[HN Gopher] Tool to identify poisonous books developed by Univer...
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       Tool to identify poisonous books developed by University of St
       Andrews
        
       Author : bookofjoe
       Score  : 25 points
       Date   : 2025-06-08 19:29 UTC (3 hours ago)
        
 (HTM) web link (www.theguardian.com)
 (TXT) w3m dump (www.theguardian.com)
        
       | ednite wrote:
       | Killer books -- literally. (Sorry, couldn't resist.)
       | 
       | I knew about toxic wallpaper, but hadn't turned the page on
       | poisonous books. (Apologies for the pun. I'll see myself out.)
       | 
       | But in all seriousness, I'm glad to see efforts like this helping
       | to identify and prevent potential harm.
        
       | jwagenet wrote:
       | I thought the final note "which can irritate modern day readers"
       | in the heading was a funny comment. Were historic readers immune
       | to the effects? Has a binder deteriorated such that the irritants
       | come off more readily? Likely neither and it's always been a
       | problem, but it's an unanswered question.
        
         | userbinator wrote:
         | Probably has always been a largely occupational hazard and
         | otherwise of little concern to the general public, even those
         | who read books regularly. Of course in this era where fear
         | sells and everything has to be harmless regardless of real
         | risk, it's become a more prominent issue.
        
       | nickdothutton wrote:
       | Great, first I had to buy a geiger counter for my old watch
       | collection, now I need to worry about my old books too.
        
       | gmuslera wrote:
       | This is from a sequel or a remake of The Name of the Rose?
        
       | jeffwass wrote:
       | Clarification of the ambiguous title :
       | 
       | The _tool_ was developed by University of St Andrews, not the
       | poisonous books.
        
       | ngcc_hk wrote:
       | I just read the first and last part and immediately alert my
       | relative studying in St. Andrew about the danger of the books
       | there ;-).
       | 
       | It is "developed by" not "in". No Harry Potter corner not
       | allowing students to visit. Actually they do. But every library
       | has green cover does.
       | 
       | At least he can go to the exhibition I guess.
        
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       (page generated 2025-06-08 23:00 UTC)