Issue #2: Your Healing Crystals Might Kill You. This Ken Has A Sunburn.
Manifest, but don't ingest.
We’ve got data visualizations for girls who believe in healing crystals, and for their partners who don’t believe in sunscreen. Ribbit.FYI has something for everyone in the family! — Chun, Assistant Lead
Last Week’s Story On…Harming Crystals
If you were planning to drink your crystal-infused water, don’t. In this story pitched by our intern Ryan (who sells crystals and other cool rocks), we learnt first-hand about the potential dangers of this hobby, and also found a cool new database. (Read the full comic here)
Visualize This: Once Sunburned, Twice Shy
We’re continuing our sunscreen evangelism, and we won’t stop until everyone’s SPF-ed properly. That includes you, Jun Jie. If you’re going out, use a sunscreen meant for your face! The correct amount to apply? 2 finger-lengths worth on your face and neck. Don’t forget your body too.
Signed,
A former washes-his-face-with-body-soap man.
Sneak Peek: Cataloging 926 Singaporean Ghost Stories
The 7th Lunar Month is upon us, and we celebrated by sorting through 926 ghost stories to determine where the most haunted place in Singapore is.
We’ll share what we found some time in the next few weeks, but in the meantime, we’ll leave you with this thought:
Notorious as Yishun might be, the most haunted place in Singapore is Pasir Ris.
Sweet dreams.
Team Thoughts: Nadia and Ryan
This week, we hear from Nadia and Ryan, who pitched and wrote the story on Healing Crystals. Nadia is our intern writer from NUS, and Ryan was previously our intern illustrator from NTU-ADM.
Nadia’s LinkedIn | Ryan’s Portfolio
Nadia writes:
When Ryan (the rock enthusiast mentioned in this comic) gave me a piece of blue kyanite, I was fascinated by its colour and texture. It’s about the size of the first segment of my index finger, and somehow both rough and smooth at the same time. It’s a pretty, blue-grey colour that glows gently when you hold it against the light. The little patches of silver on it glint when you turn it over.
Before I wrote this comic, I did not know much about the potential dangers of crystals. If I had received Ryan’s gift at any point before writing this comic, I might have started haphazardly collecting crystals without realising that crystal collecting and handling can get pretty complex, and with good reason. Although the comic focuses on people who use crystals for healing, the message to exercise caution and stay informed can apply to anyone when using crystals for any purpose. Many crystals have toxic components. Some produce dust that is dangerous if inhaled over an extended period of time. Others react with water or salt, common substances used in cleansing if the crystal is used in healing. Minecraft had me believe obsidian was unbreakable, but I learnt that it’s really quite brittle and can shatter into very sharp pieces. And last but not least, I discovered that there are even radioactive crystals.
I had a lot of fun writing this comic and learning about so many different crystals. Ryan was a huge help in sharing useful resources to refer to, and the one who proposed this idea in the first place. I hope you enjoy the read!
Ryan writes:
One of my favourite stones is Tanzanite, a pleochroic crystal that can change colours between blue, violet, and burgundy depending on the angle you look at it! It’s also very rare, and can only be found in a 7x2km stretch of land in Tanzania (hence the name). Because of its rarity, it’s also really expensive, and the ones in my collection are tiny (but I hope to be able to afford a larger one in the future!)
The most toxic stone I think I have in my collection is Realgar, an arsenic sulfide mineral with a deep red colour, it has had many uses historically as a dye, poison/pesticide and even an ingredient in wine! It’s not toxic on its own and can be handled, but I keep it in a ziplock bag in a drawer just to be safe!
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