I sometimes wonder how anyone of my generation is still alive. We played with mercury in chemistry class where we also used carcinogens like asbestos and toluene, seatbelts were an extra-cost option in cars, helmets weren't required on bicycles or motorbikes, a "child car seat" just hooked on top of the front bench seat between your parents, had no seatbelt, and its only function was to make sure you went through the windshield with them. I'm a survivor!
The chemistry teachers were often the same. They would have violent explosions with lots of smoke without any protection for anyone.
Once there was sand on the table, Plexiglas protection, teacher wearing goggles and full gear. The whole class dropped into cover when she poured the stuff together … we thought the fire brigade would show up after the explosion 💥
You don't do it on a table like that, you fill a 2 liter bottle 1/3 of the way with the cleaner, drop a bunch of little foil balls in, cap it, and run so you can watch it explode.
"Now, Timmy, one thing you want to also avoid is to lick the aluminum foil while it's still bubbling. You can try it - go ahead and lick the foil. Can you feel it? Can you feel how it burns your tongue and dissolves your gums, OH! There goes one of your teeth! See? That's why you should always read the instructions and never lick a chemical liquid that is capable of dissolving metals. Now, what do you think would happen if you rub this ooze into your eyes? Go ahead and rub it into your eyes."
"We didn't inhale the mist." (ummm... face mask?) Here, place your face directly over the smoking aluminum foil and spray some more on it 2-3 inches from your face." LOL.
Lye's not quite as dangerous as some people believe...it'll sting if you leave it on too long though, and will turn all the oil on your hands into a soapy film.
Not really the gist of the instructions tho. If you're supposed to go "oh well, it's probably just hydrogen gas again" might as well NOT have any instruction in the first place
Popular Science in the 60s was telling people to dig a hole in the ground, fill it with rocks and dump used oil in it for disposal. We've learned a thing or two since then, I... hope...
I love how I'm watching something here, and get an idea like "We're gonna need another Timmy!", and then I see the top comment being EXACTLY what I was thinking of.
It's just basic chemistry. Same thing could be said if you took regular bleach and poured it into your toliet. But that's not enough to clean, you decide to add vinegar, you've now created chlorine gas. So no vinegar, you decide to clean the mirror with glass cleaner that has ammonia in it, maybe that would work better. You make chloramine gas. Basically you shouldn't mess with bleach or misuse cleaners.
I was replying to title "There weren't many safety standards in the 1980s" Yes, you make hydrogen gas when aluminum oxides in an exothermic reaction, causing the aluminum to heat up.
My anecdotal reference is, you still can make dangerous chemicals by mixing common sold household cleaners.
While working in a commercial kitchen, I was supposed to make a disinfectant solution to wipe down all the food surfaces at the end of the shift. When I went to add the ammonia to the bucket of hot water, There was just a bit in the bottle, so I added some bleach to the mix. Worked really well at first until it didn't. I dumped it out and turned on the faucet, turned on every vent in the room and stayed outside for an hour. Oh, and I did learn my lesson for permanently.
When I was young and super dumb I mixed bleach and some other kind of cleanser and scrubbed the bathroom. Fucked up my lungs, I was wheezing and popping for several days.
Don 'Mr. Wizard' Herbert also put out a book of experiments for kids to run. He'd been doing children's science shows since the 50s he is one of the main reasons I got in to science :)
There was something on the show I wanted to work but I think I was in the wrong part of the country. He made a solar food cooker. Even in the summer at noon I was barely able to get laffy taffys to melt. I had them on a spit style. Thinking back now using a more curved approach would have worked better. Mr Wizard said to use a shoebox amd aluminum foil so I did.
I cooked many a hotdogs using this exact same method, learned from Mr Wizard himself. It took about 17 times longer than every other method, but it eventually worked. Salmonella be damned
Meanwhile some drain cleaners are sodium hydroxide crystals and sharpened bits of aluminium. The bubbling agitates the aluminium to break up larger clogs, while the sodium hydroxide makes fats and proteins dissolve.
Well, the only gas this produces is hydrogen gas, any particles released by the bubbling will dissipate before they reach the open air, so fire is the only real danger there. And even that is pretty minor.
And it produces a lot of H2 compared to the more common acid+metal reaction IRC. As a kid I put my chemistry set to good use with this reaction by using the H2 to fill balloons. Later I upped my game by attaching small flash powder packets (Zn + S) and an igniter to the balloons before sending them aloft. In completely unrelated news, there were a lot of UFO reports in my neighbourhood that year...
My sister and I would play the trick on each other where you rub the aluminum foil with a pencil eraser until it gives of the worst sick drunk person fart smel ever scent. Then stick under the other's pillow or blanket.
Resistance1000
I sometimes wonder how anyone of my generation is still alive. We played with mercury in chemistry class where we also used carcinogens like asbestos and toluene, seatbelts were an extra-cost option in cars, helmets weren't required on bicycles or motorbikes, a "child car seat" just hooked on top of the front bench seat between your parents, had no seatbelt, and its only function was to make sure you went through the windshield with them. I'm a survivor!
egoAristippos
The chemistry teachers were often the same. They would have violent explosions with lots of smoke without any protection for anyone.
