Curiosity Rewarded: Florida Teen Heading to Space Camp, Not Jail

Kiera Wilmot, the Florida high school student who was expelled from her school after an unauthorized science experiment was misperceived as a weapon (at least for purposes of arrest and charging), won't be going to jail. She will, though, be going to Space Camp, thanks to a crowdfunding campaign started by author and former NASA engineer Homer Hickham. All charges against her have been dropped.

Comments

Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[Anonymous Coward]

It scares me shitless that my kindergartner could be kicked out of school for folding his hands and saying bang in this insane and litigious age.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[MetalliQaZ]

Intelligence? I think you mean curiosity. Let's be honest. If she had thought it through a little bit more, this "experiment" wouldn't have landed her in hot water. Curiosity is still a very good thing, though.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[Peter Simpson]

" If she had thought it through a little bit more, this "experiment" wouldn't have landed her in hot water."

IIRC, she cleared it with her teacher? Used a small amount of chemicals in an open area. That sounds pretty safe, cautious and intelligent to me. Nobody got hurt, but because the reaction was exothermic and dramatic, one observer felt someone *could* have gotten hurt. So, instead of reacting sensibly, they went off the deep end and called the police. The person lacking judgement and intelligence wa the school administrator, not the young lady.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[Anonymous Coward]

Let's be honest. If she had thought it through a little bit more, this "experiment" wouldn't have landed her in hot water.

I defy you to tell us honestly that you would have "thought it through a little bit more" when you were her age.

It's pretty clear by your statement that you have no idea what children are actually like, nor have any of your own.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[Baloroth]

No, the teacher did not know about the experiment. The girl mixed the chemicals on the advice of "a friend." The administration overreacted, but she probably did deserve some form of punishment. Mixing chemicals in closed containers without knowing exactly what they do (she said she thought it would just produce some smoke), and without supervision, on school property? Extremely bad idea.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[Peter Simpson]

I was wrong on clearing it with the teacher. She should have done that.
But, she gets points for "small amount" (less than 8 oz) and "open area".
And how is a reaction that pops the top off a plastic bottle in any way a "bomb" or "destructive device"? (which was how she was charged)
Bad choice of location and didn't cover her ass with the teacher, but that's all I see wrong here. We had a kid in my class at school who used to mix up far worse in the chem lab, and as far as I know, he never suffered for it.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[jellomizer]

Fear is our biggest problem right now.

Why aren't we going to the Gym to get in shape? Fear of going into a gym out of shape and being judged by others. (I will go to the Gym after I lose 20 lbs)
Why aren't we starting our own businesses but dealing with the lower reward working for a company? Fear that our ideas will get sued by patent trools or other companies. Or if the case your product did fail in some way you are responsible for a problem that is much bigger than you.
Why are Religious Fundamentalists going nuts about evolution and gay rights? They are afraid these changes will cause our culture to reject religion and have society force them to be atheist.
Why are businesses not expanding? They are afraid that new regulations will make it impossible for them to work. ...
Our culture has been poisoned with fear. But there isn't anything really about the facts to be afraid of, but because off all the fear we are paralyzed into doing the best thing for ourselves and our culture.

Politically is isn't about right vs left. It is about most of our leaders are or were Lawyers, They think in terms of a Lawyers, our leaders are not made up of peers of different skills. Except for adding a new law, perhaps we can change a process. Instead of trying a way to prosecute people who do things that are negative culturally lets try ways that will change their behaviors proactively, as well rehabilitate post incident.

