Quote of the Moment

You do ill if you praise, but worse if you censure, what you do not understand.
- Leonardo da Vinci

Tuesday, November 04, 2008

Satan or Science?

My 16-year old has a friend named James who is quite intelligent and charming (yes, James, I am talking about you) and he told us a story of Halloween at his house this past weekend. He said that some Jehovah's Witnesses came by during the trick-or-treat period and criticized his jack-o-lanterns, saying that they were symbols of Satan.

James replied that no, actually they were carved pumpkins into which he had poured liquid paraffin and copper sulfate and then set on fire to produce a green flame and charred interior. He got all excited and asked them to wait so he could go get his supplies and show them.

He returned (they had politely waited) and took a small packet of copper sulfate and dropped it into a hollowed out pumpkin, poured the lantern oil/paraffin over it and then struck a match and dropped it in - Pouuuuf! It flamed up green and remained lit, like a torch.

"See? That's not Satan. It's science."

Sunday, November 02, 2008

What Is It?


Time to play "What Is It?" again. I did filter it a bit, but not very much. This was in my house.