The writer of a letter to The Times addressed mercury in panic mode.

I’m 79 and my sister is 88. In our youth, when thermometers held mercury, we often broke one (by accident). We played with the mercury rolling it around on our hands and on the floor and here we are now, human antiques.

If I am not mistaken, mercury became scarce during World War II; thus temperature gauges using other substances came into being, and this was good. After WWII, manufacturing plants began using mercury vapor lights which were brighter and lasted longer.

There is absolutely no mercury discharged from any crematorium. The amount of mercury in these modern bulbs is miniscule. We have them all through our home and five of them over the dinning room table. Guess what? Chicken Little still finds the sky is falling.

We are told never to cut chicken or pork on a wooden cutting board and then cut beef on it, even after a thorough washing. In a laboratory experiment, both wood and plastic cutting boards were used for all kinds of meat. After thorough washing, it was discovered the wooden boards we far more sterile than the plastic. When cutting on plastic the knife slightly scars the plastic and sterilizing it is difficult. The wooden board cleans free of bacteria better and it was also concluded that germs were absorbed into the wood and the board was safer than plastic.

Take that, Chicken Little.

George C. Kaulbach
Cornelia