At uni we had a gas liquification plant out the back, so LN2 was easily available.
Among all the usual objects we tried to freeze (stationary, bananas, apples, sandwiches) the most fun was a combined ink eraser (the type with two different types of eraser bonded together). After a minute or two of freezing, we carefully pulled it out, but as it brushed the edge of the bucket the eraser shattered, sending tiny pieces of very cold rubber all over the lab.
Theres a big tank of LN outside my lab. Hours of fun. Frozen/smashed almost everything I can find/think of. Also made some superconductors. they are fun. Have a really awesome clear glass dewar. Its not so thermally insulating as the silver ones, but you can watch the shit freezing.
Been thinking about the idea of breaking into a house using a liquid nitrogen frozen banana. Would have to leave it there after the breakin of course. It will have thawed by the time the cops show, and they will be perplexed at how someone seems to have broken in using a mushy banana.
Does liquid oxygen count for this one? Fairly close in temperature (90K v 77K). Of course I wasn’t investigating the freezing per se, more the later exothermic reaction. (Don’t try this at home kids!)
When I worked in molecular biology, we used to freeze things like nitrile gloves and rubber stoppers and then try to shatter them in interesting ways. Oh, and a dry ice pellet in a tiny little test tube with the cap pounded on with a hammer makes a good impromptu firecracker.
When I was a kid, and a dermatologist friend of my Dad’s came over, I took some of the liquid N and pured it on one of my Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle toys. When it shattered, I was not at all disappointed!
When I was a kid, and a dermatologist friend of my Dad’s came over, I took some of the liquid N and pured it on one of my Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle toys. When it shattered, I was not at all disappointed!
Awesome, I did graduate work in NMR spectroscopy, and got to do magnet dewer fills with liquid He and liquid N2. Oh the fun! I like the marshmallow in liquid N2 that Bill Nye the Science guy does. I wish I thought of that when I had better access.
Does using LN2 as insecticide count? Used to use it to take out the ants in the computer room, as it didn’t leave a residue that the disk drives wouldn’t like. (back when they were the size of washing machines, and held tens of megabytes).
When I worked making photovoltaics. I showed my co-workers the fun you can have with LN2.
First on a tennis ball
Second on a mouse we caught in the cleanroom
Removed a giant wart off of the bottom of my foot with LN2. Took a few applications over a couple weeks, and had to get that fugly thing to the consistency of an ice cube before it finally all came off. Hurt like hell for two days each time, but it blistered up and the wart was on the top of the blister. Goodbye.
SCIENCE SCOUTS 
Yeah, I had warts leftover from elementary school. They haven’t come back since.
At uni we had a gas liquification plant out the back, so LN2 was easily available.
Among all the usual objects we tried to freeze (stationary, bananas, apples, sandwiches) the most fun was a combined ink eraser (the type with two different types of eraser bonded together). After a minute or two of freezing, we carefully pulled it out, but as it brushed the edge of the bucket the eraser shattered, sending tiny pieces of very cold rubber all over the lab.
Theres a big tank of LN outside my lab. Hours of fun. Frozen/smashed almost everything I can find/think of. Also made some superconductors. they are fun. Have a really awesome clear glass dewar. Its not so thermally insulating as the silver ones, but you can watch the shit freezing.
Been thinking about the idea of breaking into a house using a liquid nitrogen frozen banana. Would have to leave it there after the breakin of course. It will have thawed by the time the cops show, and they will be perplexed at how someone seems to have broken in using a mushy banana.
This is what liquid nitrogen is FOR. Hey, you gotta do something while your 4-hour experiment bleeps at you every 60 seconds.
I think there should be a level IV (maybe III.V?) for “Has eaten something frozen in LN2”. (Oreos are particularly good.)
Not suitable for scouting: “Has used LN2 to cool a bong.”
How can any scientist who has ever worked with the stuff -not- qualify for this? Flowers shatter nicely, as does rubber tubing.
Does liquid oxygen count for this one? Fairly close in temperature (90K v 77K). Of course I wasn’t investigating the freezing per se, more the later exothermic reaction. (Don’t try this at home kids!)
When I worked in molecular biology, we used to freeze things like nitrile gloves and rubber stoppers and then try to shatter them in interesting ways. Oh, and a dry ice pellet in a tiny little test tube with the cap pounded on with a hammer makes a good impromptu firecracker.
Fill up an Eppendorf cap with liquid Nitrogen, close as fast as you can, then throw away. Be fast about it, or it’ll pop in your hand.
As for Nitrogen games in general, i still like the standard frozen rose… smashes with a nice effect.
When I was a kid, and a dermatologist friend of my Dad’s came over, I took some of the liquid N and pured it on one of my Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle toys. When it shattered, I was not at all disappointed!
Wrong name displayed … woops!
When I was a kid, and a dermatologist friend of my Dad’s came over, I took some of the liquid N and pured it on one of my Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle toys. When it shattered, I was not at all disappointed!
I put a flashlight in liquid nitrogen… it was ON. Really fun to see the light getting dimmer as the batteries were freezing!
Goldfish. Drop back into room temperature water within 15 seconds, they’ll thaw quickly and no harm done.
Awesome, I did graduate work in NMR spectroscopy, and got to do magnet dewer fills with liquid He and liquid N2. Oh the fun! I like the marshmallow in liquid N2 that Bill Nye the Science guy does. I wish I thought of that when I had better access.
Now as an MD I get use N2 to zap warts and such.
Does using LN2 as insecticide count? Used to use it to take out the ants in the computer room, as it didn’t leave a residue that the disk drives wouldn’t like. (back when they were the size of washing machines, and held tens of megabytes).
The goldfish if eaten right after taken out of LN2 cause you to blow smoke. Very fun.
Anyone else used LN2 to make ice cream? It’s much less work than the crank it by hand with the salt and ice method.
2nds on ice cream
When I worked making photovoltaics. I showed my co-workers the fun you can have with LN2.
First on a tennis ball
Second on a mouse we caught in the cleanroom
Removed a giant wart off of the bottom of my foot with LN2. Took a few applications over a couple weeks, and had to get that fugly thing to the consistency of an ice cube before it finally all came off. Hurt like hell for two days each time, but it blistered up and the wart was on the top of the blister. Goodbye.
I have a LN2 brand. Put an aluminum heat-sink in LN2 for about 25 minutes, pulled it out, and pressed it against my skin for 12 seconds.
How about putting bare hands in the LN2 container?
I mean, really? What do you expect us to do with a modified potato gun and a dewer of liquid nitrogen.
ACHTUNG!
Bumblebee, while filling the Dewar.
It fell over, laid there for a while, then woke up and flew off.
Making Ice Cream is fun, but making a slushy Martini can be more fun.
Oh, come on, isn’t this another one that we should all get by default? (Mandarines explode more entertainingly than bananas.)