For example I got into a car accident. I rear ended a car, however I did help prevent the car behind me from rear ending me, and the car in front of me got very little damage, while my car got the brunt of it. I never got in such an accident before. However the police at the scene figure they had to give me a ticket because in my state I am legally responsible. Except for the fact that I am now without my favorite car and have to pay a good insurance deductible, they felt like to rub some salt into my wound by adding a $100 ticket. The system is setup to try to discourage people from committing the crimes, they figure if you get punished for it you will learn your lesson. Except for slightly modifying the roads so these things wouldn't happen, or just realizing the person is already in enough pain. But our leaders are lawyers, every law that is broken and caught needs a punishment. So people will live in fear of breaking the laws.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[interkin3tic]

It's more complicated than that

"Unfortunately, what she did falls into our code of conduct," Leah Lauderdale, a spokeswoman for the district, tells Riptide. "It's grounds for immediate expulsion."

More specifically, Wilmot's mini-explosion -- which came after she mixed "common household chemicals" in a plastic bottle -- violates Section 7.05 of the school's conduct code, Lauderdale says, which mandates expulsion for any "student in possession of a bomb (or) explosive device... while at a school (or) a school-sponsored activity... unless the material or device is being used as part of a legitimate school-related activity or science project conducted under the supervision of an instructor."

...Wilmot's principal acknowledges that the 16-year-old wasn't trying to hurt anyone and simply made a "bad choice," the school's rules said she had to be expelled.

...The spokeswoman says the school district stands by its rules. "We urge our parents to convey to their kids that there are consequences to their actions," she says.

source They undoubtedly maintained that since a teacher wasn't present at the time, that violated the letter of the law and, obviously, "NO EXCEPTIONS TO RULES EVER" is the most important message schools can teach to kids. (sarcasm)

There's also obviously a bit of "I'm just following orders, it's not me who is doing this clearly stupid and unethical thing even though I am the actual one expelling you."

I think there are two big roots to the problem. The first is zero tolerance policies. Schools love them deep down because it makes fretful parents think their children are safer, and also probably dealing with kids all day makes you really want to clamp down hard with rules for your own sanity. And obviously in this case, the school was more interested in showing that students are not going to be blown up by science-loving terrorist children than they were in the student. Even if the schools didn't want zero tolerance, all the other idiots involved want them, legislators and parents.

The second is personal liability. No one wants to stand up and say "Fuck that rule, it's a stupid fucking rule" and then potentially lose their job. I have no idea how likely that would have been in this case. Evidently, no one even wanted to say "She DID have permission, so she's not really violating the rules." Maybe the teacher who gave her permission chickened out and said "Well, I didn't give her permission to do THAT, so please don't fire me.

TLDR: it would be nice if someone had the power to use their own judgement and intelligence here, but there are plenty of mechanisms in place to ensure that can't happen. Preventing this type of idiotic heavy-handed action will require bigger changes than one administrator growing a brain and/or balls.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[DocMAME]

Never seen a Works bomb on YouTube, huh? Take a look and see how destructive one can be... it is a heated chemical reaction that melts the bottle as it attempts to expand and contain it prior to exploding and spraying caustic toilet bowl cleaner all about...

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[Synerg1y]

Right... because kids think exactly like you do and premeditate all their actions. I won't even go as far as to say it was stupid on her part, she simply didn't know, so it was ignorant.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[ArhcAngel]

My HS physical science teacher would pull out a cylinder of pure Sodium every year and take his classes outside. There he had a 5 gallon bucket of water and a 2x4 with a string tied to it. He'd cut off a slice of the sodium and place it atop the 2x4 which sat atop the 5 gallon bucket. He'd then move everybody a safe distance and drop the sodium into the water by pulling the string. BAM! He'd probably get arrested for doing that today...if not he'd definitely get hauled in for igniting the magnesium inside the classroom.

So sad.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[serialband]

No, the teacher did not know about the experiment. The girl mixed the chemicals on the advice of "a friend." The administration overreacted, but she probably did deserve some form of punishment. Mixing chemicals in closed containers without knowing exactly what they do (she said she thought it would just produce some smoke), and without supervision, on school property? Extremely bad idea.

The only punishment she deserved was a stern talking to. She was punished plenty by the big bang that ensued and probably scared her out of her wits. Now, she gets a reward to go to space camp. That's not quite an appropriate message either.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[Slugster]

The teacher doing a possibly-hazardous demonstration with reasonable safety precautions, and a student doing it without permission are two rather different things.

