Mr. Yuk means no!

Mr. Yuk is a trademarked graphic image, created by the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, and widely employed in the United States in labeling of substances that are poisonous if ingested. Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh is the only hospital is western Pennsylvania dedicated solely to the care of infants, children and young adults. ... Pittsburgh redirects here. ...

Overview

Mr. Yuk was conceived in 1971 as the mascot for the poison center at the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. The original design was created by Wendy (Courtney) Brown, a grade-school student at a school near Pittsburgh Children's Hospital. As part of a contest held by the poison center, Wendy drew the now-familiar face, along with a stick-figure body that was not included in the finished sticker design. Her design won, and Wendy was compensated for her time and talent with a prize- a tape recorder. Pittsburgh Children's Hospital now owns all exclusive rights to the Mr. Yuk design. It appears on small green stickers that can be affixed to any container of poisonous substance. The Mr. Yuk stickers are bold and obvious. Mr. Yuk does not include details of the poisonous attributes of the contents. The logo itself is intended to be enough to dissuade children from ingesting the poisons. Year 1971 (MCMLXXI) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display full calendar) of the 1971 Gregorian calendar, known as the year of cyclohexanol. ... Millie, once mascot of the City of Brampton, is now the Brampton Arts Councils representative. ... For other uses, see Poison (disambiguation). ... Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh is the only hospital is western Pennsylvania dedicated solely to the care of infants, children and young adults. ... Pittsburgh redirects here. ...

Over time, the use of Mr. Yuk stickers has gained a certain amount of nationwide usage in the United States.^{[citation needed]} Mr. Yuk stickers usually contain phone numbers of poison control offices that may give guidance if poisoning has occurred or is suspected (1-800-222-1222 in the United States). In Pittsburgh, however, the telephone number for the Poison Control Center is 681-6669. And so, a jingle has been created--"Sick (6) because I ate (8) one (1), sick (6), sick (6), sick (6), dying (9)." ^[1] For other uses, see Telephone (disambiguation). ... Poison Control Centers (PCC) provide immediate, free and expert treatment advice and assistance over the telephone in case of exposure to poisonous, hazardous or toxic substances. ...

Mr. Yuk also has a theme song (see link below). A memorably scary public service announcement was also produced in the 1970s featuring the theme song, becoming a pop-culture icon unto itself for a number of generations. A public service announcement (PSA) or community service announcement (CSA) is a non-commercial advertisement typically on radio or television, ostensibly broadcast for the public good. ... The 1970s decade refers to the years from 1970 to 1979, also called The Seventies. ...

Effectiveness

The Mr. Yuk symbol has been used as a replacement for the traditional skull-and-crossbones (a.k.a. Jolly Roger) warning label for poison. This is because some young children are thought to associate this symbol with pirates and therefore may misinterpret it as an invitation to ingest the poison.^[2] In contrast, some psychological studies have shown that many children are naturally repelled by Mr. Yuk, even if they have not learned the symbol's meaning.^{[citation needed]}

To evaluate the effectiveness of six projected symbols (skull-and-crossbones, red stop sign, and four others), tests were conducted at day care centers. Children in the program rated Mr. Yuk as the most unappealing product. By contrast, children rated the skull-and-crossbones to be the most appealing. ^[3]

However, at least two peer-reviewed medical studies (Fergusson 1982, Vernberg 1984) have suggested that Mr. Yuk stickers do not effectively keep children away from potential poisons and may even attract children.^[4] Specifically, Vernberg and colleagues note concerns for using the stickers to protect young children. Fergusson and colleagues state that “the method may be effective with older children or as an adjunct to an integrated poisoning prevention campaign.”^[5]

Mr. Yuk has taken on a cult status throughout the city of Pittsburgh among older residents, the best example being the Ultimate team at Carnegie Mellon, which affectionately goes by "Mr. Yuk" and uses a variety of discs adorned with the classic logo. EU standard toxic symbol, as defined by Directive 67/548/EEC. The traditional Jolly Roger of Piracy. ... Wingdings version of the Jolly Roger (character N). Many pirates created their own individualized versions. ... Look up pirate and piracy in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Ultimate (sometimes called ultimate Frisbee in reference to the trademarked brand name) is a non-contact competitive team game played with a 175 gram flying disc. ... Carnegie Mellon University (also known as CMU) is a private research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. ...

Use restrictions

Mr. Yuk and his graphic rendering are registered trademarks and service marks of the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, and the rendering itself is additionally protected by copyright. This means that the name and graphic image cannot be used without a license from the owner—unlike the Skull and crossbones symbol, which is in the public domain. The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) is a leading American healthcare provider and institution for medical research consistently ranking on US News and World Reports Honor Roll of the approximately 15 best hospitals in America, appearing on the annual list seven times from 1999 through 2006 [2]. Based... EU standard toxic symbol, as defined by Directive 67/548/EEC. The traditional Jolly Roger of Piracy. ... The public domain comprises the body of all creative works and other knowledge—writing, artwork, music, science, inventions, and others—in which no person or organization has any proprietary interest. ...

External links

• Mr. Yuk Information Page
• Mr. Yuk Theme Song
• Mr. Yuk Public Service Announcement
• Short discussion of Fergusson and Vernberg papers
• Carnegie Mellon Ultimate's Website
• American Association of Poison Control Centers
• Acceptable Labelling on Pesticide Containers

References