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Don’t wear loose-fitting clothing.Loose-fitting clothing and items like

scarves or ties can get caught on tools or other items. This could cause

you to get a burn, have a fall, or knock a sharp object off your work-

bench. Wear comfortable clothing — just not clothing that flaps around.

In fact, humor us and tuck in that shirttail right now, okay?

Wear the right fabric.Fabrics made of cotton don’t hold static charges

as easily as man-made fibers do. Static discharge can zap electronic

components into oblivion. Leave the polyester leisure suit in your

closet, and opt for the cotton jeans and shirt instead.

Arming yourself for safety

You should put on certain safety devices — such as ear protection, safety

glasses, and leather work gloves — depending on the kind of work you’re doing.

Ear protection makes sense if you’re working with loud noises, such as when

running a very loud power tool. With small electronics projects, like the ones

in this book, you probably won’t use a very loud piece of equipment. But if

you graduate to working on life-size robots, consider your hearing when work-

ing with power tools. You can purchase ear muffs, like the ones shown in

Figure 2-3, to protect yourself.

As Mom used to say, when they were handing out eyes, you get only two, so

take care of them. Safety glasses, like those shown in Figure 2-4, are practically

a religion with us. In fact, we’d almost go so far as to say when you enter your

Figure 2-3:
Safety ear
muffs to
protect your
hearing.

Chapter 2: Safety First 27