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More Ways to Blow Things Up
pitabutter writes "Since the /. crowd seems to appreciate the exciting combination of amateur chemistry and fearlessness (what is it about intelligence and the desire to blow things up?), Sam Barros' site would be worth a look. Rail guns, high voltage, electromagnetic experiements-all there and with videos to boot. Unable to confirm if Sam still has appendages intact........"
what is it about intelligence and the desire to blow things up?
Lack of it?
Malike Bamiyi wanted my assistance.
Potato Salad!
Cool work, but this guy has way too much time on his hands.
Thomas Edison used AC power to electrocute cats, dogs, a horse, and even a 3-ton elephant. He also created the first electric chair, which ran on DC power and almost set the person to be executed on fire (nowadays they are AC). As our knowledge of electricity expanded so did the uses to which this most versatile form of power has been put to.
And he was the greatest inventor of all time... why?
I grew up with the Mr Wizard generation. Making bombs from flour, hot air baloons and electricuting weiners. Which looking back could have killed me. In highschool we discovered the proportions to gun powder and made a beaker full
Okay, I wear a trench coat, I was just as alienated as the next teenager, but I find this picture a little troubling. Sam Barros lives in Michigan now, and if you saw Bowling for Columbine you know what that means - all the other children are armed too. Teenagers with guns bother me, because my Mom TOOK MY GUN AWAY - I mean, because it's dangerous.
:)
It's not how long you lived, it's HOW you lived...
I felt the same way when I was his age
Seriously; there are physiological changes that occur, alterations in brain chemistry, which, let us face facts, impair the judgement and good sense of young people. That is not to say that there are no teenagers with far better sense than the average adult; but even so, it's a stage in neurological development that does not promote sensible behavior.
It also means that explosions are not nearly as cool as they seem when you're 18. Another fact - chicks do not dig explosions. I learned this the hard way so now I pass it on to the younger generation.
I don't think explosives chemistry is a good starting place for a junior chemist; Sam Barros has obviously done fine, but I'm not sure how this stands as a role model. For one thing, he clearly does have good sense (note the many safety warnings emblazoned all over his web page.)
Chemistry involving dyes, optics, visual effects, material science and metallurgy (electroplating, for example) is no more difficult and much safer. Making stuff like this can't indulge your inner pyromanic like a bomb can. I'm not trying to criticize teenage boys for wanting to cause some damage - I certainly did - but it worries me.
So, I wonder - why does the slashdot story focus on the explosives? His EM devices are cooler anyway.
Ah, the hell with it. I'm only 23 years old! What am I thinking? It's time I put together a web page on how to weaponise biological and chemical agents. Now THAT would earn you some attention at the science fair.
Finally - when blowing up your school, wear ear protection! Regrowing fingers and toes is just around the corner (well, hopefully, I have some friends working on this); regrowing your inner ear may never be possible.
The good and new comes from no quarter where it is looked for, and is always something different from what is expected.
did he get a call from Ashcroft yet? supposedly the gov doesn't free non govermental site like this up because it provides too much informattion to terrorists..
Of course try explaining that any religous fundamentalist who is edcuated in science can do the same things seems to fall on deaf ears..
Stop Terrorism Now! BLOW UP TH FREAKING SCHOOLS!
Don't Tread on OpenSource
I've got one in my garage, it's called a tablesaw. If you let it get out of alignment (or just use it wrong) it'll chuck wood faster than a woodchuck.