Compounds Good, Elements Bad

It recently occurred to me that vodka and Red Bull (or Blue Charge/Red Rooster for the less discerning, more coin-conscious consumer) are rather like sodium and chloride. They are poisonous and lethal if ingested on their own (or at least, not very nice), but mixed together they are not deadly but instead make things altogether more palatable.

Science is good, and can be used to justify most things if twisted properly. Had I realised at school that it would strengthen my powers of rational argument, I would surely have paid more attention to the bits of science lessons where you DIDN'T get to set fire to things.