3 Bits Of Science You Can Do At Home

Safety First!!

Disclaimer

Some of the projects below can cause you serious injury, or damage to property. I don't recommend you try these at home, only watch the videos. I take no responsibility for damage that may occur to you and others around.

Make sure you know what your doing before taking part in any of the projects and always remember to use the proper protective equipment. If you don't, then you could end up looking like Two-Face and no one will want to have sex with you.

Lecture over, time for science.

Via AMC / giphy.com

Make you own fireworks.

Shryan9 / Via youtube.com

This starts out by sounding much more dangerous than it actually is, and I need to inform you that it doesn't need vast quantities of black powder. Its not a firework in the traditional sense, more of the steroid-laden older brother of sparklers.

You need the following things

Steel wool (The more the better)

Lighter

About 2ft of light chain, or any other inflammable rope.

A large open space, outdoors

The science

Fluff out the steel wool into a long sausage shape. Make sure that none of it is too densely packed.

Tie one end of the steel wool to the chain.

Use the lighter on the other end of the steel wool and get it to light.

Spin the flaming steel around and watch the plumes of sparks cascade around you. This works better at night for obvious reasons.

If you've got it all right, then it should look something like this.

Rubens Tube

FirstEastMIT / Via youtube.com

This one is a bit more specialist and is for the grown up. Ideally a grow up with a background in engineering who isn't afraid of getting a few burns.

Like seriously guys, this one can do you some lasting damage. Don't attempt it unless you know what your doing! You can have just as much fun looking at the video.

For those of you unfamiliar with a Rubens tube, its essentially a graphic equalizer on fire.

Here's one in action, dancing away to the music from "Portal 2"

I was going to include in this article a description on how to make one of these yourself, but seeing as I haven't had chance to make one myself I didn't feel safe putting an untested theory out there for the internet to see. If you have the time, money and patience to build this then please research it properly and be safe about it.

If you don't, then just watch the videos out there. Let other people take the risk.

Gallium

Via astounde.com

Gallium comes in at number 31 in the periodic table, and that's about as interesting as you can make it sound on paper. It does however have a couple of neat tricks up its sleeve.

With a melting temperature of under 30 degrees Celsius, its possible to make the following image happen.

CrEaTiVePyroScience / Via youtube.com

OK, that's kinda cool. You get to play with a liquid metal that unlike gallium's jerk cousin, mercury, won't make you seriously sick. It can be an irritant to skin so wear rubber gloves just to be safe.

The impressive thing with gallium is when you start to introduce it to other metals, most notably aluminium (or aluminum to the American readers out there).

As you can see, they really don't play nicely together.

I still don't recommend you try these, but if your that guy who will then please be safe.