IMO it wasn't that severe of an act, but what she did was make a Drano-bomb. (for some reason the kids are using toilet cleaner these days, but anyway) It's not a science experiment any more than making a Molotov cocktail would be. The stories that called it a 'science experiment' were also the ones calling for leniency on her behalf.

Like them or not, most schools do have zero-tolerance policies against weapons, and that includes bombs. And zero tolerance rules apply, even if you're a minority. And even if you're a girl.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[hedwards]

Expulsion was over the top, but there's a reason why there's a requirement that a professional be there supervising, it dramatically decreases the likelihood of there being any mistakes or injuries. Sure, it still might happen, but having a chemist there would be prudent.

That's not to say that you can't have some fun, I remember my high school chemistry teacher light soap bubbles filled with methane on fire in class. There were even scorch marks on the ceiling to prove it.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[schlick]

which mandates expulsion for any "student in possession of a bomb (or) explosive device... while at a school (or) a school-sponsored activity... unless the material or device is being used as part of a legitimate school-related activity or science project conducted under the supervision of an instructor

Technically, (and theses people seem to love technicalities), party poppers, snappers, and other harmless things are grounds for expulsion... And people think that parents who home-school their children are the crazy ones.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[tnk1]

Having actually done something like this, at approximately her age, I did think about it. Indeed, even back before there were terrorists behind every tree, I realized that even though I thought creating a chemical reaction would not be a big deal, I knew that there is no way I'd do that on school grounds. So I did my experiments out in a field, nowhere near school property.

I understand that she thought that it wouldn't explode, but did she really think that running that kind of reaction on school grounds was a good idea? Perhaps she hadn't spent enough time blowing things up as a kid to understand that you don't want to mix potentially explodey things in public.

And I am not just talking about school grounds = public space. Kids her age should be well aware that schools are a zone where even minor infractions can generate huge overreactions from administrators, more so than even if she did it on some sidewalk. Schools are about as close as we have to a rights-free location, outside of prisons and the military.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[Attila Dimedici]

"NO EXCEPTIONS TO RULES EVER" is the most important message schools can teach to kids.

That is actually the rule that public schools were set up to teach kids. That the kids who go to public schools are to follow the rules and do what their "betters" tell them to do. Now the children of those "betters" go to private schools and receive different lessons.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[Anonymous Coward]

> "NO EXCEPTIONS TO RULES EVER" is the most important message schools can teach to kids.

NO EXCEPTIONS TO RULES EVER is to protect the school and it's administrators, not kids.

When admins dont have to make judgement calls, they cant be sued for bad judgement. Any lawsuits will be met in court with "this is our standard policy." It will stop all kinds of legal actions.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[Obfuscant]

"Honey, we probably should have stressed that you don't mix chemicals until you're sure what to expect from them!

That statement is the school taking responsibility for unauthorized and unexpected experiments undertaken by any student. It wasn't the school's fault that they didn't tell her explicitly not to mix random things together to see what happens.

Next time, ask BEFORE you mix the stuff up!"

And that statement would be the school accepting responsibility for whatever experiments the student comes up with. "Hey, you told my child it was ok to mix X and Y and now she's lost a finger or two and the house has serious damage ... I'm suing...".

Re: Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[Anonymous Coward]

If you know the result before you do it it's a demonstration, not an experiment.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[Chickenlips]

There was absolutely no reason for the police to have been called. It's beyond upsetting to read about kids being cuffed and taken out of school for things that would've warranted having the parents come in, detention or even suspension by the vice principle during my childhood. This affair will influence this person's approach to curiosity in a negative way. The police have a definite place in society. Their role has been undergoing feature creep, though. Time for a fresh look at what we (as a society) are allowing to happen.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[richlv]

Kids her age should be well aware that schools are a zone where even minor infractions can generate huge overreactions from administrators

i'm scared of you, your country and the spawns it will create.

