From: McGrath Edward J <Edward.McGrath**At_Symbol_Here**REDCLAY.K12.DE.US>
Subject: Re: [DCHAS-L] Color-blindness as a lab safety concern
Date: Mon, 13 Feb 2017 16:03:40 +0000
Reply-To: ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**PRINCETON.EDU>
Message-ID: BLUPR03MB43715B5F80B0C6396B0FD2996590**At_Symbol_Here**BLUPR03MB437.namprd03.prod.outlook.com
In-Reply-To <15a2db143a2-5ad-88a**At_Symbol_Here**webprd-a18.mail.aol.com>


Hi Everybody:

 

This is an interesting discussion indeed.  Thanks to the Individual with Disabilities Education Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, in the education realm, there must be accommodations made for a diagnosis of color-blindness or other disabilities if they interfere with the education process.  Consider that students affected by this in chemistry are also, by definition, novices in chemistry.  There are many work-arounds we have developed.

 

I teach introductory microbiology in a community college setting, and color blindness is an issue with Gram staining.  Every situation is unique, but I always say that the science class (chemistry, microbiology, whatever) is where you get a true handle on the nature of the disability, how (or if) it will affect success, and what kind of "work-arounds" you'll need.  The most valuable source of information about how to handle situations like this is to ask the person, "how have you solved similar problems?" 

 

Eddie McGrath

 

Edward J. McGrath

Supervisor of Science

Red Clay Consolidated School District

1502 Spruce Avenue

Wilmington, DE  19805

 

(302) 552-3768

 

We did not inherit the Earth from our parents.  We borrowed it from our children.

 

From: ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety [mailto:DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**PRINCETON.EDU] On Behalf Of Monona Rossol
Sent: Saturday, February 11, 2017 10:01 AM
To: DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**PRINCETON.EDU
Subject: Re: [DCHAS-L] Color-blindness as a lab safety concern

 

It is also a job-requirement for people working in theatrical lighting, set design, costume, make up, etc.  Since there are no such requirements in art, it may explain the work I am seeing lately.

 

Monona Rossol, M.S., M.F.A., Industrial Hygienist

President:  Arts, Crafts & Theater Safety, Inc.

Safety Officer: Local USA829, IATSE

181 Thompson St., #23

New York, NY 10012     212-777-0062

actsnyc**At_Symbol_Here**cs.com   www.artscraftstheatersafety.org


 

 

-----Original Message-----
From: Samuella B. Sigmann <sigmannsb**At_Symbol_Here**APPSTATE.EDU>
To: DCHAS-L <DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**PRINCETON.EDU>
Sent: Sat, Feb 11, 2017 7:02 am
Subject: Re: [DCHAS-L] Color-blindness as a lab safety concern

A Chinese student in our graduate program in the 80s told me that students either could not take, or could not major (slept too many times since then) in chemistry in China.  Not sure if it is true now, but I did find this at:

http://mbbs.cucas.edu.cn/HomePage/Univ_14.shtml#

Application Requirements and Materials

Entry Requirements:

1. High school graduate or above, qualified for university entrance, medically sound foreigners(applicants with color weakness and color blindness are not eligible to apply).
2. Emigrants from mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan applying as international students must have obtained their current foreign citizenship before April 30, 2011. In addition, the applicant must have lived abroad for at least 2 years during the period between April 30, 2011 and April 30, 2015.


What about anosmia? I have had to work on how to accommodate this one with stockroom personnel for safety issues as well.  It is not a recognized disability, but it is pretty scary to think about. I found out about this worker's loss of smell when a beaker of starch was left heating unattended on a hotplate.  The worker was in the office next door with no clue anything was burning. 

Any loss of our senses (Hah!) adds to the risk for lab workers. 
S-

On 2/10/2017 8:01 PM, J & K Smith wrot

Another anecdote:
 
When I was in undergraduate chemistry about 1950, my professor was finishing his thesis in reactions of permanganate.  He was colorblind also and had to have his wife read the color changes during the reactions.  That was before the automated graphing spectrophotometers and all had to be done by hand.  He would be in the lab for hours.
 
Kenneth Smith
Former CIH
 
-----Original Message-----
From: ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety [mailto:DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**PRINCETON.EDU] On Behalf Of Debbie M. Decker
Sent: Thursday, February 09, 2017 9:13 AM
To: DCHAS-L**At_Symbol_Here**PRINCETON.EDU
Subject: Re: [DCHAS-L] Color-blindness as a lab safety concern
 
An anecdote:
 
When I worked in aerospace, a colleague described a situation in which he and a group of fellow electrical engineers and electricians were working on wiring up a control panel for a nuclear power plant.  They got it all hooked up and tested the system and it didn't work.  Checked connections, etc. - nothing.  Repeat.  Finally decide to go to lunch and think about what might be wrong.  Over lunch, one of the group mentions that he's color blind.  You guessed it - turns out the entire crew, including my friend, were color blind and the wiring was all color-coded.  They finally found an admin person with normal color vision who helped them make sure the proper wire got connected where it was supposed to be connected.
 
My spouse is color-blind - it makes for some amusing family stories.
 
 
Debbie M. Decker, CCHO, ACS Fellow
Past Chair, Division of Chemical Health and Safety University of California, Davis
(530)754-7964
(530)304-6728
dmdecker**At_Symbol_Here**ucdavis.edu
 
Birkett's hypothesis: "Any chemical reaction that proceeds smoothly under normal conditions, can proceed violently in the presence of an idiot."
 
-----Original Message-----
On Behalf Of pzavon**At_Symbol_Here**ROCHESTER.RR.COM
 
Oh, my!  Yes, color blindness is a safety issue in the lab and lots of other place.  
 
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For more information about the list, contact the Divisional secretary at secretary**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org
 
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This e-mail is from DCHAS-L, the e-mail list of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety.
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--

******************************************************************************

We, the willing, led by the unknowing, are doing the impossible for the ungrateful. We have done so much, for so long, with so little, we are now qualified to do everything with nothing. Teresa Arnold paraphrased from Konstantin Josef Jirecek (1854 - 1918)

 

Samuella B. Sigmann, MS, NRCC-CHO

Senior Lecturer/Safety Committee Chair/Director of Stockroom

A. R. Smith Department of Chemistry

Appalachian State University

525 Rivers Street

Boone, NC 28608

Phone: 828 262 2755

Fax: 828 262 6558

 

--- This e-mail is from DCHAS-L, the e-mail list of the ACS Division of Chemical Health and Safety. For more information about the list, contact the Divisional secretary at secretary**At_Symbol_Here**dchas.org

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