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Do not try any of the experiments you are about to see at home.

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You heard him. Don't do it.

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On this shocking episode of Mythbusters,

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there's the most explosively epic high speeds in Mythbusters history.

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Wow!

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As Adam and Jamie dig the dirt on a myth from World War I.

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When we say we're going to be digging holes,

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actually this thing's going to be digging holes.

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Can the shape of a battlefield trench

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What did you do today?

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I spray painted some dirt.

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really stop a shockwave and save a soldier's life?

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No.

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This is for real.

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Three, two, one. Bye-bye!

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I think there's going to be a crater there.

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Meanwhile, Carrie Grant and Tori are clowning around.

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I just feel silly. I don't know why.

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In a comedy car crash, can a barrage of balloons

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Tori, it's fun time.

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Really aspire to be an alternative airbag?

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Or will this myth go pop?

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Here we go. In three, two, one.

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Who are the Mythbusters?

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Adam Savage

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Rod Davy, I'm ready for testing.

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and Jamie Heineman

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What can go wrong?

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Between them more than 30 years of special effects experience,

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together with Carrie Byron.

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That is a headache.

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Grant Imahara

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Somebody order an explosion.

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and Tori Bellatio

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Let's drop this car up!

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They don't just tell the myths,

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they put them to the test.

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The Mythbusters

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The Mythbusters

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The Mythbusters

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The Mythbusters

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The Mythbusters

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The Mythbusters

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The Mythbusters

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The Mythbusters

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Aren't you going to ask me about my costume?

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Nope.

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I'm going to tell you the story anyway.

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It comes from the fansite and obviously it's from World War One.

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Are you going to make some kind of joke about me being a boy in World War One?

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No, I promise I won't.

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The myth is that in World War One, Germans were very precise about the digging of their trenches.

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Towards what end?

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They thought that when a mortar landed in the trench,

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the 90 degree corners would prevent the blast pressure wave from traveling too far in the trench.

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They really were specific about it being sharp corners.

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They didn't want rounded corners that were worn away by people walking through sharp, sharp corners.

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That's the story.

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Alright, Earth moving equipment and explosives.

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Sounds like a perfect day.

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World War One's trench warfare was wretched.

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But could a carefully constructed corner really have an impact on soldier survival?

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It's a myth that shakes down to shock waves.

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A clumsy corner will supposedly let a shock wave sail right past,

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while a perfect pitch will stop it dead.

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But will this myth hit the wall?

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What's the plan?

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I'm thinking absolutely this is a story that we want to start in small scale.

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I'm thinking specifically using water ripples as our waves

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and watching them move through environments that match the shape of the trenches that we're thinking about.

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That makes sense.

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And I tell you what, why don't we make it like one of those wave machines?

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You know, the desktop toy that has oil over tinted water.

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Fantastic.

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That will slow down the reaction and hopefully we can see what's going on.

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Exactly.

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So, supersonic shock waves will let rip later,

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as the guys first dive into this myth with water.

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This whole story is about how different shaped trenches

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affect the propagation of blast pressures through those trenches.

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And we want to investigate some of these shapes here in the shop before going full scale.

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We've decided to build our trenches out of clear acrylic

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and we're going to fill them full of oil and water to watch the wave propagation.

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Isn't that cool?

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We're going to build one long straight one.

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It's not pretty but it'll do.

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We're going to build one that's kind of like a step.

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Freaking sexy man.

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And then we're going to build one loosey-goosey one

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to see what effect the round edges have that's different than the sharp edges.

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That's how you're meant to be.

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Yes.

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It's all falling into place.

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With the three tiny trenches bonded together, the filling can commence.

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First with water.

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And then with baby oil.

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This is all the baby oil San Francisco had today.

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Somewhere in the world there's a lot of rough babies.

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The tricky trio of oil, water and food dye,

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that looks cool doesn't it,

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should ensure that any wave propagation pattern is crystal clear.

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I like it when my waves smell like babies.

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But what's also clear is that an explosion in air, it ain't.

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Now before you get all up in arms of the fact that this myth is about blast pressure waves

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and we're doing a bunch of scale experiments with plex boxes and oil and water,

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please remember that an ocean wave, a sound wave, and a blast pressure wave

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are all effectively, mechanically the same thing.

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They are a moving wave.

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And since this whole story is about the idea that the shape of a trench can affect a wave,

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we consider these scale tests to be totally valid and analogous to what we expect to see when we go full scale.

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The final ingredient for this accurate analogy is to create a consistent crest.

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Now I've got to figure out a way to do this mechanically, but I think I've got an idea.

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So Adam hits the workshop once more and this time gets hammered.

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And before you could say, surf's up, he's got waves of smooth as silk, meaning the experiment can begin.

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So this is our impulse wave. It is our stand in for a shock wave.

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The motor is giving an exactly perfect pulse and delivering a wave that carries all the way to the end of our tank

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with a measurable amplitude, that is a height.

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Now what we're going to do is put this rig at the same exact orientation in each of our tank trenches

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and see what effect their shape has on the amplitude of the wave at the end.

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So are we ready to mark it down?

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Yeah, let's get our control done.

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Lights!

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Isn't that cool?

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Here we go.

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On cue, the machine ripples into action before Adam marks the waves high and low points at the far end of the straight trench.

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Our control was successful.

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Our wave impulse machine gave us a wave height from top to bottom at the end of the tank of three quarters of an inch.

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Now we want to find out if we get the same results when we run this same test through a right angle bend.

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Oil and water wave test in a right angle tank. Three, two, one.

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Oh, it looks like a pretty clear result just right off the top of my head.

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It's a lot larger on this end than it is on this one.

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Yeah, that is cool.

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Our right angle tank seems to be quite effective at reducing wave amplitude.

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After the first corner, it was reduced by two-thirds, and after the second corner, it was reduced by three-quarters.

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That's significant.

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Yep, by the time the wave reaches the end of this tank, its size has been severely slashed,

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meaning that the shark corners did shield their shock wave stand-in.

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Soft corners. Here we come.

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So how will their curved corner compare?

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It looks a little bigger down here.

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It does look a little bigger down there.

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It might have something.

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And on closer inspection, they do.

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This test's wave height is a quarter of an inch, lower than the control, but higher than the shark turn tank.

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So what does that mean for the myth?

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So the myth is that in World War I, Germans built their trenches on precise 90-degree angles

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on the assumption that it would limit the strength of shock waves traveling through the trenches.

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Our scale testing here in the shop with our small-scale trenches in all the shapes that we've tried

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seems to suggest that they might have been right.

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This is one of my favorite scale experiments we've ever done.

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What do you think?

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Well, this story's about blast pressure. We need explosives.

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Absolutely. That is definitely the next step, digging some trenches and blowing some stuff up.

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I'm gonna get a costume on.

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Okay.

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Next up, it's time to call in the clowns.

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All right, I've got a crazy myth for you.

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It involves clowns and car crashes.

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Two clowns are driving to a party.

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The clown on the passenger side has a big bunch of balloons.

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What happens? They go out of control and crash the car?

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Exactly. Now, the driver clown is wearing a seatbelt, so when they careen into a wall, he's fine.

