Fire! I'll Take You To Burn!
The National Institute of Standards and Technology is a "...federal technology agency that develops and promotes measurement, standards and technology." Which is why they set a dry Christmas tree on fire... (QuickTime movie, 4.5 MB)
Okay, that's not ALL they do... they also keep the Official U.S. Time (and you thought that was Flavor Flav).
Cool! And I thought you needed all that expensive gasoline!
Posted by: Parq | December 22, 2006 at 08:08 AM
i did that once when i was a chistmas guest at my stepbrother's mom's house. she was sort of unhappy about the results. it's amazing how fast an entire christmas tree can turn into fire...and to think, she bought me "fresh fruit for rotting vegetables" as a present that year!
Posted by: dan b | December 22, 2006 at 09:57 AM
Whee!
Merry Christmas!
So this is what the public service does for their Christmas parties. Yes it's all in the name of science of course...
Posted by: mel | December 22, 2006 at 05:54 PM
My first job after high school was at NIST (back when it was still called the National Bureau of Standards). It's located on a huge campus in suburban Maryland and the lab where all the fire research is done is on the most remote, distant edge, a short drive - but a long walk - from the administration building where I worked. It's a shame NIST isn't open to the public anymore -- lots of incredible stuff going on there.
Posted by: Derek | December 23, 2006 at 08:16 AM