1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:09,240 Here come chickens of mass destruction. The mythbusters are firing their chicken gun to 2 00:00:09,240 --> 00:00:17,940 see which does the most damage, thawed or frozen. Doing the laundry can be a killer 3 00:00:17,940 --> 00:00:28,200 chore, but can it actually kill you? Adam and Jamie are getting intimate with a giant 4 00:00:28,200 --> 00:00:33,480 octopus. Could a human give birth to one? No, really, honey, those are octopus hickeys. 5 00:00:33,480 --> 00:00:43,200 Who are the mythbusters? Is my missing an eyebrow? Adam Savage. I always enjoyed seeing Adam in pain. 6 00:00:43,200 --> 00:00:51,800 Oh! And Jamie Heineman. Jamie wants a big girl. Between them more than 30 years special effects 7 00:00:52,400 --> 00:01:15,240 experience. They don't just tell the myths, they put them to the test. Well Jamie, I got an angry chicken, a really big gun and an airplane. What are we working on? 8 00:01:15,840 --> 00:01:33,240 Well we're here testing the myth of the chicken gun. Scientists conduct impact tests by firing bird carcasses from big guns. With more than 3,000 bird strikes each year, aviation authorities spend millions trying to protect the cockpit crews. 9 00:01:33,240 --> 00:01:43,240 We know that the military uses chicken cannons to test windshields, you know, how they would do with a bird hit. What's the myth? 10 00:01:43,240 --> 00:01:58,240 Well the myth says that the British borrowed this technology from NASA to test high speed trains, but they ran into a problem and the problem was that the chickens were going right through the windshields of the trains and even embedding themselves in the seats further down inside the train. 11 00:01:58,240 --> 00:02:09,240 That would be bad. Yeah. Well the British were horrified at this of course and they sent a tape back to NASA asking for help. NASA replied saying, gentlemen, thaw your chickens. 12 00:02:10,240 --> 00:02:22,240 Well so this is what we're testing here today. Not that there is a chicken gun in existence, but whether or not there's a difference between a frozen and a thawed chicken at a couple hundred miles an hour to an airplane windshield. That's correct. 13 00:02:22,240 --> 00:02:44,240 To fire thawed or frozen chickens at high speed, the mythbusters will need a sealed tank and compressor to supply air for the massive gun. An industrial strength butterfly valve will provide an explosive release for firing the carcass down the long barrel, the target, a used fuselage and several spare windshields. 14 00:02:44,240 --> 00:02:50,240 There are loads of stories where one country pokes fun at another, particularly where America is involved. 15 00:02:52,240 --> 00:02:55,240 Mythbusters folklorist Heather Joseph with them. 16 00:02:55,240 --> 00:03:07,240 There are versions of this narrative where it's the Royal Canadian Air Force for example that invents the chicken gun and it's borrowed by American airplane manufacturers who don't know how to use the gun right. 17 00:03:08,240 --> 00:03:16,240 First stop for anyone buying light aircraft spare parts in California is Ken Faith's yard in Sacramento. 18 00:03:16,240 --> 00:03:19,240 Windshields I'm thinking about might be over here, some of them. 19 00:03:19,240 --> 00:03:28,240 Acres of used light aircraft components make it a prime location for Jamie and Adam to find a fuselage and extra windshields. 20 00:03:28,240 --> 00:03:36,240 I love places like this. I can spend hours here looking through the gauges and headsets and seats and you know hats. 21 00:03:36,240 --> 00:03:40,240 Look, a chicken. Looks like a bird already went through it. 22 00:03:40,240 --> 00:03:46,240 It did. What about something like this, Jamie? You know we get double the bang for our buck. 23 00:03:46,240 --> 00:03:48,240 I certainly like the looks of these better. 24 00:03:48,240 --> 00:03:53,240 Aircraft chosen. Now, how to get it home. 25 00:03:54,240 --> 00:04:02,240 Jamie and Adam have been all over Kenny's yard but there's one question they forgot to ask. 26 00:04:02,240 --> 00:04:06,240 An oversight that will come back to haunt them. 27 00:04:08,240 --> 00:04:10,240 Not bad sir, very good. 28 00:04:10,240 --> 00:04:12,240 Never done that before. 29 00:04:14,240 --> 00:04:17,240 Keep going. Good. 30 00:04:17,240 --> 00:04:26,240 Got a lot of stranger things in my pickup at this point so this is another one to add to my list. 31 00:04:29,240 --> 00:04:30,240 Okay, set it down. 32 00:04:30,240 --> 00:04:36,240 Back at the workshop, the plane is stored until the chicken gun is built and ready to fire. 33 00:04:36,240 --> 00:04:41,240 Well, we've got our target so the next step and the hardest step is going to be to set up the chicken gun. 34 00:04:42,240 --> 00:04:51,240 That means that we have to build a large tank to hold a whole lot of high pressure air and rig some kind of a valve to let go all that air all at once to fire a chicken. 35 00:04:51,240 --> 00:04:53,240 It's kind of tricky. It's a lot of work. 36 00:04:54,240 --> 00:04:59,240 And Jamie should know he's solved the compressed air problem once before. 37 00:04:59,240 --> 00:05:00,240 Yeah baby. 38 00:05:02,240 --> 00:05:09,240 He built this seven up vending machine with attitudes for a TV commercial with impressive results. 39 00:05:12,240 --> 00:05:21,240 One of the things that I noticed was that the firing system that we set up required a large valve that delivered a whole bunch of air all at once. 40 00:05:21,240 --> 00:05:27,240 And we thought, wow, this is great. We should use this on the chicken gun because it requires exactly the same thing. 41 00:05:29,240 --> 00:05:33,240 It's a simple, elegant design. It's exactly what I like to see come out of the shop. 42 00:05:33,240 --> 00:05:35,240 It's fun yet deadly. 43 00:05:37,240 --> 00:05:40,240 What else could you possibly want to come out of an effect shop? 44 00:05:42,240 --> 00:05:47,240 So the search for the perfect high pressure tank begins. 45 00:05:50,240 --> 00:05:58,240 The machinery and equipment company in Brisbane, California is a vast supermarket for used tanks. 46 00:05:58,240 --> 00:06:04,240 You can flip this in any direction. That could be upside down. You can hang it from something or leave it like that. 47 00:06:04,240 --> 00:06:06,240 What do you want for this thing? 48 00:06:06,240 --> 00:06:08,240 This is $750. 49 00:06:08,240 --> 00:06:09,240 Okay. 50 00:06:09,240 --> 00:06:10,240 Jamie? 51 00:06:10,240 --> 00:06:14,240 Jamie? It still occurs to me that it's way overkill for what we want to do. 52 00:06:14,240 --> 00:06:19,240 Jamie has made his choice, but Adam is not happy about safety. 53 00:06:19,240 --> 00:06:26,240 He feels that the tank is too sophisticated and that over modification could weaken the structure. 54 00:06:26,240 --> 00:06:28,240 It's like your intuition is that it's not like a bomb. 55 00:06:29,240 --> 00:06:30,240 Yeah. 56 00:06:30,240 --> 00:06:32,240 But if it is, we're all dead and f***ed. 57 00:06:34,240 --> 00:06:36,240 Well, this is true. 58 00:06:36,240 --> 00:06:41,240 So airing against the side of caution, even if your intuition is right, is stupid. 59 00:06:41,240 --> 00:06:44,240 Okay. Well, think about it though before you go off like that. 60 00:06:44,240 --> 00:06:51,240 You know, when everyone who you talk to describes 250 pounds per square inch as being like a bomb, 61 00:06:51,240 --> 00:06:57,240 and Jamie just says, well, I'm not that concerned about it. 62 00:06:57,240 --> 00:06:59,240 It's like, that's not good enough for me. 63 00:06:59,240 --> 00:07:03,240 Adam was just having a little bit of a hissy fit about the safety aspect of this thing. 64 00:07:03,240 --> 00:07:06,240 And, you know, I don't hold it against him at all. 65 00:07:06,240 --> 00:07:13,240 The possibility of having the tank rupture and somebody get hurt is something that we should be very concerned about. 