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But the passenger is not.

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And the balloons save him?

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Exactly.

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It's a myth that makes for one heck of a headline.

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But can a bunch of party balloons really act as an improvised airbag?

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Or will this road speed wipeout go pot?

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All right, this is what we should do. We should crash two cars.

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We'll have them traveling at road speeds of around 35 miles an hour.

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And with the first car, we'll see what happens to an unseatbelted passenger.

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Great. And for the second one, we can put an average bunch of balloons in the passenger seat

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and see what that does to the G-loads.

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Okay, let's start clowning around.

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So we are testing the myth that a bunch of balloons will save a clown's life in a car crash.

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And we are going to be crashing a bunch of vehicles.

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But before we stick a clown in balloons in there, we need to transform that into a clown car.

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Let's go to work.

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According to police reports, the clowns were driving a run-of-the-mill run-around like this.

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I just feel silly. I don't know why.

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Albeit one that had been pimped for a party.

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Yeah, the blue circle.

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And after Tori finishes his stripes and stars, this car is ready to take the plunge.

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So the clown car is done. Now it's time for the fun part.

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We're going to take it up with the crane and drop it straight on its nose,

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as if it's crashing into a wall at 35 miles an hour.

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And find out what kind of forces we're going to get.

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The vertical drop is a curious way to crash cars.

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But with no chance of a rogue runaway or a flat-on fence,

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it's the most reliable rig for a party balloon pilot.

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So first up, we are going to do a control test with the driver belted in and the passenger not belted in.

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And see what kind of G-loads we get.

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Now remember, there won't be any balloons in that test.

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In the second test, we're going to do the exact same thing.

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This time, put a bunch of balloons in front of the passenger and see what difference that makes.

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And to do just that, the guys first need a couple of clowns.

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Who? One stressed to kill.

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Making him smile.

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Are put into their respective hot seats where, just like the myth, the driver is buckled up,

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but his passenger is not.

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What kind of clown would wear seatbelt?

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The final piece of the puzzle is to add the data sensors.

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And that means it's time to get scientific.

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What I have here is an accelerometer.

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Now we'll have two of them. One will be attached to the clown's head and to the chest.

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Now when the crash happens, voltage will be sent to the data logger.

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And that way we'll be able to record the event.

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Then we'll look at the data later and find out how many G's the clown endured.

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A survivable G-load is anything under 100 G's. That's our benchmark.

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Now to measure that, we have our PCB accelerometers and the help of our friend David from National Instruments.

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And with that, everything's set for lift off.

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Send in the clowns.

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We've got all of our sensors in place. Now it's time to raise the car.

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Yeah, we good. We got a big one.

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Now we've calculated that if we raise the car 41 feet from the bumper to the ground,

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we can achieve a 35 mile per hour crash.

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Alright, this is clown car control test.

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In three, two, one.

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In Trench Torpedo, Adam and Jamie's small scale test.

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It looks a little bigger down here.

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Has shown that a sharp corner can stop a watery wave.

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This is really, really cool.

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But how about an explosive one?

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Well that seemed to work pretty well. Maybe there is something to the technique.

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Yep, I think it's time to build some real trenches and use some real explosives.

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Let's get digging.

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So to dig the dirt on this myth full scale, the guys march to a memorable location.

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We're in Ion, California today and I'm standing on the exact spot where we actually tested the drain disaster myth of all things.

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Today, however, we're going to go back in time and dig a bunch of World War I trenches

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and subject them to some enemy fire.

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It's going to bring back a lot of memories for Jamie.

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Like in their shop tests, the guys are going to throw together three trenches.

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Trench number one.

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The straight away.

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The rigid right angle and the shoddy serpentine.

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That looks cool.

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And once they're all marked up, the digging can go down.

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Where, thanks to some heavy machinery

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and a time to get a little bit of a better look,

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and a time lapse montage,

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their 350 footers get sunk fast.

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But that doesn't mean it's job done.

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00:13:48,600 --> 00:13:51,600
Not many people know this, but Jamie's family are color farmers.

244
00:13:51,600 --> 00:13:57,600
They've been farming color like this on specially treated pieces of plywood out in the fields for years.

245
00:13:57,600 --> 00:14:00,600
This is totally not true, not even a little bit.

246
00:14:00,600 --> 00:14:05,600
In fact, we are color coding our trenches so that both from a sequence and narrative standpoint,

247
00:14:05,600 --> 00:14:08,600
you can clearly see which trench we're doing at a given time,

248
00:14:08,600 --> 00:14:11,600
but also experimentally to help you separate them in your mind.

249
00:14:13,600 --> 00:14:16,600
The color coding does help Taylor make each tunnel.

250
00:14:16,600 --> 00:14:18,600
Coming along nicely.

251
00:14:18,600 --> 00:14:21,600
But the boards are also there to shore up the sides.

252
00:14:21,600 --> 00:14:23,600
Why are we showing up the sides?

253
00:14:23,600 --> 00:14:27,600
Well, really specifically, it's so that we get perfectly straight edges

254
00:14:27,600 --> 00:14:31,600
and precise corners for our blast wave to move through.

255
00:14:31,600 --> 00:14:34,600
That's how we're going to assess the soul of this story.

256
00:14:34,600 --> 00:14:40,600
Of course, there's one part of one trench where strictly straight sides are not the order of the day.

257
00:14:40,600 --> 00:14:42,600
This one, the imprecise corner trench,

258
00:14:42,600 --> 00:14:48,600
we are leaving uncovered with the wood on the curvy parts to get the biggest difference that we possibly can.

259
00:14:48,600 --> 00:14:52,600
Also for visual symmetry, we're going to paint it blue to match the walls.

260
00:14:52,600 --> 00:14:53,600
Here we go.

261
00:14:54,600 --> 00:14:55,600
Wow!

262
00:14:55,600 --> 00:14:56,600
Woohoo!

263
00:14:56,600 --> 00:14:57,600
Yeah!

264
00:14:57,600 --> 00:15:00,600
Adams tickle pink by the blue.

265
00:15:00,600 --> 00:15:04,600
But what's more important is that with that, it's time to bring on the boom.

266
00:15:06,600 --> 00:15:10,600
Our trenches are dug, they're shored up, heck, they're even color coded.

267
00:15:10,600 --> 00:15:12,600
Now it's time for the explosives.

268
00:15:12,600 --> 00:15:17,600
Our benchmark control test will be this trench, the 50 foot long straight.

269
00:15:17,600 --> 00:15:20,600
It should give us a fantastic idea of what happens to a blast wave

270
00:15:20,600 --> 00:15:23,600
as it travels through exactly this configuration.

271
00:15:24,600 --> 00:15:28,600
And when we've got that data, we're going to do the same test in this one,

272
00:15:28,600 --> 00:15:32,600
which is the classic German sharp edged right angle trench.

273
00:15:32,600 --> 00:15:34,600
And we'll compare the two.

274
00:15:36,600 --> 00:15:42,600
And finally, we'll be sending an explosive blast wave through our soft cornered serpentine trench.

