This morning I heard reports of formaldehyde being found in Charleston, West Virginia water samples as a result of the recent chemical spill there. My first thought, as a chemist, was “You know, that doesn’t make any sense”. A closer look confirmed that view, and led me to even more dubious things about this news story. Read on – there’s some chemistry for a few paragraphs, and then near the end we get to the eyebrow-raising stuff. Read more.