Did you know that you can make a rocket out of stuff you might already have around the house? In this tutorial, you'll see how to make a candy rocket using PVC pipes, sorbitol (a sugar substitute) and other fairly common household objects. With just a little work, your sugar r ...more
What Is Ferrofluid? Ferrofluid is a black, solvent-based liquid, that, in the presence of a magnetic field, becomes strongly magnetized. The fluid is made up of nanomagnetic particles coated with an "anti-stick" or surfactant compound, suspended in a "carrier", commonly an or ...more
We've all been there. You wake up early, hungry for breakfast, but not just any breakfast will do. You want bacon and eggs. So, you blindly stumble into your kitchen, underwear-clad, and begin fumbling about with pots and pans. After a few minutes, you fill your pan with delic ...more
Unreal! You have to see this illusion to believe it. Learn how to make this geometric illusion with household materials.
In this video, I'll be demonstrating how anyone can make their own iodine clock reaction with simple over-the-counter chemicals. Video: . Household Materials Needed Hydrochloric acid (for cleaning purposes) Hydrogen peroxide (3%) Sodium hydroxide (drain cleaner) Povidone-iodi ...more
Creating awesomely messy slops of DIY slime and curdled fake blood isn't something new—we even have guides on making Dr. Seuss-friendly Oobleck and the radioactive green ooze that created my childhood favorite Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (minus the radioactive part, of course ...more
The following are 5 simple household pranks you can pull off on friends and family members. All materials needed are common household items such as baking soda, rice, cups, among other things. Some of these pranks are messy so make sure you're pulling them on the right person ...more
Add breathing in your house as another possible danger to your health. If your home is sick, it's possible you could get sick too. The term "sick building syndrome" hit the airwaves years ago as a one size fits all reference to homes and buildings that are just too efficient ...more
Back in the '80s, NASA and the Associated Landscape Contractors of America did a study where they discovered which houseplants were the most effective in purifying the air in space facilities. Though you may not be living in a rocket ship, you can definitely benefit from havin ...more
There are some practical jokes that are funny and will give everyone a good laugh including the person being prank, There there are those pranks that will annoy and infuriate anyone. These 5 pranks will do just that, especially the last one which involves 2 matches and a pen, ...more
Check out this compilation of 5 evil yet simple pranks you can try on friends and family on April 1st. They all require household items so you shouldn't really have a problem collecting all the materials and tools needed to set up these pranks. Watch the video tutorial provide ...more
Do you listen to a lot of music on your smartphone or MP3 player? Ever wished the built-in speaker was louder? You're in luck, because this simple amplifier can increase your volume by 14 decibels and make your device look totally steampunk while you're at it. What You'll Need ...more
The following are 10 simple yet effective pranks you can set up around the house, school or the office on April Fools' Day. You'll won't need any special tools or materials to pull these off. Video: . Step 1: 10 Simple Household Pranks For this first prank, head over to the r ...more
Your closet is an area that holds important things such as keys, glasses, clothes and shoes. However, for some reason, it's always messy. Why is this? I know my closet is messy because I don’t have a lot of time to sit down and organize every little thing in there. I have neve ...more
War leaves a lot of stuff behind. Torn families, delegitimized institutions, mass graves, and unexploded ordinances litter the post occupation landscape. Whether or not you have driven the imperialist out, or are still in the phase of armed resistance, you will need the abilit ...more
Fire. It’s everywhere— always has been. From the Ordovician Period where the first fossil record of fire appears to the present day everyday uses of the Holocene. Today, we abundantly create flames (intentionally or unintentionally) in power plants, extractive metallurgy, i ...more
Learning Style What kind of learner are you? There are three different ways people learn: Auditory learner: A person who learns best by listening. This type of person will benefit best by finding someone to study with, to ask each other questions, and to read the study mater ...more
Just in case you've been living under a rock (AKA without internet) for the past couple of days, here's a quick update: "Gossip Girl" star Taylor Momsen has officially become the new face of Madonna and her daughter Lourdes' new fashion line, Material Girl. Momsen, who dresse ...more
There are a lot of different kinds of locks, and you need different easily accessible household material to pick different kinds. This video focuses on teaching you to pick a padlock, familiar to any who have ever had a locker, with a soda can, something you probably have too ...more
Contrary to popular belief, eliminating household pests from your home can be accomplished without completely bombing your living space with a mess of toxic fumes. Whether you have annoying fruit flies in the kitchen, fleas on your beloved pet or silverfish lurking around your ...more
It's that time again to cover those books. Here's an easy instructional video on using a commmon household material to cover those heavy school books.
