This one time, at BarCamp…

So yesterday afternoon, I was sitting next to my good friend Tim and half-listening to a talk at BarCamp (half listening, half writing a talk I was giving right after the one I was listening to).

The talk was by Saya, and she mentioned that she wanted a boyfriend who smells of campfires.

I stopped working on my slides and raised my hand.

-all the time?

-yes.

Tim raised his hand.

-even right after a shower?

-yes, right out of the shower.

I looked at Tim and said “I’m sure I can make that scent, let’s try it!”

(photos after the jump)

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History: Wired’s Don’t Try This At Home Article

This is an old article, but it’s still very relevant.  The June 2006 edition of Wired Magazine has this article detailing the rise and fall of the garage chemist: Don’t try This At Home (here it is all on one page, but without all the pretty pictures).

The reason you should read this:

Taking chemicals and lab equipment away from kids who love science is like taking crayons and paints away from a kid who may grow up to be an artist.

[Links and resources after the jump] Read the rest of this entry »

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Project Announcement: Design/Build of an STM

Bare main board, stuffed main board, and a microscope head board.

As I mentioned in yesterday’s radio interview, I’ve been working diligently on a DIY Scanning-Tunneling Microscope (STM).

The device I’m building will be significantly cheaper than the $15k a student level machine would cost, and will hopefully reach that range of performance.  I’m certainly not expecting to build a device that can have the accuracy to do real research for only a few hundred dollars, but I’m hopeful that we can achieve modest results.

Right now, I’m basing the design on the work of John Alexander, but we (my electrical engineering and software gurus and I) will be extending and improving this design for microprocessor control and trace capture.  I’m also contacting some of the recent builders of this class of device to hear their opinions and advice. I really am standing on the shoulders of giants here, and by basing my work on that of a lot of (very) brilliant people, I hope to be able to achieve success.

[Project goals, current, and future state after the jump...] Read the rest of this entry »

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History: The Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments

Yay! Let's make chlorine gas!I know I can’t start a discussion about at-home chemistry without mentioning the (in)famous Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments.  Some overly dramatic people have called it a banned book – it isn’t, but it is a bit out of date and presents some experiments that aren’t exactly safe for unattended kids (or even adults) to perform.

Published in 1960 and updated in 1962 and 1963, and now widely available in pdf form on the internet, this book was an inspiration to many a home chemical tinkerer.

There are several basic safety flaws with the book that prevent me from recommending it as an experimental handbook. I found these in a 10-minute review:

  • pipetting by mouth – a seriously bad no-no
  • teaches you to make ammonia gas?!?!
  • teaches you to make chlorine gas ?!!? seriously? WTF!!
  • has you taste a weak NaOH solution – I prefer reading books that don’t try to poison me…
  • shaking test tubes by putting your thumb over the opening and shaking – another bad no-no
  • people sticking their fingers into boiling milk? what?

Things I do like about it:

  • It is a great, concise (only 114 pages) background on basic chemical theory and history
  • The majority of the experiments are good (but I disagree with the methods the authors use)

Homework assignment:

So, for homework, I assign everyone out there to skim through the Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments and find the most awesome examples of terrible safety and the most inspiring and interesting experiments and theories it discusses.  Discuss in the comments…

Low resolution image of the Golden Book of Chemistry Experiments courtesy of Wikipedia.org

Update:

Arrgh, I can’t believe I just noticed that NO ONE in this book wears any safety gear. There are no gloves, goggles, aprons.  These kids are doing chemistry in their Sunday best!!!  I don’t think the author mentions anything about real fire extinguishers either (but they do talk about how fire extinguishers work…).

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Things we won’t be talking much about

Public domain image courtesy of wikipedia.orgThe first response most people have when I tell them I have a home chemistry lab is either “why do you have a meth lab in your basement?” or “do you make explosives?”  The answer to both is “no,” and I’m a bit saddened that this is the first things people think about when they think about chemistry.

I completely understand the fascination – explosions are fun to witness, and the thought of a meth lab in an acquaintance’s basement is titillating.

But here’s something most people don’t realize: in addition to being wildly dangerous (and generally illegal without the proper permissions), they’re really boring from a chemistry standpoint.

Nearly all combustion and explosion reactions are a variant on the following theme:

Fuel + Oxygen + Spark = (lots of) Energy + Byproducts

In addition to being illegal and boring, these are unimaginative fields for a home lab to pursue.  Read the rest of this entry »

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