Janitor's mistake costs university $1 million in research

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute is suing Daigle Cleaning Systems for negligence and breach of contract after a janitor allegedly cut power to a super-cold freezer, destroying decades' worth of research materials valued at nearly $1 million. The university is seeking at least $1 million, which they estimate is the cost of reproducing the research on photosynthesis that had "the potential to be groundbreaking" for solar technology. The janitor allegedly misread the panel and did the opposite of what he intended, causing the freezer to rise to minus-25.6 degrees, far above the limit necessary to preserve the specimens.