How cool are smoke grenades? You toss 'em into the air and they explode into a vision of thick clouds and smoke, preventing your enemy from seeing you as you stealthily sneak past him and shoot him upside the head with a paintball gun. The great thing about smoke grenades is ...more
The wonderful thing about a "farmhouse brunch" theme is that most of the materials you'll need to decorate are natural and quite affordable. From sprigs of flowers to brown string to burlap, you probably already have most of the things you need lying around the house. A light ...more
In this video, Lusitano 9514 will show you how to make a homemade rubber band bow and arrow out of common household items. To do it, you will only need a basic plastic coat hanger, a long rubber band, and some kind of a stick (for the "arrow"), all of which are quite inexpensi ...more
Sick of your flowers dying after just a few short days? Want to give your sweetie a bouquet, but can't afford the high florist prices? Make flowers out of duct tape! That's right, duct tape. This instructional video shows you step by step how to go from household material to d ...more
Everyone wants trendy custom looking destroyed jeans and this video teaches us the best, and most practical way to destroy them yourself at home, avoiding the often huge markups stores can apply to these sorts of items. Taking the jeans that you intend to alter, you take a sim ...more
Do you need to check a scene for prints, or are maybe just curious about the techniques of forensic science? In this video, Robert Bruce Thompson from the Home Scientist unravels the mysterious of forensic fingerprinting using common materials that you may already have sitting ...more
A breakaway chair is one of the best pranks, or one of the easiest effects for your indie film project. A breakable chair can be made out of simple household items, and is very cheap. The biggest material needed is cardboard. So basically, you'll make a cardboard chair, that b ...more
Here is a video tutorial that offers basic tips on crafting a simple claymation character using everyday, household objects. Soften a single chunk of material and pull your claymation character's limbs and head from it. Insert a toothpick (or armature) to stabilize the body an ...more
A clogged drain is not only an unpleasant but seems to happen at the most inconvenient time. Good thing there is a simple way to unclog most minor stoppages with a few household products. Be your own plumber and keep those drains free and flowing. Keep your sink drain flowing ...more
Great Cleaning Products that Won't Leave You Feeling Dirty! After that delicious organic meal you served, you probably head to your kitchen to start washing your dirty dishes. Now before you reach for that dish soap, read whats on the back of its label. That bacteria killing ...more
Tired of having carpet beetles? And no, we're not talking lady bugs! Check out this video for a tutorial on how to rid of them once and for all! Carpet beetles can damage your carpet, furniture, and clothes, so take action to get rid of these household pests. Step 1: Find th ...more
Those old cell phone and laptop batteries staring you in the eye? Don’t worry, recycling them is easy. Step 1: Collect your leftover batteries Collect all your leftover batteries. Rechargeable batteries from cell phones and laptops are especially important to recycle since th ...more
Don’t laugh—butter sculpture is a true art form that originated in Tibet in the 7th century. It is now one of the highlights of many American harvest fairs. Learn how to make your own butter sculpture. You Will Need: * Butter * A cool room * Ice water * Materials for the fram ...more
Learn how to find south, your latitude, and your longitude with only a few household items and some know-how, just by watching this science video tutorial. However, if using the homemade quadrant cited, the precision of your findings will be rather low. Don't worry, you'll be ...more
Looking to go "Green" When I'm looking to do new remodeling projects around the house, I find myself asking, is this Eco-Friendly? Is this main stream America brain-washing me into a "Greener Tomorrow?" I doubt it! Embracing Eco-minded products is not just good for preserving ...more
Home chemistry is great, but what happens when you forget to label your chemicals? How do you know if you turned a clear glass of ammonia into a clear glass of unobtainium? Chemists have a tool for just that. Litmus paper are small bits of filter paper saturated with a reacti ...more
Since the rise of private property and industrial production, modern capitalism has been on a undeniable crash course with Mother Nature. It's no so much that we'll end up murdering the entire planet, but just that the planet will quietly smother us with a pillow of famine, he ...more
Just about every household gadget we own runs on 1.5 volt batteries of one size or another. Wouldn't it be great if you could reuse all of those dead AA, AAA, and D batteries after they've passed on? It turns out you can make a simple circuit called a "Joule Thief" to reanimat ...more
I have an absolutely wonderful time making projects and writing articles for all of you mad scientists! Today, I will bring you behind the scenes for a look at the workbench, tools, and software that make the Mad Science World possible. Above is my beautiful workbench! My who ...more
Recycling your garbage is noble and, in many places, mandatory. But it also can be very confusing. This guide will clear up the rules. Step 1: Check Laws Check the local laws regarding recycling in your town. Step 2: Rinse Rinse glass bottles, plastic containers, and alumi ...more
