Warning Sign

[FRAMEP@ORAU.GOV]

Salutations.

The paper Ron and Ted referred to is "A Brief History of a 20th
Century Danger Sign" Heath Physics Vol 36 (May) pp. 565-571. by
Stephens and Barrett. Absolutely essential reading. Stephens doesn't
mention his role in developing the design but instead seems to give
Nelsen Garden the key role. Ron, care to comment? (ps you owe me an
octagonal sign).

Let me add a few things not mentioned in the paper for which we have
reasonably good evidence. 

Other signs/ symbols were used before the 3 bladed one came along. At
ORNL, at least, it seems that a symbol that looked like an electrical
hazard warning was used: a small red dot with a bunch (4) of jagged
lightening bolts radiating out. I have one made by Stonehouse Signs
Inc. of Denver. I can't date it with certainty prior to 47 but it
certainly was in use by 47. I also have a shipping label of unknown
date that uses lightening bolts coming out of a cloud. Not that there
is a direct connection but the older versions of the  Revigator
radioactive water jars used lightening bolts and radiation therapy
was often likened at the turn of the century to electrotherapy.

A reasonable case can be made that the magenta on yellow color
combination originated (at least independently) at ORNL. The Stephens
paper comments on the problem that existed with the colors used by
the Berkeley folk, magenta on blue. 

At ORNL, the problem with their use of red on white (these colors
should be for fire hazards), spurred them in late 47 to adopt a new
warning sign. They had just obtained a bunch of the magenta on blue
signs developed at Berkeley. By they, I mean K.Z. Morgan's group
specifically Bill Ray and George Warlick. They cut out the magenta
three bladed symbols and stapled them on 8 or 10 cards of different
background colors. In February or March 1948, they had a committee
select the best color combination. This was done outdoors at various
distances. The winning combination was the magenta on yellow. Warlick
kept the original magenta symbol stapled on a yellow card and it is
now in the collection here. At least, thats how the colors came about
in Oak Ridge. How the combination originated at/spread to, other
facilities is unclear.

The man mentioned by Ron who is sometimes touted by ORNL, Myron
Hawkins, does say it was based on Nelson Gardens symbol. Hawkins was
a design engineer and might have been involved in producing the
stapled "prototypes" or the subsequent production run warning signs
which, after all, include more than just the three-bladed symbol.

The Stephens paper doesn't speculate on what inspired, conciously or
unconciously) the Berkeley folk to design the three bladed symbol.
Marshall Brucer claimed that the three bladed symbol was first used
at a naval base dry dock to warn of spinning propellors.  To me it
sure looks like a circular source with alpha, beta and gamma rays
coming out. It also has some similarities to the Japanese battle flag
(with the rays streaming out from the rising sun), after all, this
symbol came along within a couple of years of WWII. 


Paul Frame
Oak Ridge Associated Universities