> fundamental best practice to always wash your hands thoroughly with soap if you handle leaded solder

But people don't, particularly students, and sometimes they also let their irons run too hot at which point fumes become an issue. Also, there is an easy alternative, so why not.

If the choice is lead superconductor or not, nobody is going to pause on a use case because there is lead. If they do, and if this is real, please let me know--I'd love to have them as competition.

> might want to read more in the links I shared about the harmful effects of lead before "whatabouting" to other problems of electronics recycling/waste

The point is, whether a RTP superconductor does or doesn't contain lead is irrelevant to its adoption. The advantages are too large. What current directives say are, similarly, irrelevant.

Oh, sure. You could have just said that then. You instead originally said something about "no one licks the insides of the computers", which isn't the reason lead in electronics/PCBs/etc. is restricted, and what I was pointing out.

Was being cheeky in response to OP claiming "the use of lead would restrict the use cases fairly heavily."

Usually people who are making the argument you were making with the words you were using are signalling that lead is "lump of rock from center of nuclear reactor" dangerous. Honest to god, a lot of people believe this