275
00:15:42,600 --> 00:15:44,600
And if there's anything to this story whatsoever,

276
00:15:44,600 --> 00:15:49,600
what we expect to see is a higher blast pressure where I'm standing

277
00:15:49,600 --> 00:15:53,600
than in the corresponding spot in our hard cornered trench.

278
00:15:53,600 --> 00:15:56,600
Alright, let's rig all the explosions!

279
00:16:00,600 --> 00:16:03,600
It's enough to make a clown frown.

280
00:16:03,600 --> 00:16:08,600
But can party balloons really save your life in a 35 mile an hour fender bender?

281
00:16:10,600 --> 00:16:15,600
To find out, the Mythbusters control car is about to crash land.

282
00:16:15,600 --> 00:16:18,600
Alright, we're ready to drop the clown car.

283
00:16:18,600 --> 00:16:21,600
In three, two, one.

284
00:16:27,600 --> 00:16:29,600
I don't think those clowns survived.

285
00:16:29,600 --> 00:16:34,600
To the naked eye, the 35 mile an hour head on looks horrific.

286
00:16:35,600 --> 00:16:38,600
But survival is all about the G-Lo,

287
00:16:38,600 --> 00:16:42,600
where anything over a hundred means there's been a clown catastrophe.

288
00:16:42,600 --> 00:16:47,600
Now the driver with seatbelt experienced 150 G's.

289
00:16:47,600 --> 00:16:49,600
That's well over our benchmark for fatality.

290
00:16:49,600 --> 00:16:53,600
But even more interesting, the passenger that didn't have a seatbelt on

291
00:16:53,600 --> 00:16:57,600
or an airbag experienced 630 on the chest and 340 on the head.

292
00:16:57,600 --> 00:16:59,600
That is devastating.

293
00:16:59,600 --> 00:17:03,600
It's going to be really interesting to see if the balloons will have any impact on the numbers.

294
00:17:03,600 --> 00:17:06,600
So, cue clown car two.

295
00:17:06,600 --> 00:17:08,600
Another day, another clown car.

296
00:17:08,600 --> 00:17:13,600
Like the control test, the driver clown is buckled up while the passenger isn't.

297
00:17:13,600 --> 00:17:15,600
I think this wig absorbed any of the energy.

298
00:17:15,600 --> 00:17:18,600
But unlike the control test...

299
00:17:18,600 --> 00:17:21,600
Toray, it's fun time.

300
00:17:22,600 --> 00:17:26,600
Drop two will have the mythical balloon barrier.

301
00:17:26,600 --> 00:17:29,600
Alright, now it's time to put the balloons in the car.

302
00:17:29,600 --> 00:17:33,600
Now the theory here is these balloons are going to act as an airbag.

303
00:17:33,600 --> 00:17:36,600
Now the goal of any airbag is to slow the balloon down.

304
00:17:36,600 --> 00:17:40,600
Now the goal of any airbag is to slow the passengers forward motion.

305
00:17:40,600 --> 00:17:44,600
It's evenly as possible in just a fraction of a second.

306
00:17:44,600 --> 00:17:46,600
I'm not sure these balloons are going to function that way,

307
00:17:46,600 --> 00:17:49,600
but it's sure going to be fun to find out.

308
00:17:51,600 --> 00:17:54,600
Alright, this is the clown car drop with balloons. Are you ready?

309
00:17:54,600 --> 00:17:57,600
Okay, in three, two, one.

310
00:17:57,600 --> 00:17:59,600
Take it in one.

311
00:18:06,600 --> 00:18:08,600
Now that is what I call a party.

312
00:18:08,600 --> 00:18:10,600
I don't think they survived it though.

313
00:18:10,600 --> 00:18:13,600
Once again, the crash was a smash.

314
00:18:13,600 --> 00:18:19,600
As the passenger pushed past the balloon barrier and wiped out on the windshield.

315
00:18:20,600 --> 00:18:23,600
Alright Dave, big question on everyone's minds.

316
00:18:23,600 --> 00:18:25,600
Did the balloon save the clown's life?

317
00:18:25,600 --> 00:18:30,600
Though in the first drop with no balloons, the passengers saw 340 Gs at the head,

318
00:18:30,600 --> 00:18:32,600
630 Gs at the chest.

319
00:18:32,600 --> 00:18:36,600
In the drop with the balloons, the passengers saw 350 Gs to the head,

320
00:18:36,600 --> 00:18:38,600
and 620 at the chest.

321
00:18:38,600 --> 00:18:41,600
So the results are pretty much the same. The balloons didn't do anything for him.

322
00:18:41,600 --> 00:18:44,600
Almost no difference at all. Thanks for your help.

323
00:18:44,600 --> 00:18:46,600
Well, I'll show you my balloon animals.

324
00:18:48,600 --> 00:18:52,600
So it turns out an average bunch of party balloons is not enough to save your life in a car crash.

325
00:18:52,600 --> 00:18:55,600
But it's not such an outlandish idea.

326
00:18:55,600 --> 00:18:58,600
An airbag is an inflatable and so is a balloon.

327
00:18:58,600 --> 00:19:02,600
Maybe there's a balloon out there or a configuration of balloons that we could make

328
00:19:02,600 --> 00:19:04,600
that would save your life in a car wreck.

329
00:19:04,600 --> 00:19:10,600
In other words, the myth may be down, but burst in a.

330
00:19:10,600 --> 00:19:18,600
Coming right up in Trench Torpedo, the high speed shots that put the awe in awesome.

331
00:19:18,600 --> 00:19:20,600
Wow.

332
00:19:21,600 --> 00:19:27,600
Welcome back.

333
00:19:27,600 --> 00:19:32,600
All episode long, we've been testing it from World War I that a sharp cornered trench

334
00:19:32,600 --> 00:19:35,600
is better in warfare than a soft rounded cornered trench

335
00:19:35,600 --> 00:19:41,600
because it inhibits blast waves from traveling through the trenches sent by exploding mortar shells.

336
00:19:41,600 --> 00:19:44,600
We are now at the full-scale phase of this test,

337
00:19:44,600 --> 00:19:48,600
and we have a bunch of beautiful trenches out here in Gold Country in Northern California.

338
00:19:48,600 --> 00:19:50,600
We have some explosives in our arsenal.

339
00:19:50,600 --> 00:19:51,600
Nice.

340
00:19:51,600 --> 00:19:53,600
Yet another use for duct tape.

341
00:19:53,600 --> 00:19:57,600
And any minute now, we're going to start blowing some stuff up for science.

342
00:19:57,600 --> 00:20:03,600
Indeed, but for test one, there will be a torpedo, but there won't be a trench.

343
00:20:03,600 --> 00:20:08,600
Right here in this very spot, shortly we'll be setting off 25 pounds of TNT

344
00:20:08,600 --> 00:20:11,600
as our open air, unobstructed control test.

345
00:20:11,600 --> 00:20:14,600
We've got sensors placed at 10 foot increments

346
00:20:14,600 --> 00:20:19,600
because shortly after that, we'll be setting off explosions in the trenches

347
00:20:19,600 --> 00:20:22,600
and collecting and comparing similar data.

