[Sca-cooks] Sparkler inferno (OT, obviously).

[Laura C. Minnick]

Okay, okay...

Sieggy's story about the LOX reminded me of one that I have to share
now...

One of my chemistry professors, during a lecture in which he showed us
what happens when you get elemental sodium wet, told us about something
that happened to him when he was is grad school. It seems that one
summer he a a bunch of other chem-grad geeks rented a cottage out on a
lake, planning to spend the summer fishing, boating, etc, and not doing
chemistry. Until 4th of July rolled around of course. They didn't have
regular fireworks, but they did have a boulder-sized chunk of elemental
sodium (they were chem geeks- of course they had some!). So they decided
to drop it off the dock into the lake and see what happened. (!) They
dropped it, it went *glub* and that was it. He said they turned around
to go back in, muttering about it must have been too big, no, it was the
water volume, no maybe it was because the water was too cold...

*FOOM!!!!*

It went off like a cannon, sprayed half the lake (it seemed) over them,
and inspired neighbors from the far side of the lake to call the police.
Of course these sweet young science students knew *nothing* about an
explosion...

Jim still blows things up in the classroom with great regularity, but I
don't think he's dropped any sodium of the dock recently.

'Lainie