If you pull a 1920's fire extinguisher out of the ocean, for pete's sake don't drink it!

Raymond Chen

Oceanographer Curtis Ebbesmeyer is a fascinating source of information. He appeared again on my local public radio station to discuss issues related to garbage floating in the ocean. For example, at the 5:05 mark, he reminds us that, if you pull a 1920’s fire extinguisher out of the ocean, you shouldn’t drink it.

Other fascinating facts:

• Ten-pound bowling balls float.
• Sneakers float upside-down, and the tongue acts as a rudder, resulting in left-footed sneakers and right-footed sneakers washing up on different shores. (Beachcombers from different-footed shores occasionally meet up to try to assemble a pair.)
• There are 1939 different species of plastic ducks.

Raymond Chen

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