New Twist for 4th of July Science! - click here

The trash can smoke ring generator is a signature finale in Steve Spangler's stage show... and was recently featured on the Ellen DeGeneres Show. Years ago, toy manufacturers like Wham-O sold air blasters that sent bursts of air sailing across a room to the surprise and delight of any innocent victim. With a little practice, it was quite easy to shoot a cup off of someone's head from 20 feet away. Steve Spangler took this to the next level using his motto, "Make it big, do it right, give it class!" His Trash Can Smoke Ring Launcher is easy to make and a blast to share with your friends.

It's an e-mail that probably showed up in your inbox... Create an Exploding Drink! The prank is based on the widely known phenomenon of dropping MENTOS® chewy mints into soda to create an erupting geyser. Instead of just dropping the Mentos into soda, the pranksters suggest freezing a Mento in the middle of an ice cube. Serve your friend a refreshing soda drink and garnish with the tainted ice cubes. When the ice cube melts, the Mento is exposed and the soda erupts everywhere. Great idea, right? Readers of the Boing Boing blog suggest that it's a hoax... but no one out of the 600 plus people who posted a comment bothered to try it. We turned Steve Spangler loose to find out if it really works.

It's the ultimate prank using the simplest of props... a plastic soda bottle filled with water. Even though the words, "DO NOT OPEN" are printed on the bottle, people just can't resist the temptation. Watch out, the fun is just beginning.

Have you ever wondered why shaking a soda results in a great explosion when it’s opened? What causes a 2-liter bottle of soda to go flat? Is there anything that can be done to keep fizz in a bottle of soda? Get ready to uncover some amazing soda secrets that will change your soda drinking habits.

Fill the glass jar with water and cover it with a card. As you turn the whole thing upside down, the audience can hardly contain themselves. The room quiets down as you precariously position the inverted jar and card a few feet above someone's head. Just as they thought, no water spills out because the card magically sticks to the mouth of the upside down jar. But wait. . . there's more.