66 00:07:13,240 --> 00:07:15,240 However, I don't think it's going to blow up. 67 00:07:16,240 --> 00:07:18,240 But Adam's not convinced. 68 00:07:18,240 --> 00:07:21,240 He's called around town and found another tank. 69 00:07:21,240 --> 00:07:25,240 What I've got, I found a guy who's got one, it's about half that size. 70 00:07:25,240 --> 00:07:28,240 I think it's just perfect for us up in Petaluma. 71 00:07:28,240 --> 00:07:29,240 Okay. 72 00:07:29,240 --> 00:07:31,240 I need some cash and I need the keys to the car, Dad. 73 00:07:31,240 --> 00:07:32,240 Okay. 74 00:07:34,240 --> 00:07:35,240 Five hard. 75 00:07:35,240 --> 00:07:36,240 All right. 76 00:07:36,240 --> 00:07:38,240 Drive carefully. 77 00:07:38,240 --> 00:07:39,240 Vegas, baby! 78 00:07:45,240 --> 00:07:50,240 Adam's ideal tank is waiting out back at Masseleon Sun. 79 00:07:50,240 --> 00:07:51,240 What's it rated for? 80 00:07:51,240 --> 00:07:53,240 It's 200 PS. 81 00:07:53,240 --> 00:07:54,240 That is good. 82 00:07:56,240 --> 00:07:57,240 I love it. 83 00:07:57,240 --> 00:07:58,240 Let's do it. 84 00:07:59,240 --> 00:08:00,240 That's it. 85 00:08:00,240 --> 00:08:07,240 Meanwhile, Jamie has found an oversized butterfly valve that will release the pressurized air. 86 00:08:07,240 --> 00:08:13,240 He also ordered 20 feet of quarter inch steel pipe for a 10 inch diameter barrel. 87 00:08:13,240 --> 00:08:14,240 Hey, Savage. 88 00:08:14,240 --> 00:08:15,240 Yo, Heiney. 89 00:08:15,240 --> 00:08:17,240 So, here she is. 90 00:08:17,240 --> 00:08:20,240 Even Jamie is impressed with Adam's purchase. 91 00:08:20,240 --> 00:08:25,240 It's an ideal tank for storing enough compressed air to propel chickens. 92 00:08:25,240 --> 00:08:27,240 I recognize that your intuition, like mine is... 93 00:08:27,240 --> 00:08:31,240 It appears Adam has a little something to get off his chest. 94 00:08:31,240 --> 00:08:33,240 I didn't mean to call you stupid this morning. 95 00:08:33,240 --> 00:08:34,240 Did you call me stupid? 96 00:08:34,240 --> 00:08:35,240 I didn't. 97 00:08:35,240 --> 00:08:38,240 I said stupid and I was talking to you, but I wasn't calling you stupid. 98 00:08:38,240 --> 00:08:40,240 Nobody ever calls me stupid. 99 00:08:40,240 --> 00:08:42,240 I've called you stupid, but not to your face. 100 00:08:42,240 --> 00:08:43,240 Not in the living room. 101 00:08:51,240 --> 00:08:56,240 Jamie's using a plasma cutter, a high energy precision tool to cut the pipe to length. 102 00:08:56,240 --> 00:08:59,240 And to make a hole in the tank for the barrel. 103 00:09:02,240 --> 00:09:08,240 For the explosive release of air, the butterfly valve will be fitted between two lengths of pipe. 104 00:09:08,240 --> 00:09:12,240 Adam's job is to fit the short end to the tank. 105 00:09:16,240 --> 00:09:21,240 I just dropped the temple of my glasses here into the tank. 106 00:09:21,240 --> 00:09:24,240 The really heavy, big tank with hole in it. 107 00:09:25,240 --> 00:09:27,240 Got some chewing gum? 108 00:09:30,240 --> 00:09:35,240 Just goes to show where there's a will, there's a way. 109 00:09:35,240 --> 00:09:39,240 There we go. One glasses temple. 110 00:09:39,240 --> 00:09:41,240 Now I can get to work. 111 00:09:46,240 --> 00:09:48,240 The big valve is the most critical aspect. 112 00:09:48,240 --> 00:09:53,240 It's the only mechanism standing between a great shot and a weak one. 113 00:09:53,240 --> 00:09:57,240 When we pressure this tank up, this can hold 250 psi. 114 00:09:57,240 --> 00:10:03,240 We'll get it to about 200 and then yank on this and chickens will be flying. 115 00:10:04,240 --> 00:10:07,240 The air compressor is connected to the tank. 116 00:10:07,240 --> 00:10:12,240 Time for a chicken free test blast at 200 pounds per square inch of pressure. 117 00:10:12,240 --> 00:10:13,240 Stand clear. 118 00:10:13,240 --> 00:10:15,240 There goes the neighborhood. 119 00:10:15,240 --> 00:10:17,240 Give us a countdown then. 120 00:10:17,240 --> 00:10:19,240 Two, three, one. 121 00:10:24,240 --> 00:10:30,240 It looks impressive, yet the white smoke is simply water vapor forming droplets 122 00:10:30,240 --> 00:10:34,240 when the previously hot compressed air meets the cool. 123 00:10:34,240 --> 00:10:37,240 It feels like a Mack truck just drove by me. 124 00:10:37,240 --> 00:10:41,240 I just wonder what a chicken breaking the speed of sound sounds like. 125 00:10:53,240 --> 00:10:56,240 If you're going to let your chickens fly free range, 126 00:10:56,240 --> 00:11:00,240 there's no better place to stock up than Tarantino's. 127 00:11:00,240 --> 00:11:06,240 Tony's family has been in poultry for years and he's heard all the chicken stories. 128 00:11:06,240 --> 00:11:10,240 Tony, do you think there'd be any difference between whether they used frozen or thawed chickens? 129 00:11:10,240 --> 00:11:13,240 I would imagine frozen would be harder. 130 00:11:13,240 --> 00:11:15,240 They could do more damage. 131 00:11:15,240 --> 00:11:16,240 Do a little bit more damage. 132 00:11:16,240 --> 00:11:19,240 I think the fresh just might kind of splat. 133 00:11:19,240 --> 00:11:23,240 So if you were in a plane, you'd rather hit a thawed chicken than a frozen one? 134 00:11:23,240 --> 00:11:24,240 Correct, yes. 135 00:11:24,240 --> 00:11:27,240 I don't imagine there's many frozen chickens at 2,000 feet. 136 00:11:27,240 --> 00:11:30,240 No, no maybe it's cold up there. 137 00:11:30,240 --> 00:11:38,240 And freezing down here, their chickens of choice, eight rock hard four pounders. 138 00:11:38,240 --> 00:11:44,240 The key to launching chickens explosively is to ensure they fit the barrel snugly. 139 00:11:44,240 --> 00:11:48,240 Adam places them in a mold of expanding rigid foam. 140 00:11:48,240 --> 00:11:51,240 The result is a sleeve called a sabal. 141 00:11:51,240 --> 00:11:55,240 It enables projectiles to be fired from weapons of a larger caliber. 142 00:11:55,240 --> 00:12:00,240 So once the foam sets up and gets rigid, what we end up with is this perfect sort of molded cartridge 143 00:12:00,240 --> 00:12:04,240 for the chicken that equals the size of the barrel and allows us to propel it out. 144 00:12:04,240 --> 00:12:08,240 I would say that what you got here is a potential supersonic chicken. 145 00:12:09,240 --> 00:12:18,240 Just a few bolts to tighten and this very potent chicken gun is ready for its first outing. 146 00:12:21,240 --> 00:12:28,240 Bringing up the rear is Bruce Bradford, a man who knows all about gigantic guns. 147 00:12:28,240 --> 00:12:31,240 He's the designer of one called Second Amendment. 148 00:12:31,240 --> 00:12:39,240 At the annual Pumpkin Chunkin in Delaware, these huge air guns blast pumpkins nearly a mile. 149 00:12:39,240 --> 00:12:50,240 With Bruce, the 2002 and three world champion, who better to consult on the business of big barrels? 150 00:12:50,240 --> 00:12:55,240 I think it's a great looking gun. It's got all the basics. It's got a tank, it's got a valve and it's got a barrel. 151 00:12:55,240 --> 00:13:02,240 Excellent job of welding by Adam, that's for sure. And it's going to shoot a chicken at high velocity. 152 00:13:03,240 --> 00:13:07,240 The countdown to chicken blast off has begun. 153 00:13:08,240 --> 00:13:16,240 Unsure of the chicken gun's firepower, for safety reasons, they sit the plane inside their blast chamber. 154 00:13:16,240 --> 00:13:18,240 I'll lean it right there. 155 00:13:18,240 --> 00:13:25,240 To check their aim, they need a test shot. So a sheet of lexin is positioned to protect the windshield. 156 00:13:25,240 --> 00:13:31,240 So our first test is a frozen chicken. Let's see here. 157 00:13:31,240 --> 00:13:36,240 The tank is primed to 120 pounds per square inch of air pressure. 