348
00:20:22,600 --> 00:20:27,600
In other words, the open air blast should give the guys a bonus benchmark.

349
00:20:34,600 --> 00:20:35,600
Are you ready?

350
00:20:35,600 --> 00:20:36,600
Are you the keymaster?

351
00:20:36,600 --> 00:20:38,600
I am the keymaster.

352
00:20:38,600 --> 00:20:39,600
Are you Gozer?

353
00:20:39,600 --> 00:20:40,600
I'm Gozer, baby.

354
00:20:40,600 --> 00:20:41,600
All right, here we go.

355
00:20:41,600 --> 00:20:43,600
Above ground blast.

356
00:20:43,600 --> 00:20:46,600
And three, two, one.

357
00:20:52,600 --> 00:20:53,600
I can feel that.

358
00:20:53,600 --> 00:20:58,600
That was like a refreshing breeze that lasted a very short period of time.

359
00:20:58,600 --> 00:21:01,600
It sure was a refreshing flera.

360
00:21:01,600 --> 00:21:04,600
And the good news is that the high speeds, the bomb.

361
00:21:04,600 --> 00:21:06,600
Look at that.

362
00:21:06,600 --> 00:21:10,600
Wow, that might be one of the prettiest ones we've ever gotten on camera.

363
00:21:10,600 --> 00:21:14,600
But the better news is they got the data.

364
00:21:14,600 --> 00:21:18,600
20 feet from the blast and pressure was 39 pounds per square inch.

365
00:21:18,600 --> 00:21:20,600
30 feet, it was 12.

366
00:21:20,600 --> 00:21:23,600
And by 50 feet, it had dropped to just five.

367
00:21:23,600 --> 00:21:24,600
Straight trench.

368
00:21:24,600 --> 00:21:29,600
But how will those numbers differ once the guys get down and dirty?

369
00:21:34,600 --> 00:21:36,600
The myth of the clown car crash.

370
00:21:36,600 --> 00:21:39,600
Now that is what I call a party.

371
00:21:39,600 --> 00:21:44,600
It is so far looking like balloon baloney, but all is not lost.

372
00:21:44,600 --> 00:21:45,600
All right, so that didn't work.

373
00:21:45,600 --> 00:21:47,600
The clown pushed right through the balloons.

374
00:21:47,600 --> 00:21:50,600
True, but there are other types of balloons than the ones that we tested.

375
00:21:50,600 --> 00:21:52,600
Well, it sounds like we should do some small scale tests.

376
00:21:52,600 --> 00:21:54,600
Maybe we should take a weight, drop it on different types of balloons,

377
00:21:54,600 --> 00:21:57,600
and see which balloon decelerates the way at the best.

378
00:21:57,600 --> 00:21:58,600
I like it.

379
00:21:58,600 --> 00:22:02,600
So far, we haven't had any success at all with using balloons as airbags.

380
00:22:02,600 --> 00:22:03,600
They just don't cut it.

381
00:22:03,600 --> 00:22:09,600
So what we need to do now is look at balloons and find out which one absorbs the most energy.

382
00:22:09,600 --> 00:22:12,600
To do that, I'm going to build a balloon crushing rig.

383
00:22:12,600 --> 00:22:17,600
And a rustle up said rig, Grant first wrestles up some giant metal rings.

384
00:22:17,600 --> 00:22:19,600
Hula hoop anyone?

385
00:22:21,600 --> 00:22:24,600
Which are then welded together into a tube.

386
00:22:24,600 --> 00:22:26,600
It's science.

387
00:22:26,600 --> 00:22:28,600
Before being plastered with plastic.

388
00:22:30,600 --> 00:22:31,600
Done.

389
00:22:31,600 --> 00:22:33,600
Then just two things remain.

390
00:22:33,600 --> 00:22:37,600
A wooden drop disc with a dead on diameter.

391
00:22:39,600 --> 00:22:43,600
And an explanation of how on earth it works.

392
00:22:43,600 --> 00:22:45,600
So the balloon basher is finally finished.

393
00:22:45,600 --> 00:22:49,600
I've got my polycarbonate cylinder with the steel reinforcing frame.

394
00:22:49,600 --> 00:22:53,600
I've added this plunger right here with a 50 pound weight.

395
00:22:53,600 --> 00:22:58,600
The idea is that we drop this onto each type of balloon using the same weight

396
00:22:58,600 --> 00:23:04,600
and the same volume of balloons each time we can compare and find out which type of balloon absorbs the most energy.

397
00:23:04,600 --> 00:23:07,600
With the rig at the ready, the testing can tumble.

398
00:23:07,600 --> 00:23:09,600
Starting with the control.

399
00:23:09,600 --> 00:23:12,600
Here we go. This is control test with no balloons.

400
00:23:12,600 --> 00:23:14,600
In three, two, one.

401
00:23:16,600 --> 00:23:17,600
Okay.

402
00:23:19,600 --> 00:23:22,600
Okay, control is 100 Gs.

403
00:23:25,600 --> 00:23:27,600
Next, it's time to bring on the balloons.

404
00:23:27,600 --> 00:23:28,600
Eight.

405
00:23:28,600 --> 00:23:31,600
Beginning with the type from their earlier test.

406
00:23:31,600 --> 00:23:34,600
15 air filled latex balloons.

407
00:23:34,600 --> 00:23:36,600
In three, two, one.

408
00:23:38,600 --> 00:23:43,600
Immediately it's clear that the regular latex balloons barely curtailed the crusher at all.

409
00:23:43,600 --> 00:23:47,600
As the accelerometer data almost matches the control.

410
00:23:47,600 --> 00:23:49,600
Now we're going to move on and see which is better.

411
00:23:49,600 --> 00:23:51,600
Different materials and different shapes.

412
00:23:51,600 --> 00:23:52,600
Like this.

413
00:23:53,600 --> 00:23:55,600
With no balloon left behind.

414
00:23:55,600 --> 00:23:57,600
Next up, it's...

415
00:23:57,600 --> 00:23:58,600
Balloon animal.

416
00:23:58,600 --> 00:24:01,600
To ensure a correct comparison.

417
00:24:01,600 --> 00:24:04,600
Look at that one. That's not a freaking nature at all.

418
00:24:04,600 --> 00:24:07,600
The guys fill the cylinder to precisely the same depth.

419
00:24:07,600 --> 00:24:09,600
I'm making a pterodactyl.

420
00:24:11,600 --> 00:24:13,600
But will their curious creations...

421
00:24:13,600 --> 00:24:14,600
Oh, that's a good one.

422
00:24:14,600 --> 00:24:16,600
Yeah, it's an octopus.

423
00:24:16,600 --> 00:24:18,600
Lower the G load at all.

424
00:24:18,600 --> 00:24:22,600
Balloon animals in three, two, one.

425
00:24:25,600 --> 00:24:27,600
That worked pretty good.

426
00:24:27,600 --> 00:24:29,600
That worked better than I thought it would.

427
00:24:30,600 --> 00:24:33,600
This is really cool. Look, it goes from 100 to 6.

428
00:24:33,600 --> 00:24:35,600
We got 6 G's from the balloon animals?

