Uploaded November 2013 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
You can see the more recent (2014) lab video here:
youtube.com/watch?v=AHqOz5xJDKg
Check the description there to watch another video about making some of these props.
As usual, I waited too long, and I was forced to throw this together right before trick-or-treaters showed up. There are still some cool elements, and if I would have given myself a day in advance, this could have turned out great. On the right side (by the candy bowl), you can see a pumpkin brain that I had carved, but I did not have time to finish it. It was supposed to be the exposed surgery of a victimized jack-o-lantern. The potions are simply water that had the fluorescent colorant from highlighter markers added to it. Light-sticks were also added to some of the various potions (and the brain tank), but they had grown dim by the time I had filmed this. Also, the potions had been mixed-up into less vivid colors by the kids (who I allowed to perform supervised chemistry experimentation), so this short clip doesn't really do it justice. Overall, we were pleased. The kids loved it, and I heard "cool" and "awesome" quite a few times during the night. I think we're going to try it again next year, with improvements. Sorry about the poor lighting. I'm thinking about getting a camera.
Educational part:
What is commonly called "dry ice" is actually carbon dioxide (CO2) in its solid form. It is "dry" due to sublimation, which is a phase transition from a solid directly to a gaseous state. Sublimation bypasses the liquid state altogether, so if you want liquid carbon dioxide, you need to pressurize it. Notwithstanding safety extremists, it can be handled with the bare hands, but only briefly before it will cause frostbite. If you must see what it feels like, you should do it under water. The real danger that it poses is from the gas itself, which although it is reasonably non-toxic, it does displace oxygen, and it will therefore contaminate the breathable air. Remember that when they say in sci-fi movies "we're running out of oxygen," that the statement is bullshit, because the actual threat is caused by the increased level of CO2.
You can see the more recent (2014) lab video here:
youtube.com/watch?v=AHqOz5xJDKg
Check the description there to watch another video about making some of these props.
As usual, I waited too long, and I was forced to throw this together right before trick-or-treaters showed up. There are still some cool elements, and if I would have given myself a day in advance, this could have turned out great. On the right side (by the candy bowl), you can see a pumpkin brain that I had carved, but I did not have time to finish it. It was supposed to be the exposed surgery of a victimized jack-o-lantern. The potions are simply water that had the fluorescent colorant from highlighter markers added to it. Light-sticks were also added to some of the various potions (and the brain tank), but they had grown dim by the time I had filmed this. Also, the potions had been mixed-up into less vivid colors by the kids (who I allowed to perform supervised chemistry experimentation), so this short clip doesn't really do it justice. Overall, we were pleased. The kids loved it, and I heard "cool" and "awesome" quite a few times during the night. I think we're going to try it again next year, with improvements. Sorry about the poor lighting. I'm thinking about getting a camera.
Educational part:
What is commonly called "dry ice" is actually carbon dioxide (CO2) in its solid form. It is "dry" due to sublimation, which is a phase transition from a solid directly to a gaseous state. Sublimation bypasses the liquid state altogether, so if you want liquid carbon dioxide, you need to pressurize it. Notwithstanding safety extremists, it can be handled with the bare hands, but only briefly before it will cause frostbite. If you must see what it feels like, you should do it under water. The real danger that it poses is from the gas itself, which although it is reasonably non-toxic, it does displace oxygen, and it will therefore contaminate the breathable air. Remember that when they say in sci-fi movies "we're running out of oxygen," that the statement is bullshit, because the actual threat is caused by the increased level of CO2.
