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Random Risks

New Risks In Sunbathing?

For years, experts have questioned the benefits of sunscreen, claiming that it gives sunbathers a false sense of protection and encourages them to stay in the sun longer. Now, scientists have found new evidence of toxicity in most sunscreens. Tests have shown that Octyl methoxycinnamate (OMC), a substance used as a UVB filter in 90 percent of sunscreens around the world, kills animal cells. Norwegian scientists also found that OMC becomes more deadly when it is exposed to sunlight.

Source: “Sinister Side of Sunscreen.” New Scientist Magazine, October 7, 2000.

Tidal Wave Headed For The US?

Cumbre Vieja, a volcano on the island of La Palma in the Canaries archipelago, is unstable and has the potential to collapse into the Atlantic Ocean. According to Swiss researchers, such a collapse would dump over 650 trillion tons of rock into the water all at once, causing a 2,130-foot high tidal wave that would travel across the Atlantic Ocean and strike North America. By the time it hit land, the wave would be up to 160 feet and would likely cause destruction up to 12 miles inland.

Source: “Giant Wave Could Threaten US.” BBC News, October 4, 2000.

Satellites Fall To Earth-NASA Calls It Acceptable Risk

Iridium 79 and 85, two of the $7 billion orbiting family of 72 Iridium satellites, will come crashing to Earth sometime in December. The two Iridium spacecraft are non-operational. They will likely produce debris that will reach the Earth’s surface, but what are the chances of being hit in the head by an Iridium space bolt? Nothing to worry about, according to NASA’s Nicholas Johnson, who says there is a one in 10,000 chance of anyone being hurt by the debris. These odds are within NASA’s and the U.S. Government’s acceptable standard of risk.

Source: “First Of 72 Iridium Satellites Tumbles Out of the Sky” by Leonard David. Space.com, November 20, 2000.

These Cell Phones Can Really Kill

Forget about the purported damage cell phones can do to brain cells and the distractions they cause to drivers. European law enforcement officials have discovered new specially designed cell phone guns that fire four .22-caliber rounds in quick succession. Users simply aim, press the 5, 6, 7 and 8 buttons and bullets fly from the antenna. The mechanics of the gun are enclosed in a real, gutted phone, so to the casual observer it looks like a typical cell phone. Dutch police first discovered the phones in October 2000 during a drug raid in Amsterdam. Since then, other cell phone guns have turned up around Europe. None have been discovered in the US to date, but the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, and the US Customs Service have been briefed.

Source: “Deadly Decoys” by Lucrezia Cuen. ABCNews.com, December 6, 2000.

Death of the Hamburger?

According to a recent Reuters article, the average American eats nearly 100 pounds of beef and veal per year, making the US the leading carnivorous country in the world. Yet, with the recent outbreaks of Mad Cow Disease spreading throughout Europe, there is a chance that many Americans may become vegetarians. Although there has not been a single report of the disease in the States, which quickly destroys the brain with an illness known as bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), there have been recent scares that suggest America is not immune to the disease. On January 28, 2001, the Food and Drug Administration quarantined cattle in Texas on suspicion they had been fed rations containing cattle parts in violation of rules to prevent mad cow disease. Such cannibal-like feeding of cattle has been banned in the US since 1997 because it can potentially lead to Mad Cow Disease.

Source: “Americans Wake Up to Threat of Mad Cow Disease” by Greg McCune. Reuters, Chicago, January 28, 2001.

Dying from Hair Dye?

It seems like there is a new report released every week claiming that a substance or product that we use on a daily basis causes cancer. So who are the latest victims? Women who die their hair regularly, according to a new study released by the University of Southern California School of Medicine in Los Angeles. Investigators found that women who used permanent hair dye at least once a month were twice as likely as women who did not use permanent hair dye to develop bladder cancer. Those who used hair dyes for at least 15 years were more than three times as likely to develop bladder cancer as non-dye users.

Source: “Hair Dyes May Raise Bladder Cancer Risk” by Charnicia E. Hugginsriday. Reuters Health, New York, January 26, 2001.

riskVue | The webzine for risk management professionals
February 2001