Re: Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[Mitchell314]

Basic to somebody who has more experience than a high schooler. What's that motif from that well know basic education cartoon (the one about a certain 'arcane' school bus)? Get dirty, make mistakes?

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[tnk1]

Well, I didn't make school the way it is, I certainly didn't vote in the morons making these rules, but she's pretty unobservant if she thinks that school grounds is a place to start getting loosey goosey with exothermic reactions. Take it somewhere else or at least ask if you can do it in class where your teacher is the one who might get fired and not you.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[lightknight]

It bothers me more than so many 'authorities' are submitting their wills to fear of the unknown.

Mind you, if I worked for the CIA, I'd be absolutely tickled at the idea of some power (foreign or native...not like they care these days) were scared shitless that there might be a bomb hidden in every tree on their way to work, or that mosquitoes might be loaded with a neuro-toxin and let loose near their window...as that level of paranoia is something the CIA works HARD to achieve in targets. Still, as a citizen of the USA, for what little that's worth these days...Americans going insane without reason could potentially cause problems for me in the future at an inopportune moment, so as such, it does constitute a problem for me, no matter my displeasure with how things are being run, or how arrogant, blasphemous, and illusory their wanna-be authorities might be.

So, here's some advice, and feel free not to take it, as I 'win' either way: stop chasing after unknown unknowns. Unknown unknowns, or rather, attempting to protect against all of them using vague laws and understandings, creates more problems than it solves. Contemplating unknown unknowns, attempting to calculate all possibilities, is an act of madness; God might be able to do it, and survive...but anyone less than Him is going to get hurt (I have); stick to what is real, what is known, and do not let your mind(s) think thoughts which you cannot prove are true; finally, learn that everything is on a case by case basis, subject to present information and understanding, and that there is no loss in realizing or admitting that you have made a mistake (the loss is purely a construction of uncomfortable emotions...even in cases of great financial or material loss, the emotional burden is the real problem, I believe).

This experiment, this girl...should never have been charged. The law quoted was designed, perhaps, with the intent to protect, but instead harmed. The harm has been somewhat reversed, but it shows a serious lack of concern for exceptions and understanding. As such, it should be rewritten, amended, or what have you, to prevent further damage.

A much larger concern, unwritten here, is the cold water that this throws on science in this country, at a time when it is not needed. Yes, I am aware of the petty fights between organized religion and those purportedly representing science, as well as the straw-men and debater's tricks used by both sides. I will not digress into that mire at this time. My issue is one of America failing its progeny: once upon a time, the maths and science, I believe, were given second billing in education to other subjects; a little satellite called Sputnik, launched over our heads, changed that, and the US mandated that maths and science be taught; I am now looking at a country in decline, as the sciences have become optional, and it is possible for someone to graduate from high school, possibly even college, without learning even a modicum of Physics, Biology, or Chemistry; and it shows...especially compared to children of other countries, who have learned maths and sciences, to say nothing of second or third languages, which put our nation to shame. How can our inventors invent, if they have no knowledge of electricity, or mechanics, or algebra? Perhaps we will maintain our level of independence by continuing to import talent from abroad, or perhaps we can rely on the things we are good at, like marketing, and 'out slogan' our country's competitors?

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[interkin3tic]

What? There are plenty of us who don't want zero tolerance. As I said, the schools have taken it and run with it. I'm not a school, if there's any confusion there. That many of the shrill parents and politicians want it isn't the whole story: it's approaching a point where most schools do have some degree of zero tolerance. I've known it was a stupid idea since I was in high school, I've never been an asswipe who demanded it.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[spiritplumber]

I was in school when the whole "zero tolerance" was starting to happen. My mom (who is otherwise an incredibly prim and proper lady in a way that she wouldn't be out of place a hundred years ago) made it very clear to the vice-principal, who happened to be the school official she was talking with during a normal parent-teacher conference, that her policy with regards to zero tolerance was defenestration. She went on to say "That means I throw you out of the nearest window". I only realized twenty years later what difference that made (She wasn't kidding, either!)

