A while back, I asked myself, where did Dr. Noll get his supplies of chemicals and equipment? Then I said, “let’s wait and see if he was bankrolled or supplied by Big Oil or Angelglorious.”
No such luck.
These days, you can’t buy nasty compounds without an account from a licensed research organization like a corporation or university with a research department. And even then, you will get a visit from the FBI or Homeland Security if your order includes materials for making explosives or illicit drugs. Chemical suppliers are required to notify the Feds of ANY suspicious purchases.
And then there is the expense. Dr. Noll would have had to win a lottery big time just to outfit a modest lab. Things have changed a lot from Gould’s day. Back then, high school kids could order moderately interesting chemicals even from pharmacies for their science fair projects. And for not too much money.
I ought to know. Back in the 60s, I had such a home lab. And I am a retired flavor and fragrance chemist. I support the limits to what chemicals are made available to the public at large.
Part of this strip’s problem is the updating of what features and concepts can qualify for suspension of disbelief. If it’s updated too much, it’s not Dick Tracy. If it is not updated at all, it comes across as absurd. Not an easy job for the author.
A while back, I asked myself, where did Dr. Noll get his supplies of chemicals and equipment? Then I said, “let’s wait and see if he was bankrolled or supplied by Big Oil or Angelglorious.”
No such luck.
These days, you can’t buy nasty compounds without an account from a licensed research organization like a corporation or university with a research department. And even then, you will get a visit from the FBI or Homeland Security if your order includes materials for making explosives or illicit drugs. Chemical suppliers are required to notify the Feds of ANY suspicious purchases.
And then there is the expense. Dr. Noll would have had to win a lottery big time just to outfit a modest lab. Things have changed a lot from Gould’s day. Back then, high school kids could order moderately interesting chemicals even from pharmacies for their science fair projects. And for not too much money.
I ought to know. Back in the 60s, I had such a home lab. And I am a retired flavor and fragrance chemist. I support the limits to what chemicals are made available to the public at large.
Part of this strip’s problem is the updating of what features and concepts can qualify for suspension of disbelief. If it’s updated too much, it’s not Dick Tracy. If it is not updated at all, it comes across as absurd. Not an easy job for the author.