Cadbury Creme Eggs, Liquid Nitrogen, MRI Scans, and Extra Dimensions
April 21, 2011 3:05 PM Subscribe
The science education video series Sixty Symbols (previously) explores the Cadbury Creme Egg.
Mechanical force tests.
Eggs used to explain MRI signals.
Magic tricks with coupled pendulums.
Eggs used to explain six-dimensional particle physics.
And my favorite, chemical proof that the good stuff is in the middle.
(Direct youtube links 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5.)
Mechanical force tests.
Eggs used to explain MRI signals.
Magic tricks with coupled pendulums.
Eggs used to explain six-dimensional particle physics.
And my favorite, chemical proof that the good stuff is in the middle.
(Direct youtube links 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5.)
That was f'ing awesome. All of them. Great, great stuff.
posted by oddman at 3:43 PM on April 21, 2011
posted by oddman at 3:43 PM on April 21, 2011
Mmm, I just had a Cadbury Creme Egg and then loaded Metafilter and here this was. I will add, having watched all the videos, that the warning on the particle physics one is most accurate!
posted by librarylis at 4:32 PM on April 21, 2011
posted by librarylis at 4:32 PM on April 21, 2011
Does this SCIENCE at any point confirm my suspicions that Cadbury Creme Eggs are made of crack cocaine?
posted by Dr. Zira at 4:34 PM on April 21, 2011
posted by Dr. Zira at 4:34 PM on April 21, 2011
I wish that that highly convincing "sugar is a poison" article (ah, here it is) had been posted after Easter instead of before, because maintaining my nascent low-sugar diet over the next few days is going to severely deplete my reserves of willpower. If there was a Haigh's shop in this city I wouldn't have a hope in hell.
posted by A Thousand Baited Hooks at 4:52 PM on April 21, 2011
posted by A Thousand Baited Hooks at 4:52 PM on April 21, 2011
A Thousand Baited Hooks
You know, the creme eggs have been in the shops for ages, I know there are public holidays starting from tomorrow, and it is only now, reading your post that it occurs to me that chocolate had better be forthcoming for the missus on Sunday or I am in the deepest poo. Thank God for you!
posted by biffa at 4:55 PM on April 21, 2011
You know, the creme eggs have been in the shops for ages, I know there are public holidays starting from tomorrow, and it is only now, reading your post that it occurs to me that chocolate had better be forthcoming for the missus on Sunday or I am in the deepest poo. Thank God for you!
posted by biffa at 4:55 PM on April 21, 2011
That was f'ing awesome.
You can say 'fuck,' dude. We've all had our dirty words shots.
posted by jonmc at 4:59 PM on April 21, 2011
You can say 'fuck,' dude. We've all had our dirty words shots.
posted by jonmc at 4:59 PM on April 21, 2011
Whoa, the coupled pendula were awesome. I've never seen that particular result before (where each stops in turn). Also, Professor Bowley (I guess his name is) is really great. He looks like such a stuffed shirt but he does such a great job of explaining things and he's so...normal.
posted by DU at 5:46 PM on April 21, 2011
posted by DU at 5:46 PM on April 21, 2011
Fuck!
posted by TheAlarminglySwollenFinger at 5:50 PM on April 21, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by TheAlarminglySwollenFinger at 5:50 PM on April 21, 2011 [1 favorite]
I always thought Neil was like a unionized "experiment setter-upper" or something, but if that's his lab....is he an experimental guy and all the others are theoretical or what?
posted by DU at 5:54 PM on April 21, 2011
posted by DU at 5:54 PM on April 21, 2011
Some other fun with coupled pendula: I like to anchor the pivot to a solid crossbar directly overhead, then you can slide the string that couples the two together up and down to vary the amount coupling. Then you can also have each pendulum have a different length (and therefore frequency): slide the coupling string to the bottom to and you can see that they both swing together with an average frequency. In the intermediate range, you see the effect shown in the video where the frequency is unchanged but the amplitude varies in time. A great way to explain why multidimensional NMR experiments like COSY and EPR experiments like ESEEM don't work if the coupling is too strong.
posted by 445supermag at 7:11 PM on April 21, 2011 [1 favorite]
posted by 445supermag at 7:11 PM on April 21, 2011 [1 favorite]
These are pretty cool!
