It's nearly that time of year. The annual occasion that brings together 16,000 laboratory scientists from industry, academia and government to discuss the latest trends in laboratory science. We're talking about Pittcon of course, the world’s largest annual premier conference and exposition on laboratory science. Pittcon never fails to deliver quality information and education that is used by the industry year-round. Let's see what some of the 2016 trends are:

DENVER — Nestled between a 7-Eleven and a store selling Broncos jerseys, the door to the generic-looking retail establishment is easy to miss. But once inside, the smell is unmistakable.

At Euflora, tables are filled with glass containers of marijuana next to interactive tablets describing each strain (“sweet floral aroma,” “intoxicatingly potent”). An array of marijuana-infused products beckon behind locked cases: from energy shots to sour gummies, brownies to bacon bites. And if you’re 21 or older, it’s all legal to buy.

SEATTLE -- Banned pesticides recently found in legal marijuana are highlighting the need for better consumer protection for weed buyers.

State law doesn't require mandatory recalls when marijuana products could pose a health hazard, but some people now say recalls are needed.

The owner of Hashtag, a Seattle marijuana store, recently pulled products from his shelf that used a banned pesticide even though he didn't have to under state law.

"Even products that were fine but we couldn't trace the linage of the ingredients we pulled to be on the safe side," said owner Logan Bowers.

Unlike Colorado, Washington state law doesn't have a mandatory recall mechanism to pull bad weed products off the shelf.

Cannabis extraction is a complex process, and could be considered dangerous without proper preparation.

Considering the most important safety precautions for any extract production facility, we should first identify the most common risks of extraction. Only by recognizing these process risks can the right steps be followed to ensure the safety of both employees and products.

HANOVER - A prominent Morris County physical therapist and entrepreneur is banking his future on the growth of the medical-cannabis testing industry. But rest assured, David Cunic has not gone from fixing joints to smoking them for a living.

"Most people say 'Oh, if you need a tester, I'll test a joint for you,' " said Cunic, a native of Denville and graduate of the Delbarton School, where he played varsity basketball with future NBA star Troy Murphy. "And I say, 'No, it's not that type of testing.' "

Cunic and his publicly-traded corporation, Pazoo Inc., are instead taking a scientific approach to testing medical cannabis in laboratories for potentially harmful impurities before the product is sold at legal dispensaries in states where medical marijuana is approved.

Social media giants Facebook and Instagram have gone into overhaul by eliminating accounts that share information or products related to cannabis usage, The Guardian reports.

The business crackdown comes after retailers and marketing companies have existed on the sites for a number of years without breaking any laws. More than likely, the aggressive campaign is another method to eliminate the war on drugs. Suppliers are have been able to take a new route (social media) to sell and distribute drugs within the past five years, taking the industry to a new level.

Legal marijuana has been having banner year after banner year since various states havelegalized the sale and consumption of the plant and its derivatives starting back in 2012 within Colorado and Washington. It should be noted that the process of marijuana’s status as a demonized drug has been slipping for much longer than the past 4 years.

Marijuana is legal to buy in several states, but no law says that selling it will be free from cumbersome expense and paperwork, especially when it comes to taxation.

Sales of the drug are permitted for recreational use in just four states — Colorado, Oregon, Washington and Alaska — and the District of Columbia; 18 other states allow sales for medicinal use. But marijuana is still illegal under federal law, and that helps explain why production and sale are tightly controlled.