Pam Wilson, age 13, of Stanford, Conn., for her question:

WHAT IS METHANOL? 

Methanol is another word for wood alcohol, the useful industrial chemical. The product is also called wood spirit and methyl alcohol but should not be confused with ethyl alcohol which is used in alcoholic beverages.

Methanol is widely used as a solvent and sometimes in airplane fuels and antifreezes. The race cars at this year's Indianapolis 500 also used methanol as fuel.

Methanol, or wood alcohol, is the simplest member of the alcohol class of organic compounds. It is a colorless, flammable liquid that has a distinctive odor.

Great care must be used with wood alcohol. The fluid can paralyze the optic nerve and may cause blindness or death if swallowed.