Re: Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[Nefarious Wheel]

Bad idea yes, but being kicked out of school and retorted to police isn't a proportional punishment.

The right answer would be a figurative slap on the wrist for "borrowing" chemicals from the lab, and some detention exercises to calculate the reaction results, and the pressures/temperatures generated in the containment vessel.

Yes, this. Punishment designed to correct, not a reaction based on anger.

Kids like this are not the ones you want to filter out of the system.

Re: Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[cusco]

You must have been a really boring kid, we did a lot of things a **LOT** worse than this, and those of us who were caught got suspended for a couple of days. Of course we were white kids in a small town (and that house didn't burn down) so of course there was no public outcry.

Re: Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[Theranthrope]

Wow. What a textbook example of a concern troll.
You sound like every member of the legion of small-minded school administrators, petty bureaucrats, complacent autocrats, and religious dogmatists that have been ever retarding the expansion of knowledge and technological progress, since before there was there was even a way to record human history.

Re:Good to see intelligence rewarded for once.

[xenobyte]

Most schools have strict rules against bullying, and yet it occurs in almost every school daily. In many places it is not only tolerated but actually encouraged as 'motivation' or 'school spirit' when the jocks gets a free pass in tormenting geeks or other outcasts. This directly caused the Columbine school shooting and despite the lessons learned nothing changed.

On Columbine they denied all accusations of school supported bullying, but ended up having to admit the existence of a cruel system where both jocks and top students were given free reins in 'showing school spirit', which included daily bullying of outcasts and other misfits, some one which became the Trench-coat Mafia, from which two went postal. Teachers often witnessed this bullying and either did nothing or encouraged it in various ways. The school also participated through severely skewed differential treatment. The outcast group was consistently denied access to rooms for their clubs (gaming, role playing, music/film clubs) but no less than 13 rooms were made available to church groups despite the federal laws banning church activities on public school grounds.

In other words - school do as they please and if possible make up rules to protect the status quo.

Total Win

[Murdoch5]

I'm glad to see that at least some people have morals. Wanting to experiment with science and NOT hurting anyone in the process shouldn't be met by being kicked out of school, she's getting what she deserves.

Re:Total Win

[Bigby]

I would go as far to say, if she accidentally hurt someone, she still shouldn't have been kicked out of school. Intent is a major factor there. If a football player accidentally injures another player, should he get kicked off the team? Kicked out of school?

in my class

[slashmydots]

In my high school chemistry class, we made gunpowder (which someone accidentally shattered a mortar and pestle with) and hydrogen mini-rockets (we filled ours with butane and put a hole in the ceiling tiles) and that was called a chapter in the book, not a crime. Though unlike the media, I think the difference isn't that I'm white, it's that that school district and police department is full of complete morons.

Re:in my class

[Anonymous Coward]

Fuck you for bringing race into this.

That is all.

Since you have no reading comprehension let me spell it out for you. The previous post said that the media is the one pushing the race angle and the poster's own opinion is that it's a case of incompetence (and I would additionally infer the poster was talking about the zero tolerance policy the district passed).

Re: in my class

[Hardhead_7]

You know what's the worst part? The number of people who deny systematic discrimination exists. Every time a study comes out showing blacks and other minorities get more jail time on average for the same crimes (or in many cases go to jail at all for crimes their white counterparts get a slap on the wrist for), the usual suspects will make vague denunciations of the problem, and then whenever an individual example comes to light, try to make others the badguys for pointing out racial injustice and/or want insurmountable evidence that THIS INDIVIDUAL case was an example of racism before they'll even consider it.

Then they'll usually engage in some light victim blaming, just to spice things up.

You know what I call those people? Racists. Sure, they might not be as bad KKK members burning crosses, but they sure are doing their best to ignore racial equality issues.

