1. The methylmercury risk assessment that we will analyze in detail this semester reaches the conclusion that we should limit our intake of methylmercury to 0.1 mg/kg per day.

1a. Interpret this.


Answer: (i) "g" means gram. (ii) m = 0.000001 = mu (in Felsot's terminology). (iii) the symbol "/kg" means "per kilogram of body weight". (iv) Thus 0.1 mg/kg per day = .0000001 gram of methylmercury per kilogram of body weight per day.

1b. Assuming that canned tuna contains .17 ppm mercury, how much canned tuna can an adult human (70 kilograms) eat in a day, without exceeding this limit? A can of tuna is about 160 grams. (Full credit for setting up question correctly.)