“One of Silicon Valley’s dirty secrets is coming back to haunt Google with toxic vapors,” CBS San Francisco reports.
“TCE, or trichloroethylene vapors were detected at the company’s offices in Mountain View,” CBS SF reports. “Google’s buildings QD6, and QD7, which sit on North Whisman road sit on top of what used to be Fairchild Semiconductor, Intel, Raytheon, and other computer chip makers.”
When I was in the Marines, we used this stuff to clean teletypewriters. In a solvent tank. Up to our elbows. We were told it was perfectly safe, so shut up and get back to work. Older folks may remember it being sold as “typewriter cleaner” in little spray bottles.
I’ve since had two cancers removed, although luckily the nastiest one was pretty small, and never spread. So far it doesn’t appear as if either will make a return visit. I don’t know if one thing has anything to do with the other, but I’m sure hoping there’s no third time.