But before we go to knees, let's stay with booze and boozy environments for a moment. Because Rae Fry has come across research in San Francisco which has been using barworkers a bit like latter-day canaries down a coal mine. You know that your clothes are going to reek in the morning, and you throat's probably going to be a little raspy. Well that's an issue that's generated lots of controversy over the past few years. The tobacco companies say there's no real proof that passive smoking has any ill effects.
Some researchers strongly disagree.
But they feel that a bit more solid evidence wouldn't do any harm. Hence the canaries. Well, because it's affecting my health, and it's unpleasant having smoke drifting up under my nose all the time. It's a raw deal for them, but it makes them really good candidates for looking at what health problems that smoke might be causing. And last year, California brought in a new law that made smoking in bars illegal.