ZEITGEIST POISON
Make no mistake. Hundreds of people and animals were killed to bring you this story. Poisons are all around us, as are people with motives to use them for their hostile and cruel intentions.
At the molecular level, poisons are chemicals typically with very specific functions. In my professional life as a chemist I've handled many, including well-known substances like cyanide, carbon monoxide and mercury; war gases such as chlorine and arsenicals; and toxic alkaloids such as strychnine and nicotine. Many of these chemicals are reactive, which makes them useful tools in producing new molecules. Others have special properties that help in isolating other desirable molecules. Working with these chemicals takes preparation, good laboratory engineering, imaginative risk management (nerve!), and genuine humility and respect for the dangers in front of you.
Because when you entwine that chemistry above a certain dose with the chemistry of an unsuspecting victim, things start to go wrong very quickly.
Whether a poison is ingested, inhaled, absorbed or injected, the end result is often the same. Death. Untimely, undignified, often painful and frequently gory. But what makes a poison a poison? Where do poisons come from, and how are they useful (other than for poisoning)?
What is a poison?
On a biochemical level, a poison is a disrupter. The poison may disrupt the packaging of your cells, causing them to leak and lose function, or it may disrupt the information flow
