
So here we have a picture of the label of a hairspray bottle. Our focus this time is on the part that says "SOLVENT ABUSE CAN KILL INSTANTLY" surrounded by two lightning icons.
What caught my attention was that though this text is warning of a lethal danger, the typical skull-and-bones symbol is missing. We hypothesize two main reasons for this:
- The most immediate danger from solvent is apparently something called Sudden Sniffing Death Syndrome caused by a combination of hydrocarbons and sudden exertion or emotional distress. In particular, the putative cause of death is not due to the hair spray being venomous per se, and at least I associate the skull-and-bones not only to death in general but specifically to poison.1
- The designer of the bottle has not wanted to scare away customers with symbol that is immediately associated with poison and death. The lightning symbols (which are also often present in danger signs) pull the attention towards the text, which then a non-abusing user can read and understand that they are not directed at them.
So perhaps this is a balance between following ethical or legal guidelines to warn about the danger, but aiming to direct the message away from the everyday user?
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And pirates. ↩