158 00:13:37,240 --> 00:13:41,240 There we go. That is one loaded chicken gun. 159 00:13:41,240 --> 00:13:42,240 I'm good. 160 00:13:42,240 --> 00:13:43,240 All right. 161 00:13:43,240 --> 00:13:46,240 We are arming the chicken cannon. 162 00:13:46,240 --> 00:13:48,240 I'm going to stand back here. 163 00:13:48,240 --> 00:13:52,240 All right. Three, two, one. 164 00:13:54,240 --> 00:13:55,240 All right. 165 00:13:55,240 --> 00:14:00,240 I tried. I don't get it right now. I'm good man. 166 00:14:00,240 --> 00:14:07,240 Out of the barrel and free of the sabote, the frozen chicken clocked 121 miles an hour. 167 00:14:07,240 --> 00:14:11,240 Wow. So much for the blast shield. 168 00:14:11,240 --> 00:14:19,240 So even if you're flooring with a rated plexiglass shield in front of your plane, you're in some serious danger. 169 00:14:19,240 --> 00:14:21,240 Where's the chicken? 170 00:14:21,240 --> 00:14:22,240 I'm not sure. 171 00:14:30,240 --> 00:14:34,240 You know, who knows what the damage to the neighbors would have been if this had gotten out. 172 00:14:36,240 --> 00:14:39,240 You know that's about one of the more destructive things that I've ever done. 173 00:14:41,240 --> 00:14:42,240 That was cool. 174 00:14:42,240 --> 00:14:46,240 Yeah, that was exceedingly cool. Let's do a thawed. 175 00:14:47,240 --> 00:14:53,240 A replacement windshield is fitted for another shot. This time, a thawed chicken. 176 00:14:53,240 --> 00:14:58,240 The big question, will it cause as much damage as a frozen one? 177 00:14:59,240 --> 00:15:02,240 Three, two, one. 178 00:15:03,240 --> 00:15:04,240 Whoa! 179 00:15:08,240 --> 00:15:13,240 Under the same pressure, the thawed chicken was marginally slower than the frozen one, 180 00:15:13,240 --> 00:15:18,240 but still reached a destructive 99.5 miles an hour. 181 00:15:20,240 --> 00:15:26,240 For the next shot, the tank pressure will be reduced by more than half, down to 50 psi. 182 00:15:26,240 --> 00:15:31,240 They're hoping to see a difference between frozen and thawed at a slower speed. 183 00:15:31,240 --> 00:15:35,240 And three, two, one. 184 00:15:38,240 --> 00:15:44,240 Another frozen bird is blasted. This one at 128 miles an hour. 185 00:15:44,240 --> 00:15:50,240 Jamie, there was no difference in speed between 120 psi and 50 psi. 186 00:15:51,240 --> 00:15:56,240 It may just be that initial blast. Like it's probably within the first eighth of the valve opening. 187 00:15:56,240 --> 00:15:58,240 It's gone or something, you know. 188 00:15:58,240 --> 00:16:06,240 The rapid air release is crucial. Bruce's winning blast flew a 10-pound pumpkin almost 4,000 feet. 189 00:16:06,240 --> 00:16:10,240 Sometimes we can shoot just as far as shooting 75 pounds as we put 200 pounds in. 190 00:16:10,240 --> 00:16:11,240 Really? 191 00:16:11,240 --> 00:16:12,240 Yep. 192 00:16:12,240 --> 00:16:15,240 Just the timing and the way the valve opens. 193 00:16:15,240 --> 00:16:16,240 Wow. 194 00:16:17,240 --> 00:16:22,240 Once more into the breach for the thawed bird at the 50 psi mark. 195 00:16:22,240 --> 00:16:23,240 Three, two, one. 196 00:16:25,240 --> 00:16:30,240 It's clock speed, a shattering 132 miles an hour. 197 00:16:30,240 --> 00:16:36,240 You know, if anything, the thawed chicken leaves a bigger hole. 198 00:16:36,240 --> 00:16:37,240 Which would kind of make sense. 199 00:16:37,240 --> 00:16:43,240 It would. Its impact spreads out as it hits, but it's still the same amount of mass going through the same amount of space. 200 00:16:44,240 --> 00:16:47,240 Right now, they're all going right through the windshield. 201 00:16:47,240 --> 00:16:51,240 So, assuming that there is a new difference and we want to find out whether there is, 202 00:16:51,240 --> 00:16:56,240 we're going to have to lower the speed down to find out exactly where that butter zone is. 203 00:16:58,240 --> 00:17:04,240 They cut the pressure again to just 25 psi for the frozen valve. 204 00:17:05,240 --> 00:17:06,240 And then thawed. 205 00:17:07,240 --> 00:17:13,240 The MythBusters awesome outcome. All their flying poultry, highly destructive. 206 00:17:14,240 --> 00:17:15,240 I'm totally shocked. 207 00:17:15,240 --> 00:17:17,240 Does that mean that the myth is busted? 208 00:17:17,240 --> 00:17:20,240 I think that would mean that the myth is definitely busted. 209 00:17:21,240 --> 00:17:22,240 But wait, there's a hitch. 210 00:17:24,240 --> 00:17:29,240 Those light aircraft windshields they bought are not rated for bird strikes. 211 00:17:31,240 --> 00:17:34,240 Well, Jimmy, that's the biggest screw up we've ever done. 212 00:17:34,240 --> 00:17:38,240 I mean, we're supposed to test the difference between frozen and thawed chickens and the Piper Cherokee. 213 00:17:38,240 --> 00:17:41,240 Its windscreen is not even rated to be smacked into by anything. 214 00:17:42,240 --> 00:17:47,240 Yeah, it was like trying to check the difference between a 22 and a 357 by shooting it at a cardboard box. 215 00:17:47,240 --> 00:17:53,240 I mean, it looked really destructive. It looked great, but it didn't really tell us anything. 216 00:17:53,240 --> 00:17:54,240 Yeah. 217 00:17:54,240 --> 00:17:57,240 For the moment, the MythBusters are stymied. 218 00:17:57,240 --> 00:18:02,240 But already they're formulating a new plan to measure the chicken's force of impact. 219 00:18:02,240 --> 00:18:05,240 We'll tell you about it a little later in the show. 220 00:18:05,240 --> 00:18:08,240 It automatically deboned the chicken, didn't it? 221 00:18:12,240 --> 00:18:14,240 Now, here's a twisted tale. 222 00:18:14,240 --> 00:18:17,240 It involves a strange proposition in the park. 223 00:18:17,240 --> 00:18:19,240 Does the dain have to pee? 224 00:18:19,240 --> 00:18:22,240 And the MythBusters airing their dirty laundry. 225 00:18:22,240 --> 00:18:25,240 Does he go up and in and then we lift him up? 226 00:18:25,240 --> 00:18:26,240 No. 227 00:18:26,240 --> 00:18:30,240 While building the appliance right of Frankenstein. 228 00:18:30,240 --> 00:18:32,240 What about to blow the lid right off this pump? 229 00:18:32,240 --> 00:18:37,240 You are about to get a load of the myth that defies the imagination. 230 00:18:37,240 --> 00:18:39,240 The Killer Laundry. 231 00:18:44,240 --> 00:18:49,240 In 1998, a Charlottesville man attempting to do a large amount of laundry 232 00:18:49,240 --> 00:18:53,240 stuffed his washing machine with 50 pounds of clothes. 233 00:18:53,240 --> 00:18:56,240 So he wants to get all of his laundry into the machine at once. 234 00:18:56,240 --> 00:19:00,240 So he takes this 50 pounds of laundry and he's jumping up and down on top of the machine 235 00:19:00,240 --> 00:19:04,240 to get it in there when his foot accidentally kicks the on button. 236 00:19:04,240 --> 00:19:06,240 He sort of fell into the machine. 237 00:19:06,240 --> 00:19:09,240 His legs got stuck by the laundry and he banged into the shelf. 238 00:19:09,240 --> 00:19:12,240 He hit some bleach. Bleach fell blind to him. 239 00:19:12,240 --> 00:19:14,240 Apparently he might even have swallowed some. 240 00:19:14,240 --> 00:19:17,240 At this point, his dog runs in to see what the commotion is about. 241 00:19:17,240 --> 00:19:20,240 And as he spins around, this time he hits the shelf again 242 00:19:20,240 --> 00:19:22,240 and some baking soda pours out. 243 00:19:22,240 --> 00:19:25,240 This startles the dog who then urinates on the baking soda. 244 00:19:25,240 --> 00:19:30,240 Causing a small explosion. At which point the laundry machine went into its spin cycle 245 00:19:30,240 --> 00:19:34,240 turning him about 70 miles an hour where he smacked his head into his shelf and died immediately. 246 00:19:34,240 --> 00:19:36,240 Well that sounds ridiculous. 247 00:19:37,240 --> 00:19:42,240 Now, we do need some dog pee. But let's not rush into that. 248 00:19:42,240 --> 00:19:45,240 Start simple. Buy a washing machine. 