Skeptics Stack Exchange
Skeptics Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [chemistry]

The science of matter and the changes it can undergo.

151 questions
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Is indoor air pollution higher than outdoor air pollution?

I keep seeing these claims, for example The indoor air quality is worse than the outdoor air, even in the most industrialised cities. but I'd believe that air pollution levels are highly variable based on what type of building you're in Is indoor…
InquilineKea
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Can one use microfiber cloths and products to "clean without chemicals"?

There's a company called Norwex, started in Norway and now in other countries including Canada and the US, which claim its products "Clean without Chemicals": Our line of cleaning products will save you time & money, improve health, and move…
Mike Christianson
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Is chlorine in water absorbed quickly through the skin?

I recently saw a demonstration of a water filtration and purification system. In one of the demos two glasses were filled with tap water and then someone put three fingers into one of the glasses and made a scissor kick motion for about a minute or…
Adam Wuerl
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Did silver mostly not tarnish before the Industrial Revolution?

Theodore Gray wrote an article about silver bullets in Popular Science and mentions in it that silver mostly did not tarnish before the Industrial Revolution. But today silver is far more common, and it tarnishes over time, primarily because of…
dmr
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Are towers being built in China that can turn smog into diamonds?

This article about a new project that builds towers that can turn smog into diamonds makes some pretty incredible claims. It claims that: Towers intended to turn carbon in the air into diamonds have been built in China. "The towers suck up polluted…
James G.
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Did January 2014 American snowfall char and burn when exposed to fire?

This site, ‘Fake Snow’: Videos In Multiple States Show Strange Snow That Doesn’t Melt Normal, Burns, Smells of ‘Plastic’, shows several videos and images of people burning snow they collect from outside after recent snowfall. They claim that it…
ssb
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Is there formaldehyde in the glue of bamboo cutting boards? Is it dangerous?

Many purveyors of bamboo cutting boards make a point to advertise that the cutting board is made from formaldehyde-free glues. There seems to be fairly widespread advise to avoid formaldehyde in bamboo cutting boards, such as from the following two…
SAJ14SAJ
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Is Coca-Cola effective at removing blood-stains?

From My Perfect Automobile: In many states the highway patrol carries two gallons of Coke in the trunk to remove blood from the highway after a car accident. I doubt it's real. Does Coca-Cola work this way?
4erkas
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Can you die by absorbing cyanide through the skin?

A friend of mine was talking about The Iceman, a killer that supposedly used cyanide absorbed through the skin as his murder weapon: Kuklinski favored the use of cyanide as it was quick kill poison, quicker than either strychnine or arsenic and he…
Kit Sunde
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Is fluoride toothpaste dangerous?

Is there any proof that the amount of fluoride that commonly used in toothpaste is unhealthy?
Christian
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Are minerals / chemicals absorbed through your skin during bathing?

A friend of mine, in a comment online, recently said: Your body absorbs more minerals through your skin during a five minute shower than it does by drinking 64 oz (about 1.9 liter) of water over the span of a week. That sounds like hogwash to me,…
StriplingWarrior
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Is testosterone responsible for typically "male" behaviour?

On the English Language and Usage stack exchange, two people asked what was meant by "testosterone-charged", as in the following quote, from the story "2 States: The Story of My Marriage" by Chetan Bhagat: "I’d have much preferred her place, as I…
Andrew Grimm
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Are silver dental fillings safe?

Are silver tooth fillings safe for a person's health? My dentist says they are safe for my health. My general practitioner has no opinion on the matter. Some countries have banned or restricted their use; others have not. The controversy is…
1.01pm
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Do apple seeds contain arsenic?

I've heard recently that apple seeds contain arsenic. Is this true? Should apples not be eaten then?
Ryan Miller
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Will storing plastic water containers on concrete cause contamination?

Several preppers make the claim that storing plastic containers with water on concrete floors is bad because chemicals from the floor can leak into the plastic and then end up in the water. Here are some examples: Prepper blog Gotta Wanna Needa…
John Doe
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