Re:I Think This Is A Bad Thing

[Anonymous Coward]

I believe rules are rules and you break them, you should be punished, not rewarded. In this case, thanks the publicity, she is greatly benefitting from breaking the rules.

Congratulations, you are exactly what is wrong with the world. Rules are made for people, they are not sacred.

Re:I Think This Is A Bad Thing

[Anonymous Coward]

Because fear of jail time, hassle from overly-aggressive authority figures, being expelled, and being publicly embarrassed wasn't really a punishment at all?

Re:I Think This Is A Bad Thing

[Bigby]

Einstein broke Newton's rules. Is that bad?

Re:I Think This Is A Bad Thing

[onkelonkel]

"I believe rules are rules and you break them, you should be punished, not rewarded." - Congratulations, you have met the requirements for German citizenship.

Her being punished for an "unauthorised" science experiment will tend to discourage curiosity and scientific inquiry in other children. This is bad for America. By rewarding her we encourage curiosity and scientific inquiry, which is good for America.

We could even get away from the mindless "zero tolerance" crap and maybe send a nuanced message. Send her to Space Camp, but have her write a paper on the risks of experimenting with homemade explosives and what safety measures she should have taken, but didn't and how it could be done more safely next time.

Should have been punished, but not charged

[BitwizeGHC]

What she made wasn't really a science experiment; it was a "bottle bomb" consisting of mixing tinfoil and Drano in a Coke bottle. These explosives are well-known among schoolyard pranksters and can cause serious injury (chemical burns, loss of fingers, etc.)

It's not politically correct to say, but if she was cooking one of these up on school property with her friends without teacher oversight, she should have been punished. As long as she didn't actually hurt anyone, though, it should have amounted into a few days' detention at worst.

That said, I'm happy she's going to space camp and that this sort of mischief might develop into a real interest in science.

Re:I Think This Is A Bad Thing

[dragon-file]

I dont think you know who Homer Hickam is. Homer was a kid who grew up in a mining town where either you graduated high school and went to the coal mines or you got out on a football scholarship. He had a curiosity about space and rockets that could almost be described as fanaticism. His farther didn't support him, his friends initially didn't support him and only one person encouraged him, his teacher Mrs. Riley.

He performed countless experiments throughout his high school days most of which were dangerous but he never gave up.

He eventually graduated high school and went on to Virgina Tech and got a BS in Industrial engineering.

He then went into the military and got into NASA and I'm sure I'm missing things in between.

The point is, after seeing who elected to send her to space camp, the reasons become clear and make sense.

Homer Hickam

Re:I Think This Is A Bad Thing

[fazig]

So it is ok to reward people that don't get caught?
The charges were dropped but she didn't get rewarded by the authorities, the crowd funding project rewarded here, which is funded by 'people'. The same people that might have been on the jury during her day in court, which might also have said 'not guilty' considering all the circumstances.
Rules are not set in stone, rules have to be able to be criticized and changed according to the circumstances. Just because a single rule was broken it doesn't justify a punishment that is out of the ordinary. She was charged with a felony, which is not a trivial offense.

Zero tolerance for zero tolerance

[Anonymous Coward]

It's time we started making very loud and angry noises about zero tolerance being utterly unacceptable[1]. Students need the freedom to screw up in the pursuit of fooling around with some learning.

Things need to be exploded, burnt, and launched. Children need to have the freedom to throw balls at each other, wrestle, and do other dangerous things. Criminalizing mistakes and foolishness is as near fascist behavior as I have ever heard.

Tomfoolery for all, everywhere!

[1] Don't make a false equivalency between things that look scary and acts that are harmful.

Re:Zero tolerance for zero tolerance

[spiritplumber]

That's really on the parents to make it clear that they expect school administrators to administer. Further, make it clear that school administrators who act like shell scripts will be replaced with shell scripts.

