Cutlery News Journal

From the You Really Aren’t Going To Believe This Department

A recent article published in The Economist cites a knife study to suggest fewer people will die from knife wounds if the knives are duller.

Here’s the story.

Dr. Hainsworth, a forensic-engineering specialist at the University of Leicester, has concluded knife tips that are sharp will cut more than knife tips that aren’t as sharp. 

Dr. Hainsworth’s team conducted tests on a pig carcass because it evidently has some similarities to human skin.

They studied the wounds made by different blades as they were dropped on the pig.  

While there is some technical mumbo jumbo about which part of the knife does the most damage- they concluded it is the radius of the tip.

CNJ Translation- The more pointed the tip the less force it takes to penetrate the skin.

The study calls for a systematic redesign of knives so the tips won’t be so pointed, thus will be safer.

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Obviously, I am really missing something here.

Now, I know we don’t advocate sticking folks’ skin, as most of us here are knife collectors, but still dull knives defeat the point, wouldn’t you say?

And yes, a less sharp knife will not cut as well as a more sharp one will.