249 00:19:45,240 --> 00:19:48,240 What's the largest one that you would have in stock? 250 00:19:48,240 --> 00:19:49,240 The large one. 251 00:19:49,240 --> 00:19:51,240 Is that heavy duty? 252 00:19:51,240 --> 00:19:53,240 Is it for capacity? 253 00:19:53,240 --> 00:19:56,240 Do you think that this could hold 50 pounds of clothes? 254 00:19:56,240 --> 00:19:57,240 Oh yeah. 255 00:19:57,240 --> 00:19:58,240 Really? 256 00:19:58,240 --> 00:19:59,240 Yeah, I think. 257 00:19:59,240 --> 00:20:00,240 Alright. 258 00:20:00,240 --> 00:20:02,240 So what do you think, Adam? 259 00:20:02,240 --> 00:20:04,240 My vote would be this one. 260 00:20:04,240 --> 00:20:06,240 Yeah, for the volume. 261 00:20:06,240 --> 00:20:07,240 Okay. 262 00:20:09,240 --> 00:20:16,240 We of course went for super capacity plus from a major maker of washing machines 263 00:20:16,240 --> 00:20:19,240 and hopefully it'll be as powerful as about anything that's out there. 264 00:20:19,240 --> 00:20:23,240 And already one part of this myth is looking a little busted. 265 00:20:23,240 --> 00:20:28,240 The very first precept of the myth which is that he's standing in a washing machine that's running 266 00:20:28,240 --> 00:20:34,240 is probably impossible. All the washing machines they have in here have cut off switches when the lid is open. 267 00:20:34,240 --> 00:20:37,240 But this visit has proved one thing. 268 00:20:37,240 --> 00:20:41,240 Adam Savage can never leave a junk shop empty-handed. 269 00:20:43,240 --> 00:20:48,240 I'm thinking of like, you know, maybe having it a way that my kids can get the toys out of their closet. 270 00:20:48,240 --> 00:20:55,240 Next on our laundry list, 50 pounds of clothes. 271 00:20:55,240 --> 00:20:59,240 Adam's favorite thrift store has what we need. 272 00:20:59,240 --> 00:21:03,240 Men's, women's, children's, you know, lingerie. 273 00:21:03,240 --> 00:21:06,240 You can get a lot of lingerie for 50 pounds. 274 00:21:06,240 --> 00:21:09,240 We actually use a lot of lingerie on this show. 275 00:21:09,240 --> 00:21:11,240 We have actually. 276 00:21:14,240 --> 00:21:17,240 Okay, let's see how much we got there. 277 00:21:17,240 --> 00:21:19,240 You got the scale? 278 00:21:20,240 --> 00:21:22,240 There we go. I say we're good. 50 pounds. 279 00:21:22,240 --> 00:21:25,240 50 pounds of lingerie is a lot bigger than I thought it was. 280 00:21:25,240 --> 00:21:29,240 I mean, it's like two full, hard to lift garbage bags of clothes. 281 00:21:29,240 --> 00:21:32,240 I know we're not going to get all of that in the washing machine. 282 00:21:32,240 --> 00:21:34,240 You know, maybe about half of it at most. 283 00:21:34,240 --> 00:21:36,240 And that wouldn't wash it very well. 284 00:21:39,240 --> 00:21:43,240 The guys construct a mini laundry in the workshop. 285 00:21:43,240 --> 00:21:49,240 Just like in the myth, bleach and baking soda are placed on the shelf. 286 00:21:49,240 --> 00:21:51,240 As far as I can tell, it's working. 287 00:21:51,240 --> 00:21:54,240 The machine runs like a dream. 288 00:21:55,240 --> 00:22:01,240 But they need to disable the cutoff switch so it can spin with the lid open. 289 00:22:01,240 --> 00:22:02,240 Go ahead. 290 00:22:02,240 --> 00:22:04,240 So is this the moment of truth? 291 00:22:05,240 --> 00:22:07,240 See, it doesn't even want to spin me around. 292 00:22:07,240 --> 00:22:09,240 Like, I can go like this. 293 00:22:09,240 --> 00:22:11,240 I can stop it. 294 00:22:11,240 --> 00:22:12,240 Alright. 295 00:22:12,240 --> 00:22:14,240 Okay, myth busted. Are we're done? 296 00:22:15,240 --> 00:22:16,240 No. 297 00:22:16,240 --> 00:22:20,240 I think the next thing is to get 50 pounds of clothes and see if we can even get this thing to run with that. 298 00:22:20,240 --> 00:22:22,240 Okay, let's load it up. 299 00:22:28,240 --> 00:22:29,240 Oh, yeah. 300 00:22:29,240 --> 00:22:30,240 Bring it on. 301 00:22:30,240 --> 00:22:32,240 It's not in the machine. 302 00:22:32,240 --> 00:22:37,240 Well, I guess this is why the guy started standing on it. 303 00:22:37,240 --> 00:22:41,240 But, I mean, we still have 10 pounds left. 304 00:22:41,240 --> 00:22:44,240 And I can't even make my feet into it. 305 00:22:44,240 --> 00:22:50,240 I mean, he's supposed to have sunk all the way to the bottom. 306 00:22:51,240 --> 00:22:52,240 Alright. 307 00:22:52,240 --> 00:22:55,240 Let's see if the machine will wash it. 308 00:22:56,240 --> 00:22:57,240 It wants to spin. 309 00:22:57,240 --> 00:22:59,240 It really does. 310 00:23:00,240 --> 00:23:01,240 It's not even spinning. 311 00:23:01,240 --> 00:23:02,240 It's not agitating. 312 00:23:02,240 --> 00:23:03,240 It's not doing anything. 313 00:23:03,240 --> 00:23:08,240 So, the only option open to us now is to pull all this out, start pulling the guts out, 314 00:23:08,240 --> 00:23:12,240 and just make this thing spin hell or high water, no matter what the hell is it. 315 00:23:13,240 --> 00:23:17,240 It's the moment Jamie and Adam have secretly been waiting for. 316 00:23:18,240 --> 00:23:21,240 We're talking about taking stuff apart. 317 00:23:22,240 --> 00:23:23,240 What is that? 318 00:23:23,240 --> 00:23:24,240 That can't be that necessary. 319 00:23:24,240 --> 00:23:25,240 I don't recognize it. 320 00:23:28,240 --> 00:23:30,240 This is the clutch, man. 321 00:23:30,240 --> 00:23:32,240 I think you're probably right. 322 00:23:32,240 --> 00:23:34,240 I don't see any belts right off the end. 323 00:23:34,240 --> 00:23:37,240 Why don't we run it through a light cycle right now? 324 00:23:37,240 --> 00:23:38,240 Okay. 325 00:23:38,240 --> 00:23:39,240 And observe it. 326 00:23:39,240 --> 00:23:40,240 It should be pretty cool. 327 00:23:40,240 --> 00:23:43,240 How many of you have ever seen a washing machine naked? 328 00:23:43,240 --> 00:23:49,240 To prevent accidents, like the one in the myth, the machine has an emergency clutch. 329 00:23:49,240 --> 00:23:52,240 It stops the wash cycle before the motor burns out. 330 00:23:52,240 --> 00:23:59,240 To make this machine spin buster, the crash test dummy, the clutch will have to be bypassed. 331 00:23:59,240 --> 00:24:00,240 Yeah. 332 00:24:01,240 --> 00:24:07,240 Well, we have done what we can to modify this machine to get rid of a clutch and get rid of, 333 00:24:07,240 --> 00:24:10,240 actually, every safety feature it possesses. 334 00:24:10,240 --> 00:24:16,240 Now we'll find out if it is in fact strong enough to do any damage once those have all been overridden. 335 00:24:16,240 --> 00:24:21,240 The washing machine for the hell is about to be unleashed upon the world. 336 00:24:23,240 --> 00:24:28,240 Before Buster and his dirty clothes go back in, a test run. 337 00:24:28,240 --> 00:24:29,240 It's spinning. 338 00:24:30,240 --> 00:24:32,240 It's going real fast. 339 00:24:33,240 --> 00:24:39,240 But despite 630 revolutions per minute, they can stop it with their bare hands. 340 00:24:46,240 --> 00:24:49,240 That was the thing that was going to break when we removed the clutch. 341 00:24:49,240 --> 00:24:51,240 That was probably that little plastic. 342 00:24:51,240 --> 00:24:52,240 That's that little piece of plastic. 343 00:24:52,240 --> 00:24:54,240 So the motor has, like, almost no torque at all. 344 00:24:54,240 --> 00:25:01,240 This so-called washing machine from hell turns out to be, well, just another washing machine. 345 00:25:01,240 --> 00:25:06,240 This is an example of one of the most powerful consumer-level motors you can get in a washing machine. 346 00:25:06,240 --> 00:25:11,240 This myth is totally busted for the third or fourth time today. I can't even remember which. 347 00:25:11,240 --> 00:25:20,240 The myth is busted. However, as is our way here on MythBusters, we are going to show what would happen if it did have enough power. 