Re:I Think This Is A Bad Thing

[crakbone]

I think your confusing punishment with rehabilitation. This is a child that had bad judgement. She got her punishment, she got arrested, she got expelled, and she got charged with a felony. For a child those are all major. But on the other side she has been given a chance to push her energies into an area where she will not be endangering or causing heart attacks for school administrators. With children it is always better to drive the energy in the direction you want rather than straight up stop it.

Re: I Think This Is A Bad Thing

[joebagodonuts]

Are you sure she was the party exhibiting bad judgement? I'm not. I'm of the opinion the "authorities" in this case were the ones guilty if poor judgement.

NASA Ames Research Center

[iHambone]

Liquid nitrogen will do the same thing.

As an intern at NASA Ames during summer break, I thought it would be fun to do a little experiment on the expansion of gas inside a contained vessel. So I put a small amount of LN2 into a 2-liter cola bottle and set it in an unoccupied back parking lot surrounded by 3-story, nearly windowless buildings. As the LN2 changes to gaseous form, the bottle began to expand, almost in-noticeably. After a minute or two, the glued on, wrap around label snapped off, and few seconds later, I heard one of the loudest bangs that I have ever heard in my life.

Before I knew what was happening, we were surrounded by MPs. But before the situation got out of hand, my Senior Researcher came out of the building to explain to the worried guards that this was merely a case of an ignorant intern forgetting to remove the cap before disposing of the harmless liquid. There were some stern looks, but that was the end of it. Unsurprisingly, I was not charged with a felony.

Lesson learned: don't blow up things on NASA bases. I think I can live with that.

Re:I Think This Is A Bad Thing

[Roblimo]

Note that this is Polk County, Florida. Out there they believe the earth is 6000 years old and that The Flintstones was a documentary.

(I live one jurisdiction West, in Manatee County. We win't brilliant here, but most of us understand evolution and stuff like that.)

Re:I Think This Is A Bad Thing

[WillgasM]

If it's a bad rule, get rid of the rule. This isn't a bad rule. Kids shouldn't be mixing caustic chemicals in their school parking lot. Experimenting is encouraged, but proper precautions are prerequisite. This isn't a case of civil disobedience.
I'm glad you acknowledge that the system is broken. Upon that realization, I would prefer you take to fixing the system rather than accepting it as broken and praising those who've exploited it most successfully.

Re:Fuck you for bringing in political correctness

[GameboyRMH]

Although it's never happened before, theoretically a white civil rights group could exist and be an actual non-racist civil rights group rather than just another thinly veiled hate group.

It would just be the most unnecessary and probably idle civil rights group that ever existed.

Re:I Think This Is A Bad Thing

[VAXcat]

BTW - October Sky is an anagram for "Rocket Boys".

Punishments don't fit the crimes

[realsilly]

This is not to say that I think this teenager committed a crime, personally I do not. When I went to school, there was Detention and then there was the big all day on Saturday detention. Personally I don't think this young lady should have been expelled, or even suspended. Two full all day detentions where she has to clean toilets, bathrooms, desks, buses, etc... would have sufficed.

Certainly, after that incident the school should have made an announcement that the situation was not considered acceptable without permission / supervision from a chemistry teacher. And then any future situations of a similar nature would result in a x #no of day(s) suspension. And a repeat offender, expulsion.

This would encourage students to be curious and cautious by approaching the appropriate teacher and getting guidance and permission.

School is for curiosity and learning. Students make mistakes but it shouldn't stay with them for the rest of their academic lives.

Hell if a teenager kills someone, their name is usually kept from the papers, they go to juvenile detention and their records are sealed at 18. This one young lady experiments with some chemical house hold items and she's persecuted across America by those who insist on zero tolerance.

Folks, I don't want to see people get hurt unnecessarily, but we learn from our mistakes, let us make them without persecution forever.

Zero-tolerance is the destruction of basic human nature and most of all COMMON SENSE. Every situation is different, Every student is different, treat them differently.