In 1962, a college student answers an ad: “Mortuary Assistant required”
>"The black lungs of heavy smokers I would weigh once, then squeeze under cold running water for fifteen minutes until they became baby pink and tripelike, and then weigh again: the difference in the two figures, often a couple of pounds or more, was the weight of the tar and nicotine that quite possibly was the killer."<p>A few <i>pounds</i>? If you'd asked me, I would have guessed the weight of lung-accumulated smoking gunk would be an order of magnitude smaller.<p>(Also, not a bad hack for measuring some of the effects of smoking.)<p>>It wasn't only smoking that lacquered up one's innards with tar. Living in the London of the day was none too healthy, either.<p>Hmmm. Wonder how long I should continue to live in LA?