348 00:25:20,240 --> 00:25:26,240 So this once-humble, super-capacity washing machine will mutate even further. 349 00:25:27,240 --> 00:25:32,240 It's goodbye baby regular motor, Hello Big Daddy. 350 00:25:33,240 --> 00:25:41,240 They're upgrading to a motor from an electric car. A motor Jamie just happened to have lying around. 351 00:25:41,240 --> 00:25:43,240 These motors are 10 horsepower as well. 352 00:25:43,240 --> 00:25:46,240 They will literally pick this thing up and throw it. 353 00:25:46,240 --> 00:25:51,240 They will toss the dummy across the room or something like that. These propelled a full-sized electric car. 354 00:25:51,240 --> 00:25:54,240 So they're not something to be toyed with. 355 00:25:54,240 --> 00:25:56,240 Attaching the motor will be tricky. 356 00:26:01,240 --> 00:26:04,240 But Jamie has come up with a brilliant solution. 357 00:26:11,240 --> 00:26:15,240 Now the spin cycle is powered like a motorcycle. 358 00:26:15,240 --> 00:26:20,240 The car motor is connected to the main drive shaft by a motorcycle chain. 359 00:26:20,240 --> 00:26:22,240 There we go. Good. 360 00:26:22,240 --> 00:26:26,240 We have a very solid plan for making this thing go like hell. 361 00:26:26,240 --> 00:26:31,240 Jamie wheels in a special guest, the robot he built for a 7-up commercial. 362 00:26:31,240 --> 00:26:36,240 By plugging the washing machine into the robot's power source and speed controller, 363 00:26:36,240 --> 00:26:39,240 he'll be able to easily direct the washer's spin speed. 364 00:26:39,240 --> 00:26:48,240 What that gives us is a tremendous amount of power that we can control from relatively slow to as fast as it'll handle before it flies apart. 365 00:26:48,240 --> 00:26:51,240 This will fly apart at some point. 366 00:26:52,240 --> 00:26:59,240 The machine is not built for this kind of power and we'll probably find another weak link and another and another 367 00:26:59,240 --> 00:27:06,240 until we end up having no washing machine left and all some big massive motor and a drum that we've made from scratch 368 00:27:06,240 --> 00:27:08,240 just so we can swing the dummy around. 369 00:27:08,240 --> 00:27:14,240 Right now this thing doesn't really resemble a washing machine anymore so much as it does an electric car. 370 00:27:15,240 --> 00:27:18,240 Time to bring the Frankenwasher to life. 371 00:27:19,240 --> 00:27:21,240 This should be live so watch out there. 372 00:27:27,240 --> 00:27:29,240 Is it faster or slower than the spin cycle? 373 00:27:30,240 --> 00:27:33,240 Alex, pretty close to the spin cycle for me. 374 00:27:33,240 --> 00:27:36,240 It looks a little bit slower but it looks pretty close. 375 00:27:36,240 --> 00:27:41,240 Okay, I wasn't going all the way up yet so we've done it. 376 00:27:41,240 --> 00:27:42,240 We've got it. 377 00:27:42,240 --> 00:27:44,240 Okay, now I'll power it off. 378 00:27:44,240 --> 00:27:50,240 With the washing machine ready to go, it's time to tackle the task that can be delayed no longer. 379 00:27:55,240 --> 00:28:00,240 Does dog pee plus baking soda equal explosion? 380 00:28:00,240 --> 00:28:05,240 According to the amazing killer washing machine story, it does. 381 00:28:05,240 --> 00:28:08,240 Jamie and Adam need some willing donor dogs. 382 00:28:08,240 --> 00:28:10,240 Does the dain have to pee? 383 00:28:10,240 --> 00:28:11,240 He just went. 384 00:28:11,240 --> 00:28:16,240 Oh no, where's the likely tree? Any ideas where the most likely tree is? 385 00:28:16,240 --> 00:28:18,240 That garbage can right there. 386 00:28:18,240 --> 00:28:19,240 That garbage can? 387 00:28:19,240 --> 00:28:20,240 Does that stop him pee on the ground? 388 00:28:20,240 --> 00:28:22,240 Excellent, okay, alright. 389 00:28:22,240 --> 00:28:25,240 Jamie is sticking with the cup and stick method. 390 00:28:25,240 --> 00:28:30,240 While Adam is confident the foil pans will produce the gold. 391 00:28:30,240 --> 00:28:34,240 And sure enough, here's our first customer. 392 00:28:34,240 --> 00:28:39,240 Jamie, he was going to go in my pans. You messed it all up. 393 00:28:39,240 --> 00:28:42,240 Here, you take this camera and you go over there. 394 00:28:42,240 --> 00:28:44,240 You and I will stay right here. 395 00:28:44,240 --> 00:28:49,240 Then a dog loving friend of the Mythbusters tries a rear guard action. 396 00:28:52,240 --> 00:28:58,240 Meanwhile, out on the park's perimeter, a lone wolf is on patrol. 397 00:28:59,240 --> 00:29:02,240 Is your dog getting close or? 398 00:29:02,240 --> 00:29:03,240 No. 399 00:29:03,240 --> 00:29:05,240 He's not putting out. 400 00:29:05,240 --> 00:29:08,240 Then a bounty hunter nabs a sample. 401 00:29:08,240 --> 00:29:12,240 Wow, thank you. Good job. 402 00:29:12,240 --> 00:29:19,240 Seconds later, the persistent tailing by our panhandler brings up a speck of gold too. 403 00:29:19,240 --> 00:29:25,240 Here we go. Beautiful. Excellent. 404 00:29:25,240 --> 00:29:28,240 That's not much, but that's all that I need. 405 00:29:28,240 --> 00:29:30,240 I got it. 406 00:29:34,240 --> 00:29:40,240 At the workshop, Buster is hauled up for another traumatic test of endurance. 407 00:29:40,240 --> 00:29:46,240 Even for a crash test dummy, he's constantly outside his comfort zone. 408 00:29:46,240 --> 00:29:54,240 The Mythbusters have dropped him, crushed him, blasted him, and still... 409 00:29:54,240 --> 00:29:56,240 Buster survived. 410 00:29:56,240 --> 00:29:59,240 The dummy soldiers on till another day. 411 00:29:59,240 --> 00:30:09,240 But even lifting Buster's 180-pound frame into the washing machine is causing aggravation. 412 00:30:09,240 --> 00:30:10,240 Grab one of his feet. 413 00:30:10,240 --> 00:30:12,240 Tell me what you're doing. 414 00:30:12,240 --> 00:30:14,240 If you followed me, it would all happen equally. 415 00:30:14,240 --> 00:30:15,240 We've got a forklift here. 416 00:30:15,240 --> 00:30:18,240 His feet go up and in and then we lift him up. 417 00:30:18,240 --> 00:30:19,240 No. 418 00:30:19,240 --> 00:30:20,240 No. 419 00:30:20,240 --> 00:30:21,240 We've got a forklift. 420 00:30:21,240 --> 00:30:24,240 You're still complaining about how heavy he is. 421 00:30:24,240 --> 00:30:25,240 We've got a forklift set right here. 422 00:30:25,240 --> 00:30:26,240 Oh, come on. Come on. 423 00:30:26,240 --> 00:30:28,240 In two minutes we'll be done. 424 00:30:28,240 --> 00:30:30,240 He's swinging the butt all the way upside down. 425 00:30:30,240 --> 00:30:31,240 Like this. 426 00:30:31,240 --> 00:30:33,240 There's a camera out of there. 427 00:30:33,240 --> 00:30:34,240 Yeah. 428 00:30:34,240 --> 00:30:35,240 Yeah. 429 00:30:35,240 --> 00:30:36,240 Now we lift him. 430 00:30:36,240 --> 00:30:37,240 Oh, wait. 431 00:30:37,240 --> 00:30:39,240 He's copping a field, right? 432 00:30:39,240 --> 00:30:40,240 There we go. 433 00:30:40,240 --> 00:30:41,240 Buster! 434 00:30:45,240 --> 00:30:46,240 See? 435 00:30:46,240 --> 00:30:47,240 See? 436 00:30:47,240 --> 00:30:48,240 We're done. 437 00:30:50,240 --> 00:30:52,240 See, that was easy. 438 00:30:53,240 --> 00:30:58,240 Some of last season's fashions are packed around his legs. 439 00:30:58,240 --> 00:31:01,240 I told you no colors with the whites. 440 00:31:01,240 --> 00:31:02,240 All right. 441 00:31:02,240 --> 00:31:04,240 We've got the bleach up here. 442 00:31:04,240 --> 00:31:05,240 All right. 443 00:31:05,240 --> 00:31:06,240 Let's do it. 444 00:31:06,240 --> 00:31:07,240 Okay. 445 00:31:07,240 --> 00:31:08,240 I'm going to operate it from over here. 446 00:31:08,240 --> 00:31:10,240 It's safe distance. 447 00:31:13,240 --> 00:31:17,240 Jamie throws the switch on the Frankenwasher. 448 00:31:22,240 --> 00:31:23,240 Hahaha! 449 00:31:31,240 --> 00:31:35,240 I'm glad we were all suitably safe distance. 