what is toxicology? and can you tell me about it?
116411
I have never heard of toxicology, nor have I ever known or leared anything of it.  But just from the words it is derived from, and my expansive knowledge of etemology, (the study of words and their latin basis/origin), I could tell you what it is, but have I little knowledge of it.  Toxi as in toxin, or toxics: dangerous chemicals that dangerously effect our vitals, and ology, or log: the study of something.  Like when you log information on a profile.  Or logy as in Biology the study of, bio: life.  Meaning, it is the study of toxins or dangerous chemicals.  What it may be about are, well it's obvious,  the toxins we know of, and how they effect a certain variable.  One, for example, being humans. In conclusion, toxicology and what it's about, is the study of discovered and existing toxins, and how they work in biological makeup of a physical body, or possibly the ecosystem.
43470
Poison is the name people give to toxic things. Yes, I've used a bit of poison in my days, even right now I'm enjoying a bit of poison known commonly as wine. \nAs for the serious answer, I suppose Poison is a slang name for some drug, but I don't know which one. I suppose any drug can be called a poison, except marijuana, the only recreational drug with an LD50(the lethal dose for 50% of the poor (or lucky;-)rats they test it on)that is impossible to ingest(I believe one would have to smoke a few pounds in 15 min to actually die from it)\nBut I digress.... basically, it could be anything.Don't ever  consider using drugs  without knowing their effects, their dangers, their benefits...Like the campaigns used to say, Just say Know! visit http://leda.lycaeum.org
741648
It is extremely useful in doing any kind of research-based analysis.  For example, let's just say you are studying a large number of mice, collected in the field.  You want to examine their health based on their environment, and you are specifically looking at environmental toxins.  You survey the farmers at each collection point, and ask what fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, etc. they use.  You record all of the data, and do testing on the mice to determine what their toxin levels are.  Then you also wish to see what problems may be associated in the mice with a specific toxin.  But you have some mice that are way off the charts in terms of averages for a certain element or toxin.  Does this taint the result?  Did these mice somehow contact those toxins abnormally (i.e. "experimental contamination")? Should you throw those "outliers" out of the data to keep them from skewing the statistics?  What do you do with these?  Here is where a good knowledge of probabilities and of statistics will really come in handy.  \n\nAs they say, figures don't lie, but liars can figure.  One's use of proper mathematical science can render the biological science either useful or useless.
548318
Certain chemicals are potentially toxic to your brain and other body cells(e.g. Urea).If you allow them to build up and dont get them out of your blood they will slowly poison you and you will die. \n\nOther Chemicals block the actions of good chemicals that you need to stay alive (e.g. Carbon Monoxide takes the place of oxygen you suffocate to death, lactic acid inhibits muscular actvity). If you dont maintain a balance you cant function. Capisce?
1179036
Metabolism is the biochemical modification of chemical compounds in living organisms and cells. This includes the biosynthesis of complex organic molecules (anabolism) and their breakdown (catabolism). Metabolism usually consists of sequences of enzymatic steps, also called metabolic pathways. The total metabolism are all biochemical processes of an organism. The cell metabolism includes all chemical processes in a cell.
2542
Working in environmental analytics, pollution situations are a common experience. One of the most common occurrances of pollution is sullage or liquid manure in surface waters, absolutely deadly for all life forms requiring oxygen from the water, and poisonous for plants in high concentrations, too.\n\nPollution can be quite natural...
690457
It is and will continue to be a good field of study.  As government regulations continue to control industrial applications of chemicals in their use and disposal, environmental scientists will always be in demand.
1073076
Environmental science is the study of the interactions among the physical, chemical and biological components of the environment; with a focus on pollution and degradation of the environment related due to human activities; and the impact on biodiversity and sustainability from local and global development. It is inherently an interdisciplinary field that draws upon not only its core scientific areas, but also applies knowledge from other non-scientific studies such as economics, law and social sciences. Physics is used to understand the flux of material and energy interaction and construct mathematical models of environmental phenomena. Chemistry is applied to understand the molecular interactions in natural systems. Biology is fundamental to describing the effects within the plant and animal kingdoms.
765847
What's a toxin?  Have you ever seen one?  Can you name one that is in your body right now?  \n\nJust pointing out that the human body has an amazing way of healing itself, despite our interference.  The "toxin" talk is a lot of hype to try to sell you products or services.
1180043
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pesticides
25978
"Forensics" is a very broad term that just means analytical (generally used in reference to crime scene analysis).  Thus, when looking for information on a Forensic Science you shouldn't just type in "Forensics," because you'll get everything from psychology to odontology.  This site is dedicated to Forensic Chemistry, or analytical chemistry, applied to crime scene analysis.  This would generally include bomb fragment analysis and various other types of chemical residue analysis. \n\nForensic Chemistry and Toxicology generally concerns the detection and characterization of poisons or toxins exhibiting adverse physiological effects. Laboratory methods used in chemical toxicological analysis cover a wide range and may be broadly classified as follows: (1) physical tests (2) crystal tests (3) chemical spot tests (4) spectrophotometric tests (5) chromatographic tests.\n\nThis website should be a great resource: http://www.chemistry.org/portal/a/c/s/1/acsdisplay.html?DOC=vc2%5C3wk%5Cwk3_forensics.html
538462
Mercury is a heavy metal and is very harmful to the environment and the body.  It can cause nerve damage as well as damage to a fetus.  It can contaminate both soil and water.\n\nMercury is a liquid at room temp. so it can be absorbed through the skin.  The usual method of mercury poisoning is through eating contaminated foods. I've not heard of mercury gas poisoning, but, I wouldn't want to be near a chemical spill that involved mercury gas.
422568
Phytochemistry is in the strict sense of the word the study of phytochemicals. These are chemicals derived from plants. In a narrower sense the terms are often used to describe the large number of secondary metabolic compounds found in plants. Many of these are known to provide protection against insect attacks and plant diseases. They also exhibit a number of protective functions for human consumers.
793265
Gemology (gemmology outside the United States) is the science, art and profession of identifying and evaluating gemstones. It may be considered a branch of mineralogy. Some jewelers are gemologists and are qualified to identify gems.
751661
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=9577937&dopt=Citation\n\nhttp://www.newstarget.com/001061.html\n\nhttp://www.pesticideinfo.org/Detail_Chemical.jsp?Rec_Id=PC35590
1117490
It can be linked to exposure to chemicals and various toxins.
935164
Hi CrazyLady!  Your questions are excellent, but not easy to answer in a short response.  This is a very complex issue.  I would like to suggest a wonderful book with a 'nasty' name by Sherry Rogers, M.D.  Dr. Rogers is a leading expert on environmental medicine and the biochemical causes of disease.  The book is called: "Detoxify or Die".  It covers this issue in detail, yet it is easy to read and is packed with the scientific references that support the information as science and not heresy.\n\nThe book is available at Amazon.com or from the publisher (at 1-800-846-6687).  I highly recommend this book if you are serious about your health and detoxification issues.\n\nBest wishes and good luck.