On Tue, Jun 15, 2021 at 10:20 AM Radhika, Y. <radhik...@gmail.com> wrote:
> I have a question about placing hot food on a paper towel to suck up the > grease. Firstly, a quick heads up: my knowledge of physics is poor. I still > retain an interest in science especially as it relates to daily living. In > the case of hot food being placed on a paper towel, I'm a little spooked > (unnecessarily, my husband thinks) by the thought of electron transfer > between paper (has chlorine that bleaches it and formaldehyde, a known > carcinogen) and food. I'm aware of the classic example of the bat and ball > in quantum physics where through contact they exchange electrons - well, > that's my understanding of it. Would any of you be able to advise me on > whether I have it all wrong? I was wondering too if the heat plays a role > although I have learned that fresh food is actually quite susceptible to > picking up chemical residue. Happy to learn. > It would help first to understand if your concern is in the domain of biology, chemistry or physics. For example, your concern would be in the biological spectrum if you are worried about things like some microorganism in the paper contaminating your food (and starting to proliferate on the food after the cross contamination). If your concern were chemical, it would be about the chemical reaction between some compounds in the paper reacting with some compound in the food (say, oil) and producing some byproduct you do not want. At the physics level (exchanging electrons, etc.) Why do you care if the electrons came from a bat atom or a ball atom? Electrons are supposed to be interchangeable between elements (or rather, by adding or removing electrons (and protons and neutrons) you transform an element from one to another). Here is my take.... There is a difference between chemicals used as reagents in the process of paper production versus paper products being saturated and emanating these compounds. If it was the latter, hasn't food been packaged in paper products for a long, long time? If that was causing all kinds of problems wouldn't we have heard of it already? Where do you draw the line with this contamination fear? Are you OK with flour arriving to you in paper bags? How about a loaf of bread packaged in paper bags?` Thaths -- Homer: Hey, what does this job pay? Carl: Nuthin'. Homer: D'oh! Carl: Unless you're crooked. Homer: Woo-hoo!