Once there was sand on the table, Plexiglas protection, teacher wearing goggles and full gear.
The whole class dropped into cover when she poured the stuff together … we thought the fire brigade would show up after the explosion 💥
Aspernari
There was an assumed 100% literacy rate at the time, to be fair...
yossarian77
You don't do it on a table like that, you fill a 2 liter bottle 1/3 of the way with the cleaner, drop a bunch of little foil balls in, cap it, and run so you can watch it explode.
MountainSonofDeath
GlenL
"Gee mr. wizard, are these fumes at all toxic?" "Oh my yes, Billy, you're breathing in pure Cancer right now"
TheMurderousCricket
"Now, Timmy, one thing you want to also avoid is to lick the aluminum foil while it's still bubbling. You can try it - go ahead and lick the foil. Can you feel it? Can you feel how it burns your tongue and dissolves your gums, OH! There goes one of your teeth! See? That's why you should always read the instructions and never lick a chemical liquid that is capable of dissolving metals. Now, what do you think would happen if you rub this ooze into your eyes? Go ahead and rub it into your eyes."
ManicModron
WE'RE GONNA NEED A NEW TIMMY!
ThisIsAllYouCouldComeUpWith
VENT HOODS ARE YOUR FRIENDS
IndependenceHallPhiladelphiaPA
its just hydrogen
gronzilla
Friends don't let friends vent in the hood
TrumpRapesAndEatsChildren0002
Yo, i'm not gonna go near no hood!
MapleSyrupMafia
How do you travel, pretty much everything has a hood except bicycles.
TrumpRapesAndEatsChildren0002
That's the neat part: I don't :'(
mak10z
Mr Wizards World was the Shiznit growing up
TyrCarter
We're gonna need another Timmy!
YpsilantiRomani
He was doing this without an exhaust Hood the 80s was a wild time
bearstrap
I learned how to make rocket propellant on the stove so....
Yeah. There's a lot of survivorship bias in GenX
AustinJolly
fnordy
"So tell me >sfft< with your dying breath >ghh< what have >hrrk< we learned fr>AAACK
unremarkableasterisk
His is the voice I use when I read this meme:
Zetor
"Keep out of reach of children" 😐
DontcallmeLen
Can someone inform DJT that Oven Cleaner is one of the best ways to make the new Air Bribe Ones wings really shine?
helyx
I watched Mr Wizard every day before school
Pfffftit
Have you ever seen a gladiator
guitarfourtysix
oldguyexlurker
"We didn't inhale the mist." (ummm... face mask?) Here, place your face directly over the smoking aluminum foil and spray some more on it 2-3 inches from your face." LOL.
MyCommentsUsuallyHaveTypos
That kid definitely got cancer later in life...
AtleastIvegotthatgoingforme0
It's a tutorial on huffing for children.
TheDirtySanchezBros
I was like, they teaching this kid to cook crack?
ArcaneM37
Yeah and only the kid has on gloves but the adult crumpled the sprayed foil bare handed.
rezurok
Lye's not quite as dangerous as some people believe...it'll sting if you leave it on too long though, and will turn all the oil on your hands into a soapy film.
ArcaneM37
The point was that he had the kid read the safety instructions and they did not follow a single one.
LordLchaim
It’s just hydrogen gas. Just don’t teach the kid how to light a cigarette at the same time. 💥
gronzilla
Not really the gist of the instructions tho. If you're supposed to go "oh well, it's probably just hydrogen gas again" might as well NOT have any instruction in the first place
oldguyexlurker
Oops...
LordLchaim
That’s the real danger when in an enclosed space that may have an ignition source.
MapleSyrupMafia
Popular Science in the 60s was telling people to dig a hole in the ground, fill it with rocks and dump used oil in it for disposal. We've learned a thing or two since then, I... hope...
GimmieWanger
How can I utilize this knowledge for the coming revolution?
Righteousdew
Have you considered cropping your videos before posting?
MayMyEnemiesLiveLong
No
Righteousdew
I would recommend it.
Raventhief
Why would my oven be made of aluminum?
tentacularfleshscape
Top might have aluminum cladding
psugab
Meant people use aluminum in ovens for easy cleanup
psugab
Many not meant
DrShrimpPuertoRico85
WhoUhz
Mansooratyale
nclu
This show was way better than one would expect
SecretSquirrel27
https://media0.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1a3B2aDljcDR4OXpydWpidGM0d2VqN254c24zNTJlaXg0Y3R2ZXpzbiZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/3o6Ztkwd6Bq2rF7Gk8/200w.webp
vicvalour
Instant first thought, just a little slower
discostewsm
I love how I'm watching something here, and get an idea like "We're gonna need another Timmy!", and then I see the top comment being EXACTLY what I was thinking of.
CrabbyBlueberry
This is why I keep this gif on hand:
LuvinTheBebehKitties
Oh good.. I wasn't the only one! =)
CrabbyBlueberry
Some people say I'm a dreamer....
bearstrap
There are dozens of us! DOZENS!
