2016.03.11
MAKE YOUR OWN THERMOMETER!I had this book as a kid, and reordered it near the end of my recent bout of persistent cold. It's one of those things you don't think of for years, find again, and realize how many details have stuck with you...
Here's how to save money by making your own thermometer. It's easy and fun--and a good activity for when you're forced to stay in bed!
You will need:Heat the sand and treat it to form glass. Hold the glass over the gas jet and shape it to form a thermometer. Be sure to wear your mask and gloves. Bake the glass in the oven at 350°F until it is done. Insert the proper amount of mercury and seal tightly. Run the thermometer through the printing press and print the numbers and notches on the side. Drink the orange juice. You must be thirsty.
- 16 quarts of fine-grained sand
- 1 gas jet
- 1 glassblower's mask and gloves
- 1 50-ton glazier's oven with a 400°F. capacity
- 2 pounds of untreated mercury
- 1 gallon of sealant
- 1 lithographic printing press
- 12 quarts of red ink
- 12 quarts of black ink
- 1 quart of orange juice
Total cost: $152,000
Use it in good health!
Seems like these two were the power couple of kids reading from the 80s up until "Harry Potter" - he was the editor of "Bananas" magazine, and she was editorial director of "Dynamite", a magazine dear to my heart (especially when it had the flip-title Arcade issues) and then he was the author of the "Goosebumps" series...