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Episode 6: "Lightning Strikes Tongue, Tree Cannon, Beat the Breath Test"

Air Date: November 7, 2003

Metal body piercings increase one’s chances of being hit by lightning.

busted

The lightning does seem to strike a pierced body more, but not the piercings directly. It would take a piercing the size of a doorknob to attract lightning.

Under siege from a neighboring clan, a Medieval Hungarian town (Paks) built a cannon out of a tree overnight, but wiped out a great deal of itself when the cannon exploded during a test-fire.

partly confