sweeped or that everyone should cook fancy meals. But to say that people who do do that are (as you seem to be implying) overdoing it, or impractical is a bit unfair I think. I am also quite practical but still respect that others have higher standards or just “want things their way” which should be at least a little relatable to everyone.