Without knowing, I suspect that Neil is a Lab Tech whose responsibility it is to maintain the labs. The professors get to play with demos and then the lab tech has to come in and clean up after them. I seriously doubt one professor would be expected to be responsible for cleaning up a mess that another professor made while doing a demo (though anything's possible).
posted by darkstar at 7:53 PM on April 21, 2011
Without knowing, I suspect that Neil is a Lab Tech whose responsibility it is to maintain the labs. The professors get to play with demos and then the lab tech has to come in and clean up after them. I seriously doubt one professor would be expected to be responsible for cleaning up a mess that another professor made while doing a demo (though anything's possible).
posted by darkstar at 7:53 PM on April 21, 2011
And 445supermag, that's an awesome demo idea! I may incorporate it into my class the next time I talk about 2D NMR.
posted by darkstar at 7:55 PM on April 21, 2011
posted by darkstar at 7:55 PM on April 21, 2011
Only 2 of those videos destroyed the eggs. I mean, the coupled pendula guy tells us to use hygenic needles if you want to eat the eggs.. so I assume he did.
and the MRI, well it might have messed with spin of some of their protons, but whatever. Still edible.
Particle theory doesn't seem to destroy eggs either.
posted by nat at 9:29 PM on April 21, 2011
and the MRI, well it might have messed with spin of some of their protons, but whatever. Still edible.
Particle theory doesn't seem to destroy eggs either.
posted by nat at 9:29 PM on April 21, 2011
Here's some particle theory from 60 symbols! Cool post.
posted by quanta and qualia at 9:33 PM on April 21, 2011
posted by quanta and qualia at 9:33 PM on April 21, 2011
I wish someone made a dairy-free, dark chocolate version of these eggs.
posted by Soupisgoodfood at 11:25 PM on April 21, 2011
posted by Soupisgoodfood at 11:25 PM on April 21, 2011
Why are they so beloved? They were first to go when I reached adulthood and my "just because something is made if sugar doesn't mean it's delicious" phase.
posted by Ambrosia Voyeur at 12:56 AM on April 22, 2011
posted by Ambrosia Voyeur at 12:56 AM on April 22, 2011
Why are they so beloved?
I can think of three reasons:
1. There really isn't anything else like them, at least not where I live.
2. They resemble an actual egg reasonably closely.
3. They're seasonal. The nine months that you spend without them adds to their specialness when they're finally available and is part of the reason for my love of persimmons and Darrell Lea nougat eggs (and they all come at the same time! What a great time of year)
posted by A Thousand Baited Hooks at 1:30 AM on April 22, 2011
I can think of three reasons:
1. There really isn't anything else like them, at least not where I live.
2. They resemble an actual egg reasonably closely.
3. They're seasonal. The nine months that you spend without them adds to their specialness when they're finally available and is part of the reason for my love of persimmons and Darrell Lea nougat eggs (and they all come at the same time! What a great time of year)
posted by A Thousand Baited Hooks at 1:30 AM on April 22, 2011
Exactly how is destroying delicious things ok to do now?
Because destroying them is the only way I know to get them into my belly!
posted by quin at 10:07 AM on April 22, 2011
Because destroying them is the only way I know to get them into my belly!
posted by quin at 10:07 AM on April 22, 2011
RE: why they're so beloved, I think part of it is just cultural - what folks associate with their youth. I recall when I first went to live overseas and started learning what it was like to live without all the things I'd become used to having here in the US. Oreo cookies used to be one of my regular grocery purchases in the States, but I couldn't find them in North Africa.
Finally a friend mailed me some Oreos from the US and I shared them with some of my local friends. Another expat, from New Zealand, I think, took a bite, scrunched her face disapprovingly, and said with some asperity "They seem to be rather bland."
I laughed off the comment at the time, but later realized she'd been right. Oreos, upon reflection, aren't very tasty cookies, at all. The "chocolate" wafer tastes nothing like chocolate and the "creme" filling tastes nothing like cream. I realized that it was just what I was used to, since childhood.
Since that realization, I virtually never buy Oreos anymore, instead opting for a dessert that actually has a taste that commends it. (A similar experience led to leaving behind Hershey's chocolate bars in favor of Cadbury and Lindt).
posted by darkstar at 5:49 PM on April 22, 2011 [1 favorite]
Finally a friend mailed me some Oreos from the US and I shared them with some of my local friends. Another expat, from New Zealand, I think, took a bite, scrunched her face disapprovingly, and said with some asperity "They seem to be rather bland."
I laughed off the comment at the time, but later realized she'd been right. Oreos, upon reflection, aren't very tasty cookies, at all. The "chocolate" wafer tastes nothing like chocolate and the "creme" filling tastes nothing like cream. I realized that it was just what I was used to, since childhood.
Since that realization, I virtually never buy Oreos anymore, instead opting for a dessert that actually has a taste that commends it. (A similar experience led to leaving behind Hershey's chocolate bars in favor of Cadbury and Lindt).
posted by darkstar at 5:49 PM on April 22, 2011 [1 favorite]
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posted by Blazecock Pileon at 3:11 PM on April 21, 2011