429
00:24:35,600 --> 00:24:36,600
Yeah.

430
00:24:36,600 --> 00:24:39,600
With a G load slashed so significantly.

431
00:24:39,600 --> 00:24:42,600
Balloon animals may yet be top dog.

432
00:24:42,600 --> 00:24:44,600
But next it's...

433
00:24:44,600 --> 00:24:45,600
Little balloons.

434
00:24:47,600 --> 00:24:50,600
Alright, small latex party balloons.

435
00:24:50,600 --> 00:24:51,600
They're so adorable.

436
00:24:51,600 --> 00:24:53,600
Three, two, one.

437
00:24:54,600 --> 00:24:58,600
They might be little, but man, they do a good job.

438
00:24:58,600 --> 00:24:59,600
Tolly's right.

439
00:24:59,600 --> 00:25:02,600
These miniature marvels did such a good job

440
00:25:02,600 --> 00:25:05,600
that they cut the G's to just 2.8.

441
00:25:05,600 --> 00:25:09,600
But can that be bettered with the next party pitch?

442
00:25:10,600 --> 00:25:11,600
Big balloon.

443
00:25:11,600 --> 00:25:13,600
The advantage of these bad boys

444
00:25:13,600 --> 00:25:15,600
is that they're made of a thicker latex,

445
00:25:15,600 --> 00:25:17,600
which could lower the load.

446
00:25:18,600 --> 00:25:19,600
What?

447
00:25:20,600 --> 00:25:21,600
Ow!

448
00:25:23,600 --> 00:25:25,600
Alright, giant party balloons.

449
00:25:25,600 --> 00:25:26,600
Here we go.

450
00:25:26,600 --> 00:25:28,600
In three, two, one.

451
00:25:30,600 --> 00:25:31,600
Come look at this one.

452
00:25:31,600 --> 00:25:32,600
Look at the oversized one.

453
00:25:32,600 --> 00:25:33,600
You got it.

454
00:25:33,600 --> 00:25:34,600
Two.

455
00:25:34,600 --> 00:25:36,600
I think we have winner.

456
00:25:36,600 --> 00:25:37,600
I know, isn't that crazy?

457
00:25:37,600 --> 00:25:38,600
That's awesome.

458
00:25:47,600 --> 00:25:49,600
Yeah, now it's a party.

459
00:25:52,600 --> 00:25:53,600
Ow.

460
00:25:56,600 --> 00:26:00,600
Please, don't try anything you're about to see at home.

461
00:26:00,600 --> 00:26:02,600
We're what you call experts.

462
00:26:06,600 --> 00:26:09,600
In three, two, one.

463
00:26:10,600 --> 00:26:15,600
Adam and Jamie's open air blast is beautifully done and dusted.

464
00:26:15,600 --> 00:26:18,600
Which means now it's time to dig deeper.

465
00:26:18,600 --> 00:26:19,600
We are tied in here.

466
00:26:20,600 --> 00:26:22,600
First up is the control trench.

467
00:26:22,600 --> 00:26:23,600
Here we are.

468
00:26:23,600 --> 00:26:27,600
50 feet of green straight away that's about to get rocked.

469
00:26:27,600 --> 00:26:32,600
Alright, straight trench in three, two, one.

470
00:26:35,600 --> 00:26:36,600
Wow.

471
00:26:40,600 --> 00:26:42,600
Things are falling.

472
00:26:42,600 --> 00:26:43,600
Yeah.

473
00:26:43,600 --> 00:26:45,600
Things are falling from the sky.

474
00:26:46,600 --> 00:26:48,600
That was spectacular.

475
00:26:52,600 --> 00:26:55,600
Spectacular and spine chilling.

476
00:26:55,600 --> 00:26:56,600
Oh man.

477
00:26:56,600 --> 00:27:00,600
Their straight and true trench has been well and truly trashed.

478
00:27:00,600 --> 00:27:02,600
Well, our first trench test was,

479
00:27:02,600 --> 00:27:06,600
I think the word I'm going to use is gangbusters.

480
00:27:07,600 --> 00:27:10,600
The level of destruction is really shockingly higher

481
00:27:10,600 --> 00:27:12,600
than I would have expected.

482
00:27:12,600 --> 00:27:18,600
The fireball itself reached almost 35 feet down this trench.

483
00:27:19,600 --> 00:27:21,600
It is, it's horrifying.

484
00:27:21,600 --> 00:27:23,600
It's just horrifying.

485
00:27:26,600 --> 00:27:30,600
Both the high jinx and the high speed suggest that the blast was harsh.

486
00:27:30,600 --> 00:27:33,600
But what do the PCB sensors say?

487
00:27:33,600 --> 00:27:37,600
Well, our pressure sensor data from the trench test is very, very interesting.

488
00:27:37,600 --> 00:27:38,600
Editors, will you help me out?

489
00:27:38,600 --> 00:27:40,600
Draw two lines.

490
00:27:40,600 --> 00:27:41,600
Fantastic.

491
00:27:41,600 --> 00:27:43,600
Label one trench and one above ground.

492
00:27:43,600 --> 00:27:45,600
Now put down the sensor data that we got.

493
00:27:46,600 --> 00:27:47,600
See that?

494
00:27:47,600 --> 00:27:48,600
See that?

495
00:27:48,600 --> 00:27:52,600
The trench seems to have an amplifying effect on the shockwave.

496
00:27:52,600 --> 00:27:55,600
It's significantly higher in the trench than above ground.

497
00:27:55,600 --> 00:27:58,600
Now, does the shape of the trench affect that amplification?

498
00:27:58,600 --> 00:28:00,600
Well, that's the question, isn't it?

499
00:28:04,600 --> 00:28:06,600
In party balloon pileup,

500
00:28:06,600 --> 00:28:09,600
the guys now know the best case balloon.

501
00:28:09,600 --> 00:28:11,600
I think we have winner.

502
00:28:11,600 --> 00:28:14,600
So cue more car crash carnage.

503
00:28:14,600 --> 00:28:16,600
We're going to run the test the exact same way.

504
00:28:16,600 --> 00:28:19,600
We have our two clowns, one in the passenger seat without a seat belt,

505
00:28:19,600 --> 00:28:21,600
one in the driver's seat with the seat belt.

506
00:28:21,600 --> 00:28:24,600
Both of them will have accelerometers attached to them.

507
00:28:24,600 --> 00:28:26,600
We're going to take the car up with the craze,

508
00:28:26,600 --> 00:28:29,600
drop it from 41 feet so it's traveling at 35 miles an hour,

509
00:28:29,600 --> 00:28:32,600
let it crash into the ground and see if the balloons make a difference.

510
00:28:33,600 --> 00:28:36,600
Remember, with regular ATX balloons,

511
00:28:36,600 --> 00:28:39,600
the clowns peaked at 620 Gs,

512
00:28:39,600 --> 00:28:42,600
six times over the lethal limit.

513
00:28:43,600 --> 00:28:47,600
But for this test, the guys aren't just opting for their optimal thick balloons.

514
00:28:47,600 --> 00:28:50,600
I love to pump some helium every now and again.

