This 'storm glass' is stupid but looks neat

Originally published at: https://boingboing.net/2017/10/16/this-storm-glass-is-stupid.html

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So it’s a glorified snow globe? :stuck_out_tongue: This reminds me i need to do a post for a Kickstarter i backed and got the product for. It’s really neat, i just keep forgetting to share here. If i remember by the time i get home i’ll try to do a post in the BBS

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Not really as cool as a snow globe, functionally.

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IKR? I have a snow globe, and by golly when I shake that thing I want it to fucking snow!

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My barometer does the same thing…

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Sea Monkey Weather Creatures?

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I find the mule barometer just as effective.

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I was thinking Sea Men judging by the color

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My bar-ometer does Jack, (Daniels if I’m lucky).

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Don’t bash FitzRoy out-of-hand; he invented the daily weather forecast (and, indeed, the word forecast), and didn’t do a bad job of it. I think we can forgive him an occasional scientific eccentricity.

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The Tempest Prognosticator is the only weather forecasting device you will ever need. Powered by leeches. Gobs more cool than your silly globe. Might be a tad bulky. Totally worth it though.

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Yeah, Fitzroy founded the UK Met Office, one of the best weather forecasting centres on the planet. And anyway, his Storm Glass is not as stupid as a leech barometer.

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Didn’t say it wasn’t stupid. Cool transcends stupid.

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Absolutely. I wanted one the moment I heard about them.

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I find this only somewhat zany. Really cool considering the chemistry involved. “a camphor–ethanol solution with aqueous NH4Cl and KNO3 solution”

Kinda want one to replace my fire grenade. (Once I got a well I decided it was way too dangerous to keep around, but you used to throw these at fires. Extinguishes the oxygen, more or less)

@jlw - your curios and mine would line up nicely. Excellent MASH vodka!

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A description for a storm glass I saw (which IIRC originally involved the contents of a shark’s swim bladder or something) was related to the electrical charge in the atmosphere as influenced by weather 10+ miles away, such as the radio waves generated by lightning. The text explained that with the advent of radio broadcasts and ensuing higher level of background radio noise the ability of the storm glass to react to weak, distance events was lost.

I have no ability to validate the story but it’s interesting at least.

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That is awesome.

Plus the Wikipedia article informs me that there is a place which delights in the name Barometer World.

I must go there…

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Wow. Other than the obvious “well THAT’S not good for you,” I kind of like the “fusible link releases rack at 165 F” bit, which is a bit of user free intervention there. Clever.

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