Before using any chemical in the lab, why should one first read the material safety data sheet (msds)?

This is absolutely important for our own safety and that of everyone else in the lab  because in the laboratory we work with a lot of materials that are hazardous and must be handled with care.

 The labels on  different containers in the lab provide  basic warning regarding the contents in the specific container  but for  more comprehensive information, we need to look at the Material Safety Data Sheet.

The MSDS has information that covers everything from the nature of a substance whether it is hazardous or not, to personal protective equipment and also special emergency procedures in case of any exposure to the chemical.

Therefore to work as safely as possible, we need to read the MSDS of a substance before working with it.

americans began to notice growing differences between the northern and southern sections of the country. there were more people living in cities in the north, which made it more urban. more people lived on farms in the south, which made it more rural. while many people were farmers in the northern states, there were now other ways to make a living, such as working in mechanical cotton gins factories manufacturing cloth, tools and other goods. people in the north supported high tariffs on goods imported from europe because the extra cost encouraged people to “buy american” instead. in the southern states, planters did not like tariffs because they sold most of their production to europe and bought their tools from there as well. southerners believed the protective tariff was something that only northern factory owners keep their profits high. so the southern politicians came up with an idea. they would opt out. they would simply ignore the protective tariff. it was ‘null and void’ in south carolina. the state would not collect the taxes on goods imported into south carolina, no matter what the president said they had to do. this decision led to the nullification crisis.