ENVISION BRIEFLY TWO hypothetical individuals. The first is a chemical engineer who works directly in the synthesis of compounds added to plastics to give them desired properties such as flexibility and hardness. By some analyses, this person has taken on voluntary risks related to the workplace; furthermore this person is protected by federal and state regulations governing chemical exposure and worker safety. 1 The second is a vegan environmentalist who works in a natural foods store and enjoys hiking in national parks. This person makes lifestyle choices to avoid exposure to synthetic chemicals and may reasonably assume that federal laws regulating the introduction of new chemicals ensure safety under normal conditions. Yet when their blood is tested, they have similar levels-measured at parts per billion-of compounds known to cause harm at much higher doses. How should they interpret this finding? Is it possible that people with such different exposure to chemicals have similar" body burdens"? 2 Because of the minute quantities of materials that all of us absorb through regular encounters with synthetics, this scenario of equivalent measures in two otherwise different people can occur. Whether drinking from plastic bottles while enjoying remote vistas, working at a chemical plant, or engaged in one of thousands of routine daily activities, we are exposed to trace amounts of industrial compounds that make their way into our bodies and environmental systems.