Once embraced as the “miracle mineral” for its tough, flexible, fireproof qualities, asbestos is now seen as a killer. It is blamed for the deaths of thousands from lung diseases like the aggressive, cruel chest cancer mesothelioma, and is currently banned in 54 countries. Yet asbestos is still with us. Exposure from legacy asbestos products like insulation is the leading cause of work related deaths worldwide, and until now there has been no way of detecting the lethal presence of asbestos fibres in the air. That is changing thanks to a European research project to develop an asbestos detection device. …