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I have what is known as a "lead pig" that my father bought for me off of eBay. (The sort of thing he buys for me.) Two of them, actually. They weigh maybe 30 lbs total.

Aside from not quite knowing what this much solid lead, I was wondering if there are any safety precautions I should take. I don't handle the lead for obvious reasons, but I've sometimes wondered if it was once used to handle toxic or radioactive substances. I've assumed that if I keep them out of reach and don't handle them then there isn't any real hazard (after all, the point of them is that they contain hazards), but I thought I would run it by you since you were here! One of them I painted (to avoid atmospheric lead) and used as a door-stop for awhile. A problem?

What keeps you up at night? What do we not worry enough about that we should be worrying about? What do we worry too much about but isn't as big a threat as people think?

Matt Bunn — Nuclear 101: How Nuclear Bombs Work