Science Isn't Just For Geeks
CRI #1

What are your favorite geek-like television shows? CSI, Good Eats, Mythbusters? Each show calls my name when it's on and due to the magic of modern technology (digital video recorders) I can watch it any time I want and zip right through the commercials. Too cool!

CSI (you name the city) is great, because I am somewhat of a crime scene investigator in my occupation. Being an IICRC Certified Senior Carpet Inspector, I do work for any number of carpet manufacturers, companies or people who have a problem with their carpet and other floor coverings. My job is to investigate the claim and point a finger at someone or something based on laws of physics or industry rules such as the Carpet and Rug Institute's (CRI) Standard for Installation of Carpet.

Alton Brown and his program Good Eats is my style too. I cook as a hobby, and Alton takes the science of cooking and puts it into easy-to-understand terms. He has pop-up-like guest appearances on his show, someone who happens to walk past his kitchen window at the appropriate time to tell us exactly why a potato starch is different from a corn starch and stuff like that.

He will take something as basic as the knives he uses, and will tell us not only how sharp the knife is but why it's sharp, how it got sharp and why it stays sharp so long compared to other knives. I love that kind of science stuff behind the cooking.

And then there are Jamie and Adam on Mythbusters. These guys have just way too much fun. Don't you wish you could get paid for breaking things, using a special cannon to shoot chickens at the windshield of an airplane or hurling "Buster" from a towering sling shot?  There seems to be no end to myths, urban legends and folklore for them to bust.

Why are we so intrigued by programs like CSI? Why do we want to know the science behind the things we eat or use to prepare it? Why do we need people like the Mythbusters to bust myths? Because science isn't just for geeks.

There's a lot of  "not for geeks" science out there in the carpet cleaning industry. Maybe the geek-y part of it started with the stain resist carpet and the chemical, time and temperature requirements set forth by the manufacturers.  It's around today in the scientific approaches the Carpet and Rug Institute is taking towards cleaning chemicals, equipment and personnel.

Because of the many years I have been in this industry (29+), I can easily support scientific testing of cleaning products that's being done today. Look for your next CLEAN TIP to find out why.