A Home Lab/Shop For Kids?

sharp-bang writes "When I was growing up, my Dad let my brother and I have the run of his wood shop, and kept up a steady stream of Lego kits, Estes model rockets, chemistry sets, Heathkit projects, and other fun science stuff from the Edmund Scientific catalog, and the rest was history. I'd like to give my kids that kind of experience. If your kids were interested in science, computers, robots, and building stuff, how would you build and outfit a lab/shop for them (and you) to play in?"

hmmm

[gadabyte]

diesel fuel, fertilizer, and a copy of 'the turner diaries'?

Frikken cool.

[rbochan]

Are you interested in adopting a 38 year old?

Egads Man

[Cylix]

Buy em anything. Anything except from that catalogue. The prices are rather horrid.

Me, I say give em a can of coke and some pop rocks.

Now that is entertainment for hours.

Follow it up with a bowl of rice crispies.

Each time they ask why these things do what they do... lie... lie a lot and change it each time.

Re:hmmm

[Opportunist]

Also solves the question how to afford sending your kids to college.

Don't laugh

[Ethanol-fueled]

Young boys(and, okay, maybe some young girls) like to burn stuff.

It all starts with the magnifying glass and the ants, then it moves on to dousing G.I. Joes in lawnmower gasoline. Later, when they get older, firecrackers come into the mix.

Lord help you if you hand-load your own ammo: gunpowder(a mix of fast-and-slow burning ^_^ ) and primers, with some match-heads all poured into a metal can creates a louder and much more exciting(read: dangerous) projectile than an Estes rocket. Speaking of Estes rockets, screw the rocket and put just the engine on the pole.

Oh crap, I'm guilty of terrorism for posting that. Who's that knocking at my door?

Re:Don't laugh

[Ethanol-fueled]

Hehe, these days in Soviet Amerika a can of hairspray and a lighter are considered a "flamethrower". :(

Re:hmmm

[Anonymous Coward]

What's with all the explosives? Do something harmless, like make some boards with blinking lights and attach them to bridges. What could go wrong?

Re:Don't laugh

[chubs730]

+5, Oh Shit

Re:hmmm

[Anonymous Coward]

Dr. Pierce was a genius. God rest his soul.

Re:What did your dad do?

[s4m7]

you can't just design a part using CAD-CAM and email the design off to a factory in China

You can, just expect 95% more lead than the specs call for.

Re:Don't laugh

[Nefarious Wheel]

It all seems rather silly to me, in light of the other sorts of things you can order.

You can order a series of tubes, for example, on the series of tubes: http://www.made-in-china.com/china-products/productviewjmQxfKEEUJpH/LM-3B-Launch-Vehicle.html [made-in-china.com]

Note the little "+ add to basket" button.

Mind you, I do find that a little frightening.

Re:Don't laugh

[Bastard of Subhumani]

My mothers first fiance died stuffing a bunch of fireworks into a pipe

... leaving the field open for someone else to become your dad. Maybe that Darwin was guy right after all!