The Van Allen Belt is a pesky radioactive torus surrounding Earth. Spacecraft operating for extended periods within it must use heavy and expensive radiation hardening techniques just to survive. Tethers Unlimited has proposed a rather daring scheme for circumventing this nuisance: HiVOLT. [more inside]
posted by Casimir on Mar 20, 2011 - 24 comments

How (and how not) to make an omelette inside the eggshell.
posted by Evilspork on Jan 5, 2011 - 39 comments

The Edison Frankenstein, the first movie adaptation of Mary Shelley's story, and the first horror movie, is 100 years old as of last week. The Frankenstein blog has more details.
posted by Artw on Mar 24, 2010 - 15 comments

Spray-On Glass! Immaculate clothing and easy house-cleaning for all! A German company, Nanopool (may need to run through google translator), has developed some sort of mad science/flying car future-style fluid suspension of SiO2 that can be applied to apparently any surface with startling applications. I am entertained by the idea that wax fruit may be replaced by glass fruit... as it were. Additional details, but no real specs here.
posted by LD Feral on Feb 3, 2010 - 53 comments

Theodore Gray, author of the new book Theo Gray's Mad Science, has a personal collection of thousands of samples of elements [previously on MetaFilter]. In his Popular Science column, he has smelted his own titanium and dissolved aluminum. Now, he cuts through steel with bacon.
posted by Eater on Apr 15, 2009 - 31 comments

Don't try this at home. Watch in awe, bedazzlement, and concern as a lone Australian (with no professional training) builds tesla coils, lasers, railguns and exploding wires -- in his own garage. [Previous mad science on MeFi]
posted by Spike on Mar 30, 2007 - 17 comments

Do you feel that science has gone mad? Do you yearn for a time when adventurers were unfailingly courteous and infallibly polite? Well look no further than the adventures of Othar Tryggvassen, Gentleman Adventurer--now available weekly on the radio! Episodes [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]. In case this makes little sense, some background is available here.
posted by vernondalhart on Aug 15, 2006 - 5 comments

Tatjana van Vark: Creative null-A polymaniac.
posted by loquacious on Apr 23, 2006 - 14 comments