Boston: Website researched "worst thing that can happen if you misuse a pressure cooker"

what-if.xkcd.com...

This website looked at the worst thing that might happen if misusing a pressure cooker - at the 9th april 2013.

Answer: Use something terrible like O2F2. Yes, it is a pure scientifical discussion. No, there is no mention of explosives or nailbombs.

A terrible coincidence, I think.
FYI.

That's a totally valid question to be asking and should, in no way, insinuate that the one asking is, in any way, involved with attempting to make an explosive device with one.

You can get very badly hurt in a home kitchen with one, if you're not familiar.

I'm confused as to the point of this thread.

Very strange indeed.

reply to post by ManFromEurope


I bet the bots are looking for the person who wanted to know. They have found people that way; one serial torturer/killer sent a map to the police, who figured it came from mapquest. They traced the request for that map to the killer's computer.

I doubt it is the bad guys, though. Heck, it's a question I've always wanted to know. I was never around a pressure cooker, and wouldn't want one. I have always been afraid they might explode, and know two people it happened to. But they are showing up in high-end kitchenware again. Maybe someone like me wondered?...

reply to post by ManFromEurope


Sorry, but as someone who's been reading the what-if section since it started a few months ago, I don't really see a conspiracy here. Randall doesn't make up his own questions; he takes questions from readers and answers them. Besides, he's described himself as someone who likes watching things catch fire and explode, so this is the kind of topic he normally deals with.

Originally posted by diqiushiwojia
reply to post by ManFromEurope

 

Sorry, but as someone who's been reading the what-if section since it started a few months ago, I don't really see a conspiracy here. Randall doesn't make up his own questions; he takes questions from readers and answers them. Besides, he's described himself as someone who likes watching things catch fire and explode, so this is the kind of topic he normally deals with.

Yes, Randall himself isn't suspicious. But the close-timed concurrence makes me curious. I like his reports as they are usually in-depth and well researched and equally usually far away from the normal way of live.

Nevertheless, there is this little person back in my mind who jumps excitedly up and down and tries to point out how well matched these two incidents are - one bombing and one site some days before that explaining how devastating such a bombing could be.

reply to post by stars15k


Exactly! I'm a kitchen-contraption fanatic and despite the many modifications made to modern pressure cookers, me no likey. Not even a little.

Any paper that wants to promote reader safety while engaging in fear porn would publish such an article. I use a pressure cooker a few times a year. It is the only way to make real guiso or asado, where the meat is fork tender and infused with flavor. I am careful to not use pepper flakes, or cook beans (although you can make some amazing beans in under two hours using one). The skins will clog the pressure release and cause a catastrophic failure.

I remember growing up to the sound of a pressure cooker in grandma's kitchen. It was how she made her green chile and meat (using fresh Hatch chiles).

I had posted in another thread that a pressure cooker can explode with just water in it, However, one has to be familiar on how to use one. One exploded on my grandmother once, and my aunt will never use one. I just need one for when I make taco meat.......OH #........name is on a list cuz I make taco meat. Damn...

I like the Potato cannon pictures from the site listed. You have to read the article to find where the link is.

reply to post by rickymouse


We used to make those. We would use hairspray to make "rifles".

We made several, eventually making a canon. We used cast iron pipe welded together, and welded to a trailer. For the propellant we used nitrous oxide. Quite the explosion. For the projectile we used a bowling ball.

After firing it three or four times, I was done. I didn't know what the tensile strength of that pipe was, and didn't trust the amount of beer we had imbibed while making it. But let me tell you.....that was pretty fun.

ETA: for the potato guns we just used an electric igniter to ignite hair spray. The gun was made from PVC plastic.

This means nothing. Pressure cookers are the in thing right now. I know when I bought mine I was a little afraid of it. Years ago before the current safety mechanisms, they could be very dangerous. So I could totally see someone recently asking about it.

If someone did turn one into a bomb that went off via cell phone, they would already have know tech knowledge that they wouldn't need to ask this question.

originally posted by: bigfatfurrytexan
reply to post by rickymouse

 

We used to make those. We would use hairspray to make "rifles".

We made several, eventually making a canon. We used cast iron pipe welded together, and welded to a trailer. For the propellant we used nitrous oxide. Quite the explosion. For the projectile we used a bowling ball.


No2 is not flammable, was it Maybe ascedaline? Nitrous oxide does not make a car faster by burning it works by making the fuel air mixture cold so it burns faster . so you may be confused ...just saying

I forgot about this site, haven't seen it in many years Thanks for reminding me. Saved to bookmarks.