450 00:31:45,240 --> 00:31:46,240 That was a lot of fun. 451 00:31:46,240 --> 00:31:47,240 That was pretty cool. 452 00:31:47,240 --> 00:31:50,240 He was like a top or a Tasmanian devil. 453 00:31:50,240 --> 00:31:53,240 And now for the experiment's final phase. 454 00:31:53,240 --> 00:31:56,240 There's a baking soda dumped all over the place. 455 00:31:56,240 --> 00:32:01,240 I think that's exactly where a dog would pee if a dog came in and was startled by all this. 456 00:32:01,240 --> 00:32:03,240 Which it no doubt would be. 457 00:32:03,240 --> 00:32:06,240 So we have our carefully collected specimens. 458 00:32:06,240 --> 00:32:09,240 Shall we see if this causes a small explosion? 459 00:32:09,240 --> 00:32:11,240 Did someone say explosion? 460 00:32:11,240 --> 00:32:13,240 We'd better dress for the occasion. 461 00:32:13,240 --> 00:32:18,240 Basically now I'm about to pour the dogwee on the pile of baking soda, 462 00:32:18,240 --> 00:32:21,240 which if the myth is correct should cause a small explosion. 463 00:32:21,240 --> 00:32:25,240 Or if we're actually on Earth, we'll do absolutely bupeless. 464 00:32:27,240 --> 00:32:29,240 Burn all! 465 00:32:36,240 --> 00:32:37,240 Nothing. 466 00:32:37,240 --> 00:32:39,240 Nothing happened. 467 00:32:39,240 --> 00:32:41,240 Get me the Jack Russell Terrier urine. 468 00:32:41,240 --> 00:32:42,240 That ought to do it. 469 00:32:42,240 --> 00:32:44,240 They're hyper little creatures. 470 00:32:45,240 --> 00:32:48,240 Alright, everybody behind the Lexan shield. 471 00:32:48,240 --> 00:32:49,240 Are you ready? 472 00:32:50,240 --> 00:32:51,240 On set! 473 00:32:55,240 --> 00:32:56,240 What do you know? 474 00:32:56,240 --> 00:32:57,240 Nothing happened. 475 00:32:57,240 --> 00:32:58,240 No explosion at all. 476 00:32:58,240 --> 00:33:02,240 Well, Jimmy, that's actually a first for us. 477 00:33:02,240 --> 00:33:05,240 There's not one fact about this myth that's true. 478 00:33:05,240 --> 00:33:10,240 Yeah, you know, usually at least there's a tiny grain of truth somewhere in the stuff that we're dealing with. 479 00:33:10,240 --> 00:33:12,240 It has to start somewhere. 480 00:33:12,240 --> 00:33:15,240 But, you know, this one, it just isn't there. 481 00:33:15,240 --> 00:33:18,240 It's not practical, it's not reasonable, it doesn't make any sense. 482 00:33:18,240 --> 00:33:20,240 Myth decimated. 483 00:33:21,240 --> 00:33:23,240 One myth busted. 484 00:33:23,240 --> 00:33:26,240 But what about the unfinished chicken gun business? 485 00:33:26,240 --> 00:33:28,240 Three, two... 486 00:33:28,240 --> 00:33:33,240 You'll recall that while testing which chicken hits hardest, frozen or thawed, 487 00:33:33,240 --> 00:33:39,240 the guys discovered that their light airplane windshields were not rated for bird strikes. 488 00:33:39,240 --> 00:33:44,240 As a result, all their flying chickens smashed every windshield. 489 00:33:44,240 --> 00:33:47,240 This chicken went through it like butter. 490 00:33:47,240 --> 00:33:48,240 Whoa. 491 00:33:48,240 --> 00:33:51,240 So this is the experiment take two. 492 00:33:52,240 --> 00:33:57,240 To finally lay this myth to rest, they have rethought their methodology. 493 00:33:57,240 --> 00:33:58,240 No more windshields. 494 00:33:58,240 --> 00:34:01,240 This is purely a moment of impact test. 495 00:34:01,240 --> 00:34:05,240 The chickens will be fired at a solid steel plate. 496 00:34:05,240 --> 00:34:11,240 By using the high-speed camera to measure the time between the start and finish of impact, 497 00:34:11,240 --> 00:34:16,240 they hope to see a difference between frozen and thawed chickens. 498 00:34:20,240 --> 00:34:25,240 The three frozen chickens clock more than 140 miles an hour. 499 00:34:25,240 --> 00:34:29,240 The impact time, 7 1-thousandths of a second. 500 00:34:29,240 --> 00:34:32,240 It automatically deboned the chicken, didn't it? 501 00:34:32,240 --> 00:34:34,240 Three, two, one. 502 00:34:36,240 --> 00:34:45,240 Impact times for the three thawed chickens showed a perfect match with the frozen poultry. 503 00:34:45,240 --> 00:34:48,240 Seven one-thousands of a second. 504 00:34:48,240 --> 00:34:49,240 Here we go. 505 00:34:49,240 --> 00:34:51,240 One point of impact. 506 00:34:51,240 --> 00:34:57,240 Two, three, four, five, six, seven. 507 00:34:57,240 --> 00:35:00,240 And then now it's starting to move back again. 508 00:35:00,240 --> 00:35:02,240 It's given all of its impact in that amount of time. 509 00:35:03,240 --> 00:35:08,240 The results from the high-speed camera seem to be fairly convincing. 510 00:35:08,240 --> 00:35:11,240 You know that adage that it's not the falling that kills you, it's the stopping? 511 00:35:11,240 --> 00:35:14,240 The stopping is where the force gets imparted. 512 00:35:14,240 --> 00:35:18,240 So both the frozen and the thawed chicken have the same mass. 513 00:35:18,240 --> 00:35:21,240 They have effectively the same speed. 514 00:35:21,240 --> 00:35:27,240 So the only difference between the two is going to be how much time they take to impart their energy to the plate. 515 00:35:28,240 --> 00:35:33,240 And on the high-speed camera we showed that each of them exerted all their energy in seven milliseconds. 516 00:35:33,240 --> 00:35:35,240 Almost exactly. 517 00:35:35,240 --> 00:35:37,240 Basically, there was no difference. 518 00:35:37,240 --> 00:35:39,240 So does that mean the myth is busted? 519 00:35:39,240 --> 00:35:43,240 At these speeds, frozen or thawed chicken myth busted no difference at all. 520 00:35:48,240 --> 00:35:52,240 Now that we're done testing, we get to have some fun. 521 00:35:52,240 --> 00:35:55,240 That'd be pumpkin chunking kind of fun. 522 00:35:55,240 --> 00:35:57,240 Dude, look at this. 523 00:35:57,240 --> 00:36:01,240 It's what you get when the pumpkin chunking champion buys your pumpkin for you. 524 00:36:01,240 --> 00:36:03,240 It's perfect. 525 00:36:04,240 --> 00:36:11,240 With the day almost done, what better way to finish than with a few pumpkin chunking rounds of their own? 526 00:36:11,240 --> 00:36:13,240 What? 527 00:36:15,240 --> 00:36:17,240 Was there anything in its way? 528 00:36:17,240 --> 00:36:20,240 I suspect that the pumpkin went through here. 529 00:36:21,240 --> 00:36:24,240 Oh, here we go. 530 00:36:25,240 --> 00:36:27,240 Tammy, can I ride it? 531 00:36:27,240 --> 00:36:31,240 Three, two, one. 532 00:36:40,240 --> 00:36:42,240 That was so cool. 533 00:36:42,240 --> 00:36:45,240 You feel a little tingle between your legs when that sucker went out. 534 00:36:45,240 --> 00:36:47,240 I do. 535 00:36:47,240 --> 00:36:50,240 It's going to be hard to top that. 536 00:36:56,240 --> 00:37:00,240 The myth busters are about to probe the mysteries of the deep 537 00:37:00,240 --> 00:37:03,240 in the aquarium at California's Monterey Bay, 538 00:37:03,240 --> 00:37:06,240 one of the world's largest marine sanctuaries. 539 00:37:06,240 --> 00:37:10,240 This odd story is one of the more enduring legends, 540 00:37:10,240 --> 00:37:13,240 with its origins way back in medieval times. 541 00:37:13,240 --> 00:37:16,240 No, really, honey, those are octopus hickeys. 542 00:37:16,240 --> 00:37:29,240 Well, this one might seem a little silly at first, but I think we're going to have some fun with this. 543 00:37:29,240 --> 00:37:33,240 This woman admitted to the hospital with abdominal pains, 544 00:37:33,240 --> 00:37:37,240 and the doctors, upon examining her, thought that she was pregnant, 545 00:37:37,240 --> 00:37:43,240 so they did an emergency cesarean on her and pulled what turned out to be a live octopus from her belly. 546 00:37:43,240 --> 00:37:45,240 This is the myth. 547 00:37:45,240 --> 00:37:51,240 It seems that perhaps six months before, she was diving and ingested an octopus's egg while diving, 548 00:37:51,240 --> 00:37:55,240 and it had grown to full size in her stomach. 