John's Blog

Pre-Nader science kits

By the time I was kid, all the science kits had been rendered relatively harmless by the consumer safety advocates. If you really wanted to get yourself into trouble, you had to be creative, like the Radioactive Boyscout who tried to build his own neutron gun in the backyard.

Still, I was blown away when I discovered that Bell Labs used to sell a do-it-yourself solar kit that included, along with the raw silicon wafer, the toxic chemicals required for doping, a mini electric furnace and 3 sheets of asbestoes. Good times, eh?

Makes homebrewing your own biodiesel seem down right normal. :)

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