If thinkers like Vedder and Murray had more sway, some of the kids struggling with algebra in high school would be studying weldingor car mechanics instead, and many of the ones whiling away four years on liberal arts courses would be studying nursing or software instead.
The lawyers blame the maganese in the welding rods, or more specifically manufacturers like Lincoln Electric for failing to warn those workers of the risk of manganese poisoning.
U.S. and Iraqi officials agree that smuggling of crude oil seems to be less than was previously thought, and some of the pipeline failures that were routinely put down to acts of sabotage may have been due to corrosion or faulty welding.
"In the field of robotics or mechanical engineering, the ability to create a moving part without any welding removes a lot of the barriers to prototyping, " Martins said.