Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 (Denver Mods 7/26/84) 6/24/83; site drutx.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!ulysses!mhuxr!mhuxt!houxm!ihnp4!drutx!slb From: slb@drutx.UUCP (Sue Brezden) Newsgroups: net.suicide Subject: Re: Constructive Chemistry Message-ID: <68@drutx.UUCP> Date: Thu, 19-Dec-85 10:58:51 EST Article-I.D.: drutx.68 Posted: Thu Dec 19 10:58:51 1985 Date-Received: Fri, 20-Dec-85 06:15:42 EST Organization: AT&T Information Systems Laboratories, Denver Lines: 39 other figures showing chemists in general are high suicide risks, as are women doctors and nurses. Most female chemists kill themselves with cyanide. BOB I always heard that dentists have a problem with suicide, too. It's a pretty boring job. Plus you spend the whole day in people's mouths. I was in chemistry for a while--long enough to realize how boring it can be. Plus you have the means--available poisons. Nurses and doctors probably have the same sort of reason--access to the means. Along somewhat different lines... (After all, what is this newsgroup for if not digressions.) I had thoughts of suicide as a teenager. I always considered that fairly universal. In talking to friends at college, I found most of them agreed. However when I worked at a factory, welding car seats, I found out in a conversation that all of my fellow workers not only had never thought of suicide (or wouldn't admit it), but thought that the idea was sick. They didn't see how a fairly normal teenager could even consider it. Is there a cultural thing at work here? (i.e. middle-class intellectuals vs. blue-collar workers) Is suicide and thoughts of it (especially in adolescence) connected with later college attendence, and therefore certain professions? Is it an intellectual growth stage? (My fellow workers were not unintelligent, in fact I respected their basic common sense--but they did not share my orientation on many things. I was odd in lots of ways to them.) -- Sue Brezden ihnp4!drutx!slb ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ To search for perfection is all very well, But to look for heaven is to live here in hell. --Sting ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~