515
00:28:50,600 --> 00:28:54,600
They're also packing them in as tightly as possible.

516
00:28:54,600 --> 00:28:57,600
This is like how we used to pack for family trips.

517
00:28:57,600 --> 00:28:58,600
Take her up.

518
00:28:59,600 --> 00:29:02,600
So we're about to drop the clown with the balloons.

519
00:29:02,600 --> 00:29:05,600
Now remember, our benchmark is 100 Gs.

520
00:29:05,600 --> 00:29:08,600
We need to see the balloons decrease the G load below that.

521
00:29:08,600 --> 00:29:11,600
If he goes over 100 Gs, the clown is dead.

522
00:29:11,600 --> 00:29:13,600
And so is this myth.

523
00:29:14,600 --> 00:29:18,600
Alright, this is clown car drop with our best latex balloon.

524
00:29:18,600 --> 00:29:21,600
Here we go in 3, 2, 1.

525
00:29:29,600 --> 00:29:30,600
Oh my God!

526
00:29:30,600 --> 00:29:32,600
I think I might have worked, man!

527
00:29:32,600 --> 00:29:34,600
I think that clown may have survived!

528
00:29:35,600 --> 00:29:37,600
What a beautiful sight.

529
00:29:38,600 --> 00:29:42,600
I saw that clown car descending towards the earth,

530
00:29:42,600 --> 00:29:45,600
and then I saw the high speed.

531
00:29:46,600 --> 00:29:48,600
Now in the high speed,

532
00:29:48,600 --> 00:29:51,600
you actually see the car starts to compact.

533
00:29:51,600 --> 00:29:55,600
The balloons separate just enough for a clown face to peek through,

534
00:29:55,600 --> 00:29:58,600
and a clown knows to dust the windshield,

535
00:29:58,600 --> 00:30:01,600
and then start to go back into the car,

536
00:30:01,600 --> 00:30:04,600
as if the balloons are bouncing him back.

537
00:30:04,600 --> 00:30:06,600
Alright Byron, how'd we do?

538
00:30:06,600 --> 00:30:08,600
Did either guy get under 100 Gs?

539
00:30:08,600 --> 00:30:12,600
Now you'll remember he sustained over 600 Gs with just the party balloons.

540
00:30:12,600 --> 00:30:15,600
But this time, only 130.

541
00:30:15,600 --> 00:30:17,600
Wow, that is a huge reduction in the G load,

542
00:30:17,600 --> 00:30:19,600
but still 130 Gs to your body,

543
00:30:19,600 --> 00:30:21,600
there is no way you're going to survive that.

544
00:30:21,600 --> 00:30:23,600
Yeah, unfortunately, we're going to have to call this from busted.

545
00:30:23,600 --> 00:30:24,600
Totally busted.

546
00:30:24,600 --> 00:30:26,600
Thought for a second there, it had a glimmer of hope.

547
00:30:26,600 --> 00:30:28,600
Nope, still dead.

548
00:30:29,600 --> 00:30:32,600
So it turns out, even with our best balloon, the oversized latex balloon,

549
00:30:32,600 --> 00:30:34,600
we were not able to save the clown's life.

550
00:30:34,600 --> 00:30:36,600
So this myth is busted,

551
00:30:36,600 --> 00:30:37,600
but we're not going to stop there.

552
00:30:37,600 --> 00:30:39,600
This is myth busters, it's time to ramp it up.

553
00:30:39,600 --> 00:30:41,600
So we're going to go back to the shop,

554
00:30:41,600 --> 00:30:44,600
and see if we can come up with some kind of configuration of balloons

555
00:30:44,600 --> 00:30:46,600
that could save the clown's life.

556
00:30:46,600 --> 00:30:47,600
What?

557
00:30:47,600 --> 00:30:49,600
In their earlier shop tests,

558
00:30:49,600 --> 00:30:52,600
they might be little, but man, they do a good job.

559
00:30:52,600 --> 00:30:55,600
The guys tested one balloon type at a time,

560
00:30:55,600 --> 00:30:58,600
but now it's anything goes.

561
00:30:58,600 --> 00:30:59,600
Get to work.

562
00:30:59,600 --> 00:31:01,600
As the myth busters go head to head

563
00:31:01,600 --> 00:31:05,600
in a quest to find the ultimate life-saving balloon barrier.

564
00:31:05,600 --> 00:31:07,600
First up is Carrie.

565
00:31:09,600 --> 00:31:11,600
Too much. Too much.

566
00:31:11,600 --> 00:31:15,600
Who's making what can only be described as a wiener whoopee cushion.

567
00:31:19,600 --> 00:31:20,600
That might work.

568
00:31:20,600 --> 00:31:24,600
This giant mass of weenie balloons should take care of a couple issues

569
00:31:24,600 --> 00:31:26,600
with the balloon airbag.

570
00:31:26,600 --> 00:31:28,600
One, they won't separate,

571
00:31:28,600 --> 00:31:31,600
so the clown can't push right through them when he actually gets in the crash.

572
00:31:31,600 --> 00:31:34,600
And two, they're all a little under inflated,

573
00:31:34,600 --> 00:31:36,600
so that he can't pop them when he hits them.

574
00:31:36,600 --> 00:31:39,600
Besides, my clown sensei once said,

575
00:31:39,600 --> 00:31:42,600
one balloon, weak, mini balloons, strong.

576
00:31:43,600 --> 00:31:48,600
Meanwhile, Grant is also going for the more means less approach.

577
00:31:49,600 --> 00:31:51,600
You know what this is?

578
00:31:51,600 --> 00:31:53,600
That's right.

579
00:31:54,600 --> 00:31:57,600
It's a giant bubble wrap.

580
00:31:57,600 --> 00:32:02,600
Finally, there's Tori, who's combining balloons for a real knockout.

581
00:32:04,600 --> 00:32:06,600
I think we got a winner here.

582
00:32:06,600 --> 00:32:07,600
Yes, sir.

583
00:32:07,600 --> 00:32:10,600
All right, now what I'm going to do for my balloon airbag

584
00:32:10,600 --> 00:32:13,600
is take the giant latex balloons and the Mylar balloons.

585
00:32:13,600 --> 00:32:15,600
What I'm going to do is incorporate them too.

586
00:32:15,600 --> 00:32:18,600
I'm going to stuff the Mylar with the latex balloons,

587
00:32:18,600 --> 00:32:22,600
because one thing I want to do is keep the balloons together inside the Mylar,

588
00:32:22,600 --> 00:32:24,600
and hopefully that'll save his life.

589
00:32:25,600 --> 00:32:27,600
Okay, who's first?

590
00:32:27,600 --> 00:32:28,600
I say ladies first.

591
00:32:28,600 --> 00:32:30,600
You want the weenie whopper whoopie to go first?

592
00:32:30,600 --> 00:32:32,600
Yeah, let's do it.

593
00:32:33,600 --> 00:32:37,600
Just like last time, Carrie loads her design to the four-foot marker

594
00:32:37,600 --> 00:32:39,600
and then takes the plunge.

595
00:32:39,600 --> 00:32:40,600
Okay, here we go.

596
00:32:40,600 --> 00:32:43,600
In three, two, one.

