I found this gem buried in an obscure document I saved:
Alas for poor dear hubby,
His face has paraplegia.
For what he thought was Aqua Velva,
Was really aqua regia.
(Aqua regia is a mixture of nitric and hydrochloric
acids and much more potent than either acid alone.)
Dave
Ok Dave…
Ya got me going…this one’s from High School Chem class……
My uncle was a Chemist,
But now he is no more…
For what he thought was H2O
Was H2SO4…
Sulphuric acid…which is nasty in its own right…
Gary W. Bourbonais
Thanks, Dave. That’s by far the best laugh I’ve had so far in 2003!
Aqua Regia (royal water) is very dangerous stuff but can be
(carefully!) used to purify gold and to identify high-karat gold.
Rick Martin