Shop OBEX P1 Docs P2 Docs Learn Events
Don't Put LEDs on your Starbucks Cup — Parallax Forums

Don't Put LEDs on your Starbucks Cup

ercoerco Posts: 20,256
in General Discussion
From another forum: British bomb squad called in to detonate a coffee cup found with some electronics attached, possibly a STEM data logger. Somewhere between silly and sad. Don't be THAT GUY!

http://www.thecomet.net/news/stevenage-bomb-scare-small-explosion-heard-after-bomb-squad-attend-suspicious-coffee-cup-device-found-near-tk-maxx-1-5211919

http://www.picaxeforum.co.uk/showthread.php?30258-Bomb-scare-caution

Comments

  • xanaduxanadu Posts: 3,347
    Hopefully it wasn't a micro hitchbot. I wish the photo were higher resolution. Any idea what the thing on top is?
  • ercoerco Posts: 20,256
    Starbucks writes your name on the cup... Would be fitting if it said Unibomber. Surely the java was a high-energy blend, possibly named "Brazilian Blast".

    The article never clearly says it was a mistake.

    It wasn't a "viable device".

    "Small explosion heard after bomb squad attend suspicious ‘coffee cup’ device" was a bomb squad blast to try to trigger it. Not unlike:





  • Buck RogersBuck Rogers Posts: 2,185
    Interesting concept. Both the scene and the response.
  • HughHugh Posts: 362
    It's a sign of the times. The M1 was shut for ten hours because of a 'suspicious package' under a bridge and the M3 likewise a few days later.

    Many years ago I had to take some scientific equipment through Heathrow. It was a foam-filled Aluminium flight-case with a large fibre-glass sphere in the middle. The sphere was filled with butane and six wires ran from the surface of the sphere to a data-logger powered by 4 D-cells. The LCD of the logger counted-down the time remaining for the experiment - but only when a large toggle-switch was thrown. Being a one-off, it had a certain "home-made" look about it. As it went into the X-ray machine my opening gambit was "I think you'll want to talk to me about that...". Luckily I had a letter from the head of security.
  • Heater.Heater. Posts: 21,230
    Hugh,
    ...large fibre-glass sphere...filled with butane and six wires ran...large toggle-swictch...
    Sounds like a beautiful thing. What on Earth was the experiment about ?

    I pretty much always get hauled up the X-ray check. My bags are always full of circuit boards, wires, batteries and odd looking gadgets. Last time including an IR video camera, which being flat and round with a solid alloy case it looked like some kind of land mine!

    I'm always surprised they never give me a hard time about it. They just pull a few things out and stuff their explosives sniffer probe in there. Then let me pack it all again.

    I will be attaching LEDs to coffee cups whenever I can now.





  • ercoerco Posts: 20,256
    These days, the only place where most people want/expect to see wires, blinky LEDs & mysterious gadgets is at Maker Faire or the upcoming Parallax EXPO 2, where anything goes. But don't tell that to the the bad guys!
  • HughHugh Posts: 362
    Heater. wrote: »
    Sounds like a beautiful thing. What on Earth was the experiment about ?
    It flew back and forth across the Atlantic for a while. It's job was to detect and record cosmic radiation as part of a study into the possible effects on passengers / crew / equipment. At the time fifteen years ago), some EU legislation was coming into play that said any industry that exposes staff or members of the public to radiation must track their exposure - this definition included frequent flyers / crew and the experiment was to gather some data as background. Using recorded flightpaths and satellite detections of bursts is now being used to track exposure.

    Foil hats and lead-lined aprons (which people use to "protect" their reproductive organs) do not work!
Sign In or Register to comment.