549 00:37:55,240 --> 00:38:00,240 I think partially this story is playing upon young girls' fears of pregnancy 550 00:38:00,240 --> 00:38:04,240 and their mother's fears that the young girls could become pregnant. 551 00:38:04,240 --> 00:38:09,240 I mean, it's almost the same as the story that you can get pregnant by going in the swimming pool 552 00:38:09,240 --> 00:38:14,240 if there happens to be sperm floating around in that pool despite the chlorine. 553 00:38:14,240 --> 00:38:21,240 To ground this myth in reality, Adam and Jamie consult the experts at Monterey Bay Aquarium. 554 00:38:21,240 --> 00:38:25,240 We have shrimp and squid. 555 00:38:25,240 --> 00:38:27,240 That's exactly what I had for dinner last night. 556 00:38:27,240 --> 00:38:29,240 Sauteed and a little butter? 557 00:38:29,240 --> 00:38:30,240 Yeah, exactly. 558 00:38:30,240 --> 00:38:35,240 Feeding the giant Pacific octopus is Julia Marietini's job, 559 00:38:35,240 --> 00:38:39,240 but today it seems Adam is on the menu. 560 00:38:39,240 --> 00:38:41,240 You taste different. 561 00:38:41,240 --> 00:38:43,240 Oh, wow. 562 00:38:43,240 --> 00:38:48,240 Oh, you must taste really good because he's really interested in you. 563 00:38:48,240 --> 00:38:55,240 Oh, that is so cool. 564 00:38:55,240 --> 00:38:58,240 Yeah, he's very excited. 565 00:38:58,240 --> 00:39:03,240 While Adam's making a new friend, Jamie tackles the big questions. 566 00:39:03,240 --> 00:39:10,240 Julia, what kind of conditions do the eggs require to be successful at, you know, bearing little octopuses? 567 00:39:10,240 --> 00:39:14,240 Well, they really do require the attention of the mother. 568 00:39:14,240 --> 00:39:18,240 She will blow jets of water on them to make sure that they're aerated. 569 00:39:18,240 --> 00:39:19,240 She'll clean them. 570 00:39:19,240 --> 00:39:23,240 They also require the correct temperature, the correct salinity, 571 00:39:23,240 --> 00:39:26,240 and if all goes well, then they'll hatch out. 572 00:39:26,240 --> 00:39:29,240 For giant octopus, it's about six months later. 573 00:39:29,240 --> 00:39:33,240 Is it possible, let's say, if an octopus egg had just detached and was floating free, 574 00:39:33,240 --> 00:39:36,240 could a diver actually swim in and swallow one of these things? 575 00:39:36,240 --> 00:39:39,240 That's the only part of the story that could possibly happen. 576 00:39:39,240 --> 00:39:44,240 By some fluke, the octopus eggs are small enough that maybe a person could swallow them, 577 00:39:44,240 --> 00:39:46,240 but there's no way they would hatch out. 578 00:39:46,240 --> 00:39:49,240 The conditions in the stomach would not be amenable to their hatching? 579 00:39:49,240 --> 00:39:50,240 Not at all. 580 00:39:50,240 --> 00:39:54,240 The octopus myth is already looking pretty shaky. 581 00:39:54,240 --> 00:39:57,240 The mythbusters must now take another tag. 582 00:39:57,240 --> 00:40:03,240 You know, Jamie, talking to Julia, it's just, it's really obvious to me that the whole idea of octopus pregnancy is just ridiculous. 583 00:40:03,240 --> 00:40:08,240 I mean, an octopus egg can't even survive in open water without constant tending from the mother. 584 00:40:08,240 --> 00:40:11,240 It's definitely not going to survive in someone's stomach. 585 00:40:11,240 --> 00:40:20,240 Yeah, but you know, there are myths around other creatures like frogs, lizards, snakes, even nutes, you know, that this can happen with. 586 00:40:20,240 --> 00:40:23,240 The octopus is perhaps the most recent incarnation. 587 00:40:23,240 --> 00:40:29,240 Other recent incarnations of this narrative are where a boy is getting water out of a garden hose 588 00:40:29,240 --> 00:40:33,240 and he swallows frog eggs, like the four nutes, toads. 589 00:40:33,240 --> 00:40:39,240 Going back to medieval times, you have serpents and snakes, perhaps the most wicked, seeming creature. 590 00:40:39,240 --> 00:40:43,240 Many stories were fables created to scare children. 591 00:40:43,240 --> 00:40:47,240 Others were chilling examples of what would happen to sinners. 592 00:40:47,240 --> 00:40:55,240 Sometimes the sufferers would regurgitate the unwelcome visitor, but usually the episode would end badly. 593 00:40:55,240 --> 00:41:00,240 So it's something taking you over, something insidious, something making you bad. 594 00:41:00,240 --> 00:41:05,240 And I'm sure in some versions of the narrative you did something wrong to let it in. 595 00:41:05,240 --> 00:41:12,240 So is it possible for foreign organisms to survive inside the human body? 596 00:41:12,240 --> 00:41:23,240 We can replicate a stomach or several of them and put, you know, stuff that eggs would run into, like acids and maybe salinity, temperature factors. 597 00:41:23,240 --> 00:41:28,240 And we'll see which ones survive and which ones don't and which environments they work in. 598 00:41:28,240 --> 00:41:29,240 Yeah. 599 00:41:29,240 --> 00:41:35,240 Busting the pregnancy story means a myth busters trip to the lab supply store. 600 00:41:35,240 --> 00:41:38,240 Or should that be candy store? 601 00:41:39,240 --> 00:41:41,240 I love this stuff. 602 00:41:41,240 --> 00:41:43,240 One of everything. 603 00:41:44,240 --> 00:41:48,240 I've never seen continuous pipe cleaner before. I didn't even know it existed. 604 00:41:48,240 --> 00:41:50,240 Which is smoother. 605 00:41:51,240 --> 00:41:53,240 That's smoother. 606 00:41:55,240 --> 00:41:57,240 You think we need to get some beard covers here? 607 00:41:57,240 --> 00:41:59,240 What you have isn't really quite a beard though. 608 00:41:59,240 --> 00:42:00,240 I'm not sure what it is. 609 00:42:00,240 --> 00:42:02,240 It's like an accessory tuft. 610 00:42:03,240 --> 00:42:06,240 Ever wondered what's really inside Adam's head? 611 00:42:06,240 --> 00:42:08,240 Now somebody wave from the other side. 612 00:42:08,240 --> 00:42:10,240 Oh, that's cool. 613 00:42:11,240 --> 00:42:13,240 When do you ever get a chance? 614 00:42:14,240 --> 00:42:18,240 I'm a little embarrassed. That was kind of a personal experience. 615 00:42:18,240 --> 00:42:19,240 Thanks guys. 616 00:42:19,240 --> 00:42:21,240 Thank you guys. 617 00:42:21,240 --> 00:42:24,240 Well, Adam, do we have everything we need here for this experiment? 618 00:42:24,240 --> 00:42:26,240 I think we do. 619 00:42:26,240 --> 00:42:31,240 We've got the acid, we've got the salt, we've got the voltmeter for testing salinity, thermometer, 620 00:42:31,240 --> 00:42:36,240 and perhaps most importantly, in fact, without this we couldn't do the experiment, 621 00:42:36,240 --> 00:42:38,240 we have our test subjects here. 622 00:42:38,240 --> 00:42:40,240 Alright, frog eggs. 623 00:42:40,240 --> 00:42:46,240 With the octopus angle ruled out, they have opted for frog's eggs and tadpoles. 624 00:42:46,240 --> 00:42:52,240 Small and common enough in nature to be swallowed and they don't need constant parental care. 625 00:42:52,240 --> 00:42:54,240 Now those puppies came all the way from Florida. 626 00:42:54,240 --> 00:42:57,240 They have a lot of frog farms down there, I understand. 627 00:43:01,240 --> 00:43:04,240 Three flasks represent different conditions in the stomach. 628 00:43:04,240 --> 00:43:06,240 One for body temperature. 629 00:43:06,240 --> 00:43:08,240 Water heated to 98.6. 630 00:43:08,240 --> 00:43:10,240 One of salt water. 631 00:43:10,240 --> 00:43:12,240 The same salinity as the human body. 632 00:43:12,240 --> 00:43:18,240 A third with a pH of 2 contains acid, imitating human stomach juices. 633 00:43:18,240 --> 00:43:22,240 A fourth flask is the control sample. 634 00:43:22,240 --> 00:43:25,240 Alright, so we've got some tadpoles and some eggs in there. 