597
00:32:44,600 --> 00:32:46,600
Oh, come on, that was so delicate.

598
00:32:46,600 --> 00:32:47,600
That looks pretty good.

599
00:32:47,600 --> 00:32:51,600
But unlike last time, they're not going to disclose the loads

600
00:32:51,600 --> 00:32:53,600
until each design has been dropped.

601
00:32:54,600 --> 00:32:58,600
Next up, Tori's four-heart coronary design.

602
00:33:00,600 --> 00:33:01,600
You know what I think?

603
00:33:01,600 --> 00:33:02,600
I think it's going to go.

604
00:33:03,600 --> 00:33:05,600
All right, this is stuffed balloons.

605
00:33:05,600 --> 00:33:06,600
Here we go.

606
00:33:06,600 --> 00:33:08,600
In three, two, one.

607
00:33:10,600 --> 00:33:11,600
That looked really good.

608
00:33:11,600 --> 00:33:12,600
Yeah.

609
00:33:13,600 --> 00:33:16,600
Last but not least, it's Grant's turn to go down.

610
00:33:17,600 --> 00:33:18,600
You guys ready for the magic?

611
00:33:18,600 --> 00:33:19,600
Yeah, showtime.

612
00:33:19,600 --> 00:33:22,600
In three, two, one.

613
00:33:25,600 --> 00:33:26,600
Oh, we got a couple of poppins.

614
00:33:26,600 --> 00:33:28,600
Hey, maybe more than a couple.

615
00:33:29,600 --> 00:33:30,600
All right, let's check it out.

616
00:33:31,600 --> 00:33:34,600
Like the two before it, Grant's rig looks vigorous,

617
00:33:34,600 --> 00:33:36,600
but who will come out on top?

618
00:33:37,600 --> 00:33:39,600
Okay, remember we're looking for number under 2G's,

619
00:33:39,600 --> 00:33:41,600
which is what our big balloons got.

620
00:33:41,600 --> 00:33:43,600
My contraption was 3.8.

621
00:33:43,600 --> 00:33:44,600
Well, it's been a nice guy.

622
00:33:44,600 --> 00:33:46,600
That's a pretty good score, though.

623
00:33:46,600 --> 00:33:47,600
Not really.

624
00:33:47,600 --> 00:33:48,600
You got 2.8.

625
00:33:48,600 --> 00:33:49,600
Oh, closer.

626
00:33:49,600 --> 00:33:52,600
And, Grant, you got 1.7.

627
00:33:52,600 --> 00:33:53,600
Hey, that's great.

628
00:33:53,600 --> 00:33:55,600
Now to go full scale.

629
00:33:55,600 --> 00:33:57,600
Oh, we got some work to do.

630
00:33:57,600 --> 00:33:59,600
So this is our winning scenario.

631
00:33:59,600 --> 00:34:02,600
It reduced the impact energy to 1.7G.

632
00:34:02,600 --> 00:34:05,600
Now what we need to do is make it 15 or 20 of them

633
00:34:05,600 --> 00:34:07,600
and stuff them into every part of the car

634
00:34:07,600 --> 00:34:09,600
and see if it saves the clown.

635
00:34:10,600 --> 00:34:11,600
On the other side of the break...

636
00:34:11,600 --> 00:34:13,600
Probably better if you don't watch.

637
00:34:13,600 --> 00:34:18,600
There's clown chaos and French torpedo hits pay dirt.

638
00:34:18,600 --> 00:34:19,600
Bye-bye!

639
00:34:26,600 --> 00:34:28,600
So far in our party balloon pile-up myth,

640
00:34:28,600 --> 00:34:31,600
nothing has been able to save the clown passengers' lives.

641
00:34:31,600 --> 00:34:33,600
But we are in the business of extreme.

642
00:34:33,600 --> 00:34:35,600
And that's why we have this.

643
00:34:35,600 --> 00:34:38,600
Is this something I like to call balloon bubble wrap?

644
00:34:39,600 --> 00:34:44,600
It got the lowest G-load of anything we tried in our drop tests.

645
00:34:44,600 --> 00:34:46,600
It's festive and protective.

646
00:34:46,600 --> 00:34:50,600
But will it be protective enough in a 35-mile-an-hour head-on?

647
00:34:50,600 --> 00:34:52,600
Probably better if you don't watch.

648
00:34:52,600 --> 00:34:57,600
To find out, the guys stuffed the car so it's literally fit to burst.

649
00:34:57,600 --> 00:35:00,600
You guys are packed in there like sardines.

650
00:35:03,600 --> 00:35:04,600
I don't want to do it.

651
00:35:05,600 --> 00:35:06,600
Now with this last and final test,

652
00:35:06,600 --> 00:35:10,600
we're trying to get below 100 G's on our clown.

653
00:35:10,600 --> 00:35:12,600
That is our benchmark for survivability.

654
00:35:12,600 --> 00:35:15,600
We've addressed all the problems that we've experienced with all the other balloons.

655
00:35:15,600 --> 00:35:18,600
We have small balloons on sheets of plastic.

656
00:35:18,600 --> 00:35:21,600
That way the clown can't push through the middle of the balloons.

657
00:35:21,600 --> 00:35:23,600
And if one little balloon breaks,

658
00:35:23,600 --> 00:35:27,600
it's not going to create a big cavity where the clown can actually fall into the windshield.

659
00:35:27,600 --> 00:35:31,600
It's a souped-up solution that's do or die for the myth.

660
00:35:31,600 --> 00:35:34,600
If this doesn't work, nothing will.

661
00:35:35,600 --> 00:35:42,600
Alright, here we go. This is bubble wrap in three, two, one.

662
00:35:49,600 --> 00:35:51,600
It did not look good.

663
00:35:53,600 --> 00:35:56,600
Let's go check the data for the party balloon column.

664
00:35:58,600 --> 00:36:01,600
Alright, so how did the clowns do with the balloon bubble wrap?

665
00:36:01,600 --> 00:36:07,600
Okay, so the passengers head peaked at 220 G's and his body at 230 G's.

666
00:36:07,600 --> 00:36:11,600
Wow, so the clowns actually experienced a bigger G load than in the previous test.

667
00:36:11,600 --> 00:36:16,600
So party balloons are not a substitute for airbags or seat belts.

668
00:36:16,600 --> 00:36:18,600
Stop clowning around.

669
00:36:32,600 --> 00:36:35,600
In three.

670
00:36:35,600 --> 00:36:43,600
Adam and Jamie's straight trench torpedo has just gone off with a bang.

671
00:36:43,600 --> 00:36:49,600
And as well as a sensational high speed, it's blown up some surprising results.

672
00:36:49,600 --> 00:36:53,600
Surprising because when compared to the open air control,

673
00:36:53,600 --> 00:36:57,600
it's clear that the straight trench amplifies the blast pressure.

674
00:36:57,600 --> 00:37:03,600
The question now is whether a corner can cause those numbers to drop down.

675
00:37:03,600 --> 00:37:09,600
And first up, it's the pinnacle of German engineering, the sharp-sided trench.