The warmth of a fire is great while camping or on a cold winter’s night but it can be difficult to get those log roaring. Use materials you have at home to create some easy, fool-proof fire starters that you can use the next time you need to get some logs burning. Save that s ...more
Japanese artist Motoi Yamamoto's medium of choice is none other than your simple household table salt, fragile and completely ephemeral. Yamamoto creates beautiful installations with the medium, salt being a strong symbol in Japanese death culture (as well as several other cul ...more
Simple household pranks are the best to set up because they don't require much to pull off just stuff you already have lying around your home. So if you're interested in pranking someone but don't want to go all out to get the tools and materials necessary this tutorial is for ...more
Even though smartphone audio quality has improved in recent years, the tiny built-in speakers aren't always loud enough. But if you want to turn the volume up to 11, all you need is a few household items to make a rig that will amplify your phone's speakers throughout the whol ...more
So, this idea was born from a necessity to save. My household uses tissues a lot. I have two small kids, so they are extremely useful. The problem with tissues is that they seem to disappear in no time. So, whenever we ran out in-between shopping visits, my family would just u ...more
Tom Friedman. One of my very favorite contemporary artists. Friedman injects the wonder into the humdrum. He creates magic from the unsuspected with his incredible sculptures assembled from simple, everyday materials. His materials have included: toilet paper, drinking straws ...more
Sooner or later you're going to have to deal with a stuck zipper, whether it's on your favorite jacket, backpack, or pair of pants. Simply tugging hard on the zipper tab hardly ever works, but a few things lying around your house might do the trick. To help unstick your zippe ...more
Star-Lord may not have been a household name prior to the release of Guardians of the Galaxy, but you can sure count on a flood of kids and adults alike wanting to dress up as Chris Pratt's character this year for Halloween. The costume is easy enough to put together with a r ...more
Cooking isn't something that interests me much, unless it results in a fast burning fuel and a successful rocket launch! WARNING: Ignition of an incendiary or explosive material may not be legal in your area, so check local laws before attempting. Use of this video content is ...more
Incredible. A company called Berry Plastics (in partnership with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers) has developed a working bomb proof wallpaper. The technology has the ability to protect against both natural disasters and warfare. From Popsci: "X-Flex...is designed for use a ...more
Video: . The following are 5 Simple household pranks you can pull off on friends and family this upcoming April Fools' Day! All the material needed you already have at home so lets get started! Check out the video tutorial for further instruction. Step 1: Frozen Gel Prank Th ...more
Brought to you by Tomcat. Falling snow, warm fireplace, delicious hot cocoa, quiet reading time, mouse. Quick quiz - which one is not like the other? Nothing can ruin a perfectly cozy afternoon in your home like a pest on the loose. With dropping temperatures, you may have so ...more
When the time comes to move home, the logistics of moving your belongings can easily become tiresome, tricky and even disastrous. However, with a little careful planning and foresight, the act of packing can be a simple process. The key to getting the most from your move is in ...more
As a kid, my favorite part of Easter were the days leading up to the holiday, when my family would dye eggs. This became an enormous event in my household, as dozens and dozens of perfectly white eggs would become little oval canvases for arts and crafts. We generally eschewe ...more
Charcoal is a famously prized substance when it comes to food and drink. Grilling aficionados swear by it, and its purifying properties make it the main ingredient in Brita filters (and its alternatives). Powdered charcoal is also a cooking ingredient. Yes, that's right: it c ...more
Our phones have evolved past a simple pocket computer. They have become more like Swiss Army Knives, opening up possibilities that were previously considered Sci-Fi material. Thanks to the recent push into augmented reality, a new world of tools is becoming available to mobile ...more
Google Trends says that "unicorn" costumes are among the Top 5 searches for 2017, holding steady onto the no. 4 spot, trailing only Wonder Woman, Harley Quinn, and clowns. Seeing as how this year, unicorns made the full leap back into our lives, its popularity when it comes to ...more
The Guardians of the Galaxy have to be the most fun superhero team to have at a Halloween party. They dance, they break the rules, and they definitely have the grooviest music. So the Guardians are a great bunch to pick from for your Halloween costume — or even for a themed gr ...more
More than a year after Harley Quinn made her splash in the summer of 2016, her popularity has not waned one bit. According to Google Trends, the Harley Quinn costume remains ever popular, trailing only Wonder Woman in searches. These two DC Comics characters provide a powerful ...more