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Comment by Tuna-Fish | Hacker News Reader

The best part of the article is the description of how after he had successfully dipped his entire wet hand into the lead without being burnt, he had to prove that it was really film boiling that protected his hand. By touching the molten lead with a dry finger. Knowing full well he was going to be badly burnt.

A true scientist.

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I just thought it meant he was insane. I don't understand why he used his hands first on the experiment, with or without water. He could have used anything else-- something not attached to him.

For some, once an idea germinates, it burgeons until it is performed.

At some level, this becomes a battle between the mind and the idea, like some kind of stare down.

The scientist couldn't resist the urge of sticking his finger in there.

Neither can the serial killer.

That brings in an entirely different human faculty (morality?). And in terms of serial killers, abnormally functioning. The focus of my comment was on people who are fairly normal in this regard. The comparison is silly without mentioning this.

I think the scientific term for this guy is "Crazy MOFO".

Not clear on the liquid nitrogen test. How exactly did he deposit it into his mouth ? And given the severe irregularity of the tongue, there surely were multiple points of contact not protected by the vaporized nitrogen.

Anyone know of Videos of such an experiment ?

It was a recurring theme. He dipped his hand into molten lead three times, getting burnt on the third time. He walked on coals five times, getting burnt on the fifth. He put liquid nitrogen in is mouth twelve times, seriously damaging is mouth on the twelveth time.

I guess he's an inductive reasoner, not a deductive one.

http://xkcd.com/242/

(as I read it he was doing demonstrations - knowing the risks - and when it went wrong the first time, stopped)

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