676
00:37:09,600 --> 00:37:14,600
This is the trench that the story's all about, the one with the sharp corners and right angles.

677
00:37:14,600 --> 00:37:19,600
And based on everything we've seen so far, by the time the blast wave gets to the end of this trench,

678
00:37:19,600 --> 00:37:22,600
past all these corners, it ought to be fairly small.

679
00:37:23,600 --> 00:37:24,600
Going down.

680
00:37:24,600 --> 00:37:29,600
To put Jamie's prediction and this myth to the test, the guys position the explosive package.

681
00:37:29,600 --> 00:37:31,600
Absolutely beautyous.

682
00:37:31,600 --> 00:37:34,600
And then deploy for detonation.

683
00:37:34,600 --> 00:37:35,600
You ready for this?

684
00:37:35,600 --> 00:37:37,600
Are you Gozar this time?

685
00:37:37,600 --> 00:37:38,600
I am Keymaster.

686
00:37:38,600 --> 00:37:39,600
Alright.

687
00:37:39,600 --> 00:37:40,600
Call it out.

688
00:37:40,600 --> 00:37:42,600
Right angle, sharp corner, trench.

689
00:37:42,600 --> 00:37:43,600
Yup.

690
00:37:43,600 --> 00:37:47,600
In three, two, one.

691
00:37:48,600 --> 00:37:49,600
Wow!

692
00:37:53,600 --> 00:37:55,600
I don't know, I think there's going to be a crater there.

693
00:37:55,600 --> 00:37:56,600
I think there might be.

694
00:37:56,600 --> 00:37:58,600
Let's go look at it.

695
00:37:58,600 --> 00:38:05,600
It's goodbye Yellowbrick Road as the blast tears through their trench.

696
00:38:05,600 --> 00:38:10,600
But at ground zero, to say the guys are happy is an understatement.

697
00:38:13,600 --> 00:38:14,600
Wow.

698
00:38:14,600 --> 00:38:15,600
Dude, check that out.

699
00:38:15,600 --> 00:38:20,600
I think this tells pretty much the whole story because that's intact.

700
00:38:20,600 --> 00:38:23,600
Everything up to that point is not.

701
00:38:23,600 --> 00:38:25,600
As you can see, this is the safe end of the trench.

702
00:38:25,600 --> 00:38:28,600
The further you go that way, the worse it gets.

703
00:38:28,600 --> 00:38:33,600
Now most of the energy seemed to travel down the trench and appears to have gotten absorbed

704
00:38:33,600 --> 00:38:36,600
by these corners based on how badly damaged they are.

705
00:38:36,600 --> 00:38:40,600
By the time you got here, there's not so much energy left.

706
00:38:40,600 --> 00:38:43,600
At 20 feet, the PSI was 60.

707
00:38:43,600 --> 00:38:46,600
At 30 feet, it was 19.

708
00:38:46,600 --> 00:38:49,600
And at 50 feet, it was just 7.

709
00:38:49,600 --> 00:38:52,600
A colossal contraction from their tunnel trench.

710
00:38:52,600 --> 00:38:56,600
But the myth says that only precise corners can shelter a shockwave.

711
00:38:56,600 --> 00:39:02,600
And to find out just that, it's time to end with another breathtaking bang.

712
00:39:02,600 --> 00:39:05,600
We're about to send another blast through another trench.

713
00:39:05,600 --> 00:39:09,600
And I'm standing right where the rubber meets the road for this entire story.

714
00:39:09,600 --> 00:39:16,600
This is where we will compare precision engineering versus your normal wear and tear of a soft cornered trench.

715
00:39:16,600 --> 00:39:22,600
I think my intuition tells me that the sharp corners are better and that we'll see a higher blast pressure

716
00:39:22,600 --> 00:39:24,600
at the end of this very trench.

717
00:39:24,600 --> 00:39:26,600
But only one way to find out.

718
00:39:26,600 --> 00:39:29,600
For the final time, the guys set up the PCB sensors.

719
00:39:29,600 --> 00:39:31,600
Look a little toasty.

720
00:39:31,600 --> 00:39:33,600
Position the projectile.

721
00:39:33,600 --> 00:39:35,600
There you go.

722
00:39:35,600 --> 00:39:37,600
And retreat to safety.

723
00:39:39,600 --> 00:39:47,600
Here we go. This is 25 pounds of explosives in a serpentine soft cornered trench.

724
00:39:47,600 --> 00:39:49,600
This is for real. This is for the money.

725
00:39:49,600 --> 00:39:53,600
Three, two, one. Bye-bye.

726
00:39:56,600 --> 00:39:58,600
Never get used to that.

727
00:39:58,600 --> 00:40:02,600
The serpentine salvo was a blast.

728
00:40:02,600 --> 00:40:10,600
And for Jamie, it's the high class high speed that seems to tell the story.

729
00:40:13,600 --> 00:40:19,600
Editors, let's pull up the high speed footage of the square cornered and the round cornered trench on splits.

730
00:40:19,600 --> 00:40:26,600
Okay. Now if we look at the fireballs in these two different trenches, we can see that in the square cornered trench

731
00:40:26,600 --> 00:40:30,600
the fireball stops moving just after the first corner.

732
00:40:30,600 --> 00:40:37,600
However, in the round cornered trench, the fireball passes the first corner and the second corner before it stops moving.

733
00:40:37,600 --> 00:40:44,600
Now, visually, that tells me that you're going to be in more trouble at the end of the round cornered trench.

734
00:40:47,600 --> 00:40:51,600
And that's something that the damage at rock bottom seems to agree with.

735
00:40:51,600 --> 00:40:53,600
More destruction.

736
00:40:54,600 --> 00:40:58,600
Hello.

737
00:40:58,600 --> 00:41:01,600
But what does the data dictate?

738
00:41:01,600 --> 00:41:03,600
Oh, I think we got some good data.

739
00:41:03,600 --> 00:41:06,600
I think we did. Let's get back to the shop and crunch it.

740
00:41:06,600 --> 00:41:07,600
Okay.

741
00:41:12,600 --> 00:41:13,600
What did the numbers say?

742
00:41:13,600 --> 00:41:17,600
I'm glad you asked. I have repaired this to explain them.

743
00:41:17,600 --> 00:41:18,600
What, did you make a cake?

744
00:41:18,600 --> 00:41:24,600
No, these are our four explosions and these numbers represent the blast pressures we got in those explosions.

745
00:41:24,600 --> 00:41:31,600
Okay. This is interesting. Yeah, I can see that the straight trench almost looks like it is amplifying the pressures

746
00:41:31,600 --> 00:41:35,600
because they're almost 10 times as high as the above-ground control test.

747
00:41:35,600 --> 00:41:40,600
Absolutely. And check out the difference between the right-angled trench and the serpentine trench.

748
00:41:40,600 --> 00:41:45,600
It's clear that the numbers in the serpentine trench are higher than the ones in the right-angled trench.

749
00:41:45,600 --> 00:41:48,600
I think these numbers tell us that this myth is plausible.

750
00:41:48,600 --> 00:41:49,600
So it is.

751
00:41:49,600 --> 00:41:51,600
Plausible.