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From: mike@ivory.SanDiego.NCR.COM (Michael Lodman)
Newsgroups: rec.audio,sci.physics,sci.electronics
Subject: Re: Mercury Filled Speaker Wire
Message-ID: <191@ivory.SanDiego.NCR.COM>
Date: Tue, 15-Sep-87 13:51:08 EDT
Article-I.D.: ivory.191
Posted: Tue Sep 15 13:51:08 1987
Date-Received: Thu, 17-Sep-87 06:05:54 EDT
References: <3816@watdcsu.waterloo.edu> <578@uthub.toronto.edu> <8576@utzoo.UUCP>
Reply-To: mike@ivory.UUCP (Michael Lodman)
Organization: NCR Corporation - Advanced Development
Lines: 34
Xref: mnetor rec.audio:3254 sci.physics:2174 sci.electronics:1305

In article <8576@utzoo.UUCP> henry@utzoo.UUCP (Henry Spencer) writes:
>Those of us who understand the properties of mercury are looking upon it
>with horror, mostly.  I hope the room where you've got those things is
>well-ventilated and that humans (and other living things) don't spend long
>periods of time in it.  I also hope you've got some sort of catcher tray
>under the cables, so that if they leak (say from mercury corrosion of the
>end seals), the mercury won't end up on the floor.  Once mercury gets into
>a wood floor, it can be damn near impossible to get it out well enough to
>make the room safe again.
 
As an example of a horror story, some people I know had a small bottle
of mercury in their home , for one reason or another. A small fire broke out
and the mercury bottle was close enough that part of it vaporized.
Following the fire, the house was condemned as being unfit for human
habitation, even though the damage was easily repaired, just because
the bottle of mercury was found by the fire department. The house was 
completely demolished. I'm not sure what the insurance company thought
about it.

Also, a book I read once had someone place a single drop of mercury in
the shoe of someone that they wanted to get rid of. In three months
the person was dead, and the crime was not solved.

My advice to you is to not use the mercury filled cables no matter
how good the sound quality is and not to permit them to remain in
your home. 

-- 
Michael Lodman  (619) 485-3335
Advanced Development NCR Corporation E&M San Diego
mike.lodman@ivory.SanDiego.NCR.COM 
{sdcsvax,cbatt,dcdwest,nosc.ARPA,ihnp4}!ncr-sd!ivory!lodman

When you die, if you've been very, very good, you'll go to ... Montana.