Liquid Nitrogen is just plain cool ... er ... cold.

[Ben]:	Liquid Nitrogen is just plain cool ... er ... cold.	Discuss This [2 comments so far] View Comments
I'd probably best not talk much about the details here, but this weekend I got to play with liquid nitrogen. "Play" being the operative word. I'm hooked. Ever since I've been looking at anything that would fit through the mouth of a particular dewar and wondering "What would happen if I froze that to -321 degrees Fahrenheit?" The second thought which comes immediately: "And after dunking it in liquid nitrogen, what would happen if I flung it against some concrete or tapped it with a punch?" For the record ... Pennies shatter (when you aren't wearing safety equipment). Kiwi shatter (though not spectacularly). Apples shatter (spectacularly). Bananas shatter (very nicely). Oranges shatter (just make sure they're frozen all the way through and you'll get fragmentation from the little juice packets). Chocolate covered peanut butter cups shatter (and taste great frozen, too). Fill a plastic bag with a little bit of liquid nitrogen and quickly seal it. Boom. Do the same with a water bottle - and very quickly throw it. BOOM. That kind of cold simply defies description. Amazing and amusing.