In recent years, some libraries have prohibited the reading and manipulation of certain ancient books. And it is not because of the words they contain but because of the composition of the covers of the latter. Indeed, often green in color, the protections of these works contain arsenic.
We now understand why certain libraries have prohibited the manipulation of these. And this, even if the consequences for health were not very serious. Finally, only, if the manipulation of poisoned books was not regular and frequent.
Among the symptoms, we can note an irritation of the eyes, the nose and the throat. And it's quite trivial. However, old books, like many ancient vestiges of time, tend to see their cover flake. In other words, there are risks for fragments to detach from the coverage and to be inhaled which can therefore lead to side effects much more serious for health.
In fact, if you have such works or suspect of having them, take precautions and take advice from a specialist who will tell you whether or not your books can poison you.
A device that detects arsenic in books
We certainly did not suspect that books could present such a danger to health. However, these ancient works are treasures sometimes opening a door to the past or presenting the originals of certain works.
So, so that they could continue to be studied, it was necessary to take precautions. Thus, as a precautionary measure, tens of thousands of pounds have been put to isolation so that they are analyzed by a special device.
Developed by two researchers from School of Physics and Astronomy From St Andrews University to Scotland, the detector is a portable device capable of detecting the presence of arsenic in the cover of a book in a fraction of seconds.
“” “When the books are used, we first check if there are other available copies that are not connected in emerald green. If this is not the case, the book is handled with special precautions, such as the use of nitrile gloves“Explained researchers at Guardian.
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