Sculpting in Solid Mercury, with Liquid Nitrogen (Popsci.com + BB Video)

READ HOW IT'S DONE HERE!
( http://www.popsci.com/mercuryfish )

Boing Boing Video teams up with PopSci and Theo Gray ( MAD SCIENCE author) for an eerily beautiful science experiment -- how to cast solid, if fleeting, shapes from normally liquid mercury -- just keep it at 320 degrees below zero, with liquid nitrogen. Snip from Theo's experiment, documented in this video:

"What you consider solid, liquid or gas depends entirely on where you live. For example, men from cold, cold Mars might build their houses out of ice. Women from Venus, where the average temperature is about 870°F, could bathe in liquid zinc. We think mercury is a liquid metal, but its all relative. At one temperature, the mercury atoms arrange themselves into a solid crystal; at another, they flow freely around each other as a liquid. Children from Pluto (like mine, for example) could happily cast their toy soldiers out of mercury, because on that frigid planet it is a solid, malleable metal a lot like tin. Here on temperate Earth, you need a stove to cast tin, but a tank of liquid nitrogen to make mercury figurines..."


http://www.popsci.com/mercuryfish

RELATED BOING BOING BLOG POST:
http://www.boingboing.net/2009/06/04/bb-video-popsci---fr.html

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• Boingboing
• popular
• science
• popsci
• mercury
• frozen
• theo
• gray
• mad
• dangerous
• scientific
• experiment
• poison
• explosion
• freezing
• chemistry

[Jcd1994]

you're wasting unicorn blood!

[marcoC1991]

beter not make chocolate anymore

[fablan6]

Τ-1000

[narekzo]

@timonator14 thanx bro

[timonator14]

@narekzo At it's most basic, Mercury is a rare metal that is liquid at room temperature. Check Wikipedia for more information, it's really cool stuff.

[GeistvonWut]

@narekzo You'd eventually die, as Mercury is a very toxic material.

[sawmakai]

@narekzo look it up

[stalker7d7]

What happens if you microwave frozen mercury?

[narekzo]

guys can someone expain to me what mercury is plz

and what will happen if u touch it with ur hand

[JediDragonRider12]

...in heaven we could play with Mercury all we want...

[watcherxd]

There's no question that this fish is suffering from

*puts on glasses*

Elevated mercury levels

**YEAAAAAHHHH**

[TheL4786]

If its so poisonous how come people played with it and were fine sounds like bull to me