Mailroom Meltdown at Library of Congress
At the Library of Congress, the fight against terrorism has left a bit of a mess. The process of zapping the mail is so intense–postal officials originally used an irradiation level 25 times greater than that used to kill bacteria on beef–that letters routinely arrive yellowed, crinkled and sometimes burned beyond recognition. Even though the thermostat has since been turned down to a mere 10 times the normal zap, the mail is being cooked at temperatures as great as 170 degrees, and damage is noticeable. Full Story