635 00:43:25,240 --> 00:43:27,240 What's the other two of each? 636 00:43:27,240 --> 00:43:30,240 Okay, you've got the little squirt bulb. 637 00:43:30,240 --> 00:43:32,240 I do, I do. Here we go. 638 00:43:32,240 --> 00:43:38,240 The control sample of eggs and tadpoles will swim in a flask of aerated water, 639 00:43:38,240 --> 00:43:42,240 the ideal environment for tadpoles survival. 640 00:43:42,240 --> 00:43:44,240 You ready for the acidity? 641 00:43:44,240 --> 00:43:45,240 Okay. 642 00:43:45,240 --> 00:43:47,240 Okay, which one is that? Acid. This one here. 643 00:43:47,240 --> 00:43:53,240 Hydrochloric acid actually secretes in the stomach and its powerful stuff. 644 00:43:53,240 --> 00:43:55,240 Extremely corrosive. 645 00:43:55,240 --> 00:43:57,240 A single drop can eat through wood. 646 00:43:57,240 --> 00:44:03,240 Jamie and Adam need to dilute their pure hydrochloric to match stomach acidity. 647 00:44:03,240 --> 00:44:05,240 Yeah, real close. 648 00:44:05,240 --> 00:44:06,240 Alright. 649 00:44:06,240 --> 00:44:12,240 The pH scale runs from 0 to 14. 650 00:44:12,240 --> 00:44:16,240 Pure water is neutral with a pH of 7. 651 00:44:16,240 --> 00:44:21,240 Anything below 7 is acid and anything above is alkaline. 652 00:44:21,240 --> 00:44:27,240 Common examples range from battery acid at 1, the stomach at 2, 653 00:44:27,240 --> 00:44:33,240 an apple scores a pH of 4 and milk of magnesium a mile 10.5. 654 00:44:33,240 --> 00:44:36,240 I don't see him doing so hot. 655 00:44:36,240 --> 00:44:40,240 He's definitely more laconic than his racetrack friends here, you know. 656 00:44:40,240 --> 00:44:44,240 He's just going to sit there on the top. 657 00:44:44,240 --> 00:44:47,240 Next, the body temperature test. 658 00:44:47,240 --> 00:44:51,240 They heat water to 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit. 659 00:44:51,240 --> 00:44:56,240 Okay, here we go. 660 00:44:56,240 --> 00:45:01,240 He's not, you know, doing a racetrack thing like his brethren down here in the Pyrex. 661 00:45:02,240 --> 00:45:08,240 For the next phase of the experiment, Adam's making a personal contribution. 662 00:45:08,240 --> 00:45:11,240 Here we go. 663 00:45:11,240 --> 00:45:16,240 What Adam's doing is measuring the electrical conductivity of the saliva. 664 00:45:16,240 --> 00:45:23,240 Now, we're going to try and replicate that conductivity in water by adding salt to it. 665 00:45:23,240 --> 00:45:27,240 Electrical resistance is the best way to determine salinity 666 00:45:27,240 --> 00:45:31,240 because dissolved salts are strong conductors. 667 00:45:31,240 --> 00:45:36,240 In Adam's mouth, the resistance is low, measuring around 4 kilo ohms. 668 00:45:36,240 --> 00:45:38,240 There's one. 669 00:45:38,240 --> 00:45:41,240 He's doing pretty good. 670 00:45:41,240 --> 00:45:43,240 No, he's actually doing fine. 671 00:45:43,240 --> 00:45:45,240 There's another. 672 00:45:48,240 --> 00:45:52,240 Salinity, they both seem to be doing okay, so we should leave this overnight. 673 00:45:52,240 --> 00:45:54,240 See how it does. 674 00:45:54,240 --> 00:45:55,240 Yeah. 675 00:45:55,240 --> 00:45:58,240 Tadpoles might find it tough going in the stomach, 676 00:45:58,240 --> 00:46:02,240 but are there any life forms tailored to the conditions? 677 00:46:02,240 --> 00:46:05,240 Here, I've got some worms we'll set for you. 678 00:46:05,240 --> 00:46:09,240 If anyone knows about creatures surviving in the human stomach, 679 00:46:09,240 --> 00:46:14,240 it's Dr. Jim McCarrow from the University of California at San Francisco. 680 00:46:14,240 --> 00:46:18,240 As a professor of pathology, he's heard all the stories. 681 00:46:18,240 --> 00:46:24,240 Why would it not be possible for a thing like an octopus or a snake to grow and develop in your body? 682 00:46:24,240 --> 00:46:30,240 The acid in your stomach is there to dissolve meat and other food materials, 683 00:46:30,240 --> 00:46:35,240 and any type of living organism that doesn't have a way to protect itself against that 684 00:46:35,240 --> 00:46:38,240 is going to just wind up as digested food. 685 00:46:38,240 --> 00:46:43,240 So are there creatures that do have that type of protection that can make it through the acid in the stomach? 686 00:46:43,240 --> 00:46:44,240 Oh, most certainly. 687 00:46:44,240 --> 00:46:50,240 Tapeworms, for example, which are a type of parasite that you get from eating undercooked pork or beef. 688 00:46:50,240 --> 00:46:57,240 Also, certain types of roundworms, where in this case it's the egg of the worm that makes it through, 689 00:46:57,240 --> 00:46:59,240 and then hatches in your intestine. 690 00:46:59,240 --> 00:47:03,240 And in both of those cases, the reason that they can actually make it through the gastric acid 691 00:47:03,240 --> 00:47:06,240 is that they're coated with a very hard shell. 692 00:47:06,240 --> 00:47:10,240 It's called a cuticle, and it's about as hard as your fingernail. 693 00:47:10,240 --> 00:47:15,240 So by having this, basically this armor on its surface, 694 00:47:15,240 --> 00:47:18,240 these worms can make it through the gastric acid, 695 00:47:18,240 --> 00:47:23,240 get into the small intestine, and basically live in paradise because they have as much food as they want to eat. 696 00:47:23,240 --> 00:47:27,240 In the United States, between 1900 and 1920, 697 00:47:27,240 --> 00:47:31,240 tapeworms were being advertised for weight loss. 698 00:47:31,240 --> 00:47:35,240 Each segment of the worm was sold individually with claims like, 699 00:47:35,240 --> 00:47:39,240 no ill effects and easily swallowed. 700 00:47:39,240 --> 00:47:44,240 Today, worldwide, about a billion people are infected with parasitic worms, 701 00:47:44,240 --> 00:47:47,240 particularly in tropical regions. 702 00:47:47,240 --> 00:47:50,240 You know, with things this big and this prevalent, 703 00:47:50,240 --> 00:47:54,240 it's not surprising that a lot of stories probably evolved 704 00:47:54,240 --> 00:47:57,240 because people were seeing these things in their environment all the time, 705 00:47:57,240 --> 00:48:01,240 and they probably attained mythical proportions. 706 00:48:01,240 --> 00:48:05,240 When you look at the leap to an octopus, doesn't seem like that great leap. 707 00:48:05,240 --> 00:48:09,240 Sure, I mean, imagine these all bunched together. 708 00:48:09,240 --> 00:48:13,240 It would be like a medusa head, and they'd often be passed by a child that way, 709 00:48:13,240 --> 00:48:19,240 so you actually would see something that looks like a medusa head lying in the crib. 710 00:48:19,240 --> 00:48:22,240 That must be it. What do you think? 711 00:48:22,240 --> 00:48:26,240 I think no pasta for lunch. 712 00:48:26,240 --> 00:48:29,240 Alright, Jamie, it's been three days. How are our frogs doing? 713 00:48:29,240 --> 00:48:32,240 Well, most of them are still alive. 714 00:48:32,240 --> 00:48:34,240 You know, the control group is great. 715 00:48:34,240 --> 00:48:36,240 They're happy little tadpoles swimming way in there. 716 00:48:36,240 --> 00:48:38,240 They look even bigger than they were the couple days ago. 717 00:48:38,240 --> 00:48:44,240 I believe they have grown a little bit, and the salt water seems to be fine with them. 718 00:48:44,240 --> 00:48:48,240 They're doing just as well as a control group, actually. 719 00:48:48,240 --> 00:48:49,240 What were the killers? 720 00:48:49,240 --> 00:48:52,240 The real killers were the acid and the high temperature. 721 00:48:52,240 --> 00:48:54,240 Well, that killed them each in like 10 or 15 minutes, didn't it? 722 00:48:54,240 --> 00:48:56,240 Pretty much, yeah. 723 00:48:59,240 --> 00:49:04,240 Well, Jamie, I think we've done everything we can to show that octopus pregnancy is absolutely ridiculous. 724 00:49:04,240 --> 00:49:06,240 We've busted it wide open. 725 00:49:06,240 --> 00:49:08,240 And the octopus really liked your hand. 726 00:49:08,240 --> 00:49:10,240 I think I'm actually in love.