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Mabus
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Grant Thompson "King of Random" charged with possesion of explosive materials
https://www.sltrib.com/news/2018/01/18/utah-man-who-runs-pop...
Apparently it all began from his dry ice bomb, then continued when he detonated a bag of powder from some fireworks. But I guess it was bound to
happen eventually.
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Texium
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Guess he's not infallible after all. I'd say he kinda deserves it for appealing to the lowest common denominator– the kewls and mouthbreathers that
don't understand or care about actual science.
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Brom
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"Mouthbreathers" that's hilarious
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MrHomeScientist
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Hah! Was my first reaction.
His channel used to be good - neat weekend projects to make useful things like his several metal forge projects. Lately it's gone significantly
downhill, with clickbait titles and pointless videos like "What Does DRY ICE Do in a Metal Foundry?" (it sublimates quicker but just as invisibly,
what the @!%# did you think was going to happen? And yet it has 6.6M views). It's not even Grant doing the videos anymore.
I just looked at his latest video "What happened to Grant? EXPLAINED!" (note all the capslock words to bait more views); I was only able to watch the
first half but so far it's just an explanation of how the channel works, not about this incident.
He mentioned they are making daily videos now, which in my opinion is why several channels that used to be good have poor quality videos now. If you
commit to such a heavy schedule like that, I really believe quality suffers in the rush to come up with ideas for the video you HAVE to get out today!
CrazyRussianHacker has turned into a product review channel because of it.
It's interesting that he talks about his channel as a business, with employees, budget, schedules, etc. That's so different than how I think of
YouTube. I wonder if all the big channels are like that?
Edit: Here's a very entertaining video that says exactly what I think of this whole situation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OiliPwukDek
[Edited on 1-19-2018 by MrHomeScientist]
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wg48
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Quote: Originally posted by Mabus  |
Apparently it all began from his dry ice bomb, then continued when he detonated a bag of powder from some fireworks. . |
I wounder how he detonated it or what do they put in fireworks these days LOL
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LearnedAmateur
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Granted, I haven’t watched the video, but a lot of pyrotechnic compositions tend to detonate when confined sufficiently to generate large pressures.
I used to make little explosives out of the stick type party sparklers when I lived in Australia (best you’ll get off the shelves over there) by
sticking a fuse in the bagged powder, about 50 sparklers worth, and wrapping it tightly with lots of electrical tape.
In chemistry, sometimes the solution is the problem.
It’s been a while, but I’m not dead! Updated 7/1/2020. Shout out to Aga, we got along well.
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Texium
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| Quote: Originally posted by MrHomeScientist | | It's interesting that he talks about his channel as a business, with employees, budget, schedules, etc. That's so different than how I think of
YouTube. I wonder if all the big channels are like that? |
He's probably trying extra hard to frame it that
way to help his legal case. As the linked article mentions, in Utah, it is legal for “any person or entity possessing or controlling an explosive,
chemical, or incendiary device as part of its lawful business operations.” So he's probably going to try and claim that he is a legitimate
"business" and weasel out of it that way...
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aga
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What's a 'mouthbreaker' ?
Urban dictionary had a terrible apostrophe error which made me collapse under the strain.
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Texium
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Mouthbreather. Just a funny way to say idiot.
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Vosoryx
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| Quote: Originally posted by Texium (zts16) | | ...I'd say he kinda deserves it for appealing to the lowest common denominator– the kewls and mouthbreathers that don't understand or care about
actual science. |
My thoughts.
I actively disliked his stuff - over edited (poorly) and click bait. Very little actual science, just dumb ideas and loud noises.
On the flip side, it's a blow to the energetics community, even if >90% of his viewers are under the age of 15. They might go after cody'slab
next... and that would be bad.
"Open your mind son, before someone opens it for you." - Dr. Walter Bishop
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JJay
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I don't think they'll go after Cody's lab since it's basically in the wilderness. Heck, he could probably get a license for truckloads of dynamite -
he has a mine, after all.
I am not a huge fan of the King of Random, though, and if you're setting off explosives just because it attracts viewers while burning yourself and
scaring the neighbors in the process, you give a bad name to legitimate amateur scientists who set off explosives safely and peacefully.
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aga
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Oh look !
Yes, Mr Thompson's delusion was more accurately discussed earlier, particularly Bert's insights into KOR's fate.
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Velzee
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My reaction—a mixture of glee and worry. In a way, I am happy to hear that Thompson actually was disciplined for his absurd actions. Although I am
slightly glad to see that the Feds don't just chase after pacifistic Long Island students, it worries me to see that they classify many of us as
"danger to the general public." Perhaps we'll all be thrown in jail, or if one of us buys a quart of bleach for our laundry, they'll suspect that
we're planning to hijack a plane.
I just want them (the Feds) to stop, honestly.
Check out the ScienceMadness Wiki: http://www.sciencemadness.org/smwiki/index.php/Main_Page
"All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident."
—Arthur Schopenhauer
"¡Vivá Cristo Rey!"
—Saint José Sánchez del Río |
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Tdep
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I know there's no love lost on here over Grant Thompson, but I've got a few comments. Firstly, there's a couple points which are really no good, and
you can't wish upon anyone.
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Thompson said he had heard about the charges from media and fans on Twitter. He was upset and confused about the allegations.
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Finding out about allegations from strangers on Twitter, now that's trash. Imagine the confusion, media contacting you for a statement before you even
know you've been charged? How, or why does that happen? The article states that the fire station is only 0.2miles away, and Grant thought they watched
his videos... But they're so unfriendly as to let the media know of his charges before the accused?
| Quote: |
The explosion left Burgess with small particles of burned material embedded in his arms, charges say.
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'small particles' does not mean small injury. I know people on here will agree that it's the small particles embedded in your flesh that can ruin your
life the most. It doesn't say burn, it says embedded. Let's hope he's okay.
Now the negative point.
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Thompson said a friend had left him a bag of powder, which he believed to be from a deconstructed firework.
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Not everyone can be a chemistry expert. And if you want your job to be YouTube, like Grant, you're much better off making 'pop-science' videos like he
does. The market is there, if it wasn't Grant it would be someone else. You don't have to like him, but you can't blame him for exploiting the market
to success.
He used to make quite great videos, while not a scientist, he's obviously a great engineer. The early high voltage stuff was neat, and he has a whole
setup built in his basement to produce his own LN2, that's awesome. But back to the quote: he is playing with the arch-enemy of chemistry - rushing.
He is making a video every day. YouTube pressures you to do that. That's how you get popular, and it is more than possible to make a new video
everyday when you are a gaming or godforsaken blog channel. But it is not possible if you are a science channel. You rush, and you make mistakes, and
poorly thought out content like 'lets set gasoline on fire' or 'lets bloody drop hamburgers in LN2' because you need results, you need something that
looks good on camera, you can't take risks on something you think might not work, and if you have to spend more than 1-2 minutes in a video explaining
a concept or experiment, forget about the idea. Fast and flashy.
That's how you end up getting some random powder from your friend, and lighting a whole pile of it. No time for research. No time for small scale
tests. If you rush, things go wrong.
So he's working the system. But also, the system is working him, and that's the sad part
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j_sum1
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Thoughts from AVE.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OiliPwukDek
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ninhydric1
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I agree, Tdep. I can't imagine chemistry YouTubers performing 3+ hr long syntheses and/or distillations, editing, uploading, and monetizing all in a
day. If Doug, or NileRed, or NurdRage (EDIT: forget to mention chemplayer, sorry) attempted this, they would've quit a long time ago. As the old
saying goes: "Quality over quantity". Sadly, YouTube encourages otherwise, resulting in uncultured swine such as the Paul brothers, among others, to
gain popularity.
[Edited on 1-20-2018 by ninhydric1]
The philosophy of one century is the common sense of the next.
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chemplayer...
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We went through a phase of insane production (4 per week at one point) and it damn near killed us work-wise. Fun though! Statistically it didn't
result in a greater rate of change of subscribers or per-video views (although we didn't monetise and the YT recommendation algorithm probably takes
this into account). If you've got an already huge viewer-base like Grant, then producing a video a day is just tantamount to 'cashing out'. It's not
sustainable in so many ways. If you really want to treat videos as a business, then have a plan, set realistic but stretch targets, think long-term,
maximise quality and professionalism to the limits, and focus on marketing and syndication.
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Vomaturge
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I have mixed feelings about The King of Random. I totally admit that he was trying to make as much money as possible from these videos, and that
quality suffered. He also did plenty of videos on how to make "gadgets" without giving any deep scientific understanding. He was not really a
scientist, and his videos were more "recipes" than experiments. But I think there's a place for that, too. Many non-scientists want to make these kind
of projects, too, and I think that's okay, to a point. If someone wants to do something with energetic materials, strong poisons/acids, high voltage,
power tools, etc they should at least learn the safety procedures for working with them. Assuming that the layman is interested in a fairly safe
project, I think this type of video is good. If some science comes through too, making the project into a demonstration of a scientific phenomenon
(e.g.. electrolysis, temperature increase from adiabatic compression), then that is a bonus. It might get more people interested in real scientific
discovery. Even seemingly pointless videos, meant only to gather views, are not doing anything wrong in my mind. Normal tv programs do the same thing.
I did not like that Thompson encouraged some dangerous projects, like hammer ramming potassium nitrate and sugar to make a rocket engine. The dry ice
thing was actually showing the formation of liquid CO2 at elevated pressure. Still a bad (obviously) idea, regardless of the intent. According to the
news source Aga found, Thompson and his friend did do small burn tests with the powder, before igniting a large amount that made the bang. I'm not
sure how to feel about the fact that felony charges are being pressed. On one hand, I know that these laws are there for good reason, but on the
other, it seems excessive for a small misconduct. I guess they have to draw the line somewhere, and in this case dry ice is included as "explosive". I
will miss the King of Random, if the charges stick and he goes to prison and/or his channel is deleted.
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Radium212
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I despise him. He makes constant scientific errors (repeating the sulphuric acid has an incredibly high pH), offers little to no scientific
explanation of his "experiments", and appeals only to edgy twelve-year-olds that think chemistry is exclusively about explosions. The fact that he has
the nerve to call himself a chemist repulses me. What he does is idiocy, not amateur chemistry. He gives us all a bad name, and deserves what will
happen to him.
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Deathunter88
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| Quote: Originally posted by Radium212 | | I despise him. He makes constant scientific errors (repeating the sulphuric acid has an incredibly high pH), offers little to no scientific
explanation of his "experiments", and appeals only to edgy twelve-year-olds that think chemistry is exclusively about explosions. The fact that he has
the nerve to call himself a chemist repulses me. What he does is idiocy, not amateur chemistry. He gives us all a bad name, and deserves what will
happen to him. |
Agree 100% with you on that, I couldn't have said it better myself.
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Radium212
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If NileRed or NurdRage get in trouble there's nothing left for me in this world.
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Velzee
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NileRed and *ChemPlayer
Check out the ScienceMadness Wiki: http://www.sciencemadness.org/smwiki/index.php/Main_Page
"All truth passes through three stages. First, it is ridiculed. Second, it is violently opposed. Third, it is accepted as being self-evident."
—Arthur Schopenhauer
"¡Vivá Cristo Rey!"
—Saint José Sánchez del Río |
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MrHomeScientist
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| Quote: Originally posted by Tdep |
He is making a video every day. YouTube pressures you to do that. That's how you get popular, and it is more than possible to make a new video
everyday when you are a gaming or godforsaken blog channel. But it is not possible if you are a science channel. You rush, and you make mistakes, and
poorly thought out content like 'lets set gasoline on fire' or 'lets bloody drop hamburgers in LN2' because you need results, you need something that
looks good on camera, you can't take risks on something you think might not work, and if you have to spend more than 1-2 minutes in a video explaining
a concept or experiment, forget about the idea. Fast and flashy.
That's how you end up getting some random powder from your friend, and lighting a whole pile of it. No time for research. No time for small scale
tests. If you rush, things go wrong.
So he's working the system. But also, the system is working him, and that's the sad part |
This is excellently worded; I agree 100%. I might have to adapt that into a motto for my channel or something.
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Bert
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I watched a couple of the King of Random videos, my partner started watching them before he got in a hurry and it all degenerated to late seasons
mythbusters level of non science/(dis)infotainment.
What I saw didn't turn my crank, but "you will never lose money by underestimating your audience's intelligence".
It's not SCIENCE. It's not really educational. It is profit driven entertainment, and if I want to see that, there are more professionally done and
interesting (to me) works on offer.
Rapopart’s Rules for critical commentary:
1. Attempt to re-express your target’s position so clearly, vividly and fairly that your target says: “Thanks, I wish I’d thought of putting it
that way.”
2. List any points of agreement (especially if they are not matters of general or widespread agreement).
3. Mention anything you have learned from your target.
4. Only then are you permitted to say so much as a word of rebuttal or criticism.
Anatol Rapoport was a Russian-born American mathematical psychologist (1911-2007).
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aga
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What ?
Has the youth of today forgotten all about drugs and alcohol ? 
Edit:
Whoops. Forgot to mention sex.
(at my age it tends to get forgotten)
[Edited on 22-1-2018 by aga]
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