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2006/2/18-20 [Science/GlobalWarming] UID:41916 Activity:nil |
2/18 I just replace a bunch of regular bulbs with energy efficient bulbs. Now I have a bunch of old bulbs that I don't ever plan to use. What is a non-wasteful thing to do with them? \_ give them to someone or put them away so you're not in the dark when the new ones break. </commonsense> \_ Break them open with a hammer and smoke meth with them. </nonsense> \_ do this: http://www.cockeyed.com/science/lightbulb/bulb.html |
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www.cockeyed.com/science/lightbulb/bulb.html I spotted three big boxes of lightbulbs at the top of the dumpster and pulled over to take a look. I half-expected the bulbs to be working, because rarely do two bulbs burn out at the same time, but they had all expired. When I was a kid, my father showed my brother and I how to crush the base of a lightbulb and use the glass bulb like a chemistry-set flask. I decided I could break open the bulbs and create some kind of art-project out of them. The first step was to pry off the metal contact at the very bottom of the base. Next I used an ice pick to stab down the center of the bulb. I could usually hear it hiss for a second as air rushed into the bulb. With a break in the base, I pried away the dark glass at the bottom and slid a metal rod into the bulb. By carefully pulling the filament armature to one side, it would break off without shattering the bulb, leaving a little pile of glass and wire inside. I used the empty bulbs to fashion an ultra-fragile chandelier that recalls cell division and the 1970s. If all the bulbs were operating, it would use 15,000 watts. The filament is a tight coil of a tungsten alloy, strong but brittle. I hooked up a stripped electrical cord to the ends of the filament and got the camera ready. Mike moved back, commenting that the wire is so bright because it is white-hot. This prompted Brooke and I to hunt around the lab for our tinted safety goggles. |