DrShrimpPuertoRico85
lifeisadadjoke
We're going to need another Timmy!
nyetwork
It's just basic chemistry. Same thing could be said if you took regular bleach and poured it into your toliet. But that's not enough to clean, you decide to add vinegar, you've now created chlorine gas. So no vinegar, you decide to clean the mirror with glass cleaner that has ammonia in it, maybe that would work better. You make chloramine gas. Basically you shouldn't mess with bleach or misuse cleaners.
Kwyjor
Except you can't produce chlorine or chloramine from the combination of sodium hydroxide and aluminum..?
Apparently the vapor in the video is hydrogen gas.
nyetwork
I was replying to title "There weren't many safety standards in the 1980s" Yes, you make hydrogen gas when aluminum oxides in an exothermic reaction, causing the aluminum to heat up.
My anecdotal reference is, you still can make dangerous chemicals by mixing common sold household cleaners.
Kinsa83
Another example dont use bleach to clean up cat urine.
hephaestus00
While working in a commercial kitchen, I was supposed to make a disinfectant solution to wipe down all the food surfaces at the end of the shift. When I went to add the ammonia to the bucket of hot water, There was just a bit in the bottle, so I added some bleach to the mix. Worked really well at first until it didn't. I dumped it out and turned on the faucet, turned on every vent in the room and stayed outside for an hour. Oh, and I did learn my lesson for permanently.
Neurisko
When I was young and super dumb I mixed bleach and some other kind of cleanser and scrubbed the bathroom. Fucked up my lungs, I was wheezing and popping for several days.
redditmcredditface
9 year old me would immediately do this on the back porch
mak10z
Don 'Mr. Wizard' Herbert also put out a book of experiments for kids to run. He'd been doing children's science shows since the 50s he is one of the main reasons I got in to science :)
WolfgangVonTittySprinkles
I watched Mister Wizard’s World as a kid. I watched it religiously. Don Herbert helped me discover my love for science.
Roqinn
I watched it when I could. It never seemed to be on at the same time every week.
psugab
Mister Wizard was tough but amazing
ausernamewhat
Same here, I now work in a Toxicology Laboratory.
WolfgangVonTittySprinkles
AbeFromanSausageKingOfChicago
I still remember his lessen on how to purify water with an evaporation method.
djevelen
I loved these shows growing up, Mr. Wizard, Bill Nye, and one that doesn't get nearly the attention it deserves, Beakmans World.
enronadon
I learned how to rip a phone book in half from Beakman's World!
metroid2
There was something on the show I wanted to work but I think I was in the wrong part of the country. He made a solar food cooker. Even in the summer at noon I was barely able to get laffy taffys to melt. I had them on a spit style. Thinking back now using a more curved approach would have worked better. Mr Wizard said to use a shoebox amd aluminum foil so I did.
GanonsGrin
I cooked many a hotdogs using this exact same method, learned from Mr Wizard himself. It took about 17 times longer than every other method, but it eventually worked. Salmonella be damned
metroid2
Im glad I tried it with taffy. A no risk game. I kinda want to retry it but with better materials and the power of parabolas.
InitHello
Meanwhile some drain cleaners are sodium hydroxide crystals and sharpened bits of aluminium. The bubbling agitates the aluminium to break up larger clogs, while the sodium hydroxide makes fats and proteins dissolve.
tentacularfleshscape
Damn that's scary
InitHello
Well, the only gas this produces is hydrogen gas, any particles released by the bubbling will dissipate before they reach the open air, so fire is the only real danger there. And even that is pretty minor.
DarwinsAgain
And it produces a lot of H2 compared to the more common acid+metal reaction IRC. As a kid I put my chemistry set to good use with this reaction by using the H2 to fill balloons. Later I upped my game by attaching small flash powder packets (Zn + S) and an igniter to the balloons before sending them aloft. In completely unrelated news, there were a lot of UFO reports in my neighbourhood that year...
tentacularfleshscape
Yeah but in terms of getting it on you
InitHello
Yeeeeeeah, might want to avoid that.
tentacularfleshscape
https://media4.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1NHo5ZGE2dmJlb3R0MDl1cTQyYTRpaDY0ODhtbTUwOXkyYmlwaHVrbiZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/yHEnCgWwO5nG0/200w.webp
UnattendedDeviant
My sister and I would play the trick on each other where you rub the aluminum foil with a pencil eraser until it gives of the worst sick drunk person fart smel ever scent. Then stick under the other's pillow or blanket.
Smelled like someone crapped in your bed.
Evenmoreuselessname
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sulfur_vulcanization
antikytherion
...what? Rubber on aluminum smells?
UnattendedDeviant
Try it and enjoy the release of sulfur from the heat created.
Evenmoreuselessname
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sulfur_vulcanization
antikytherion
am i strong enough to use this power for good
DWolf
I've never heard of this trick before. Thanks!
UnattendedDeviant
The heat releases suffer. The aluminum pulls and the smell of rotten eggs is strong and offensive. Enjoy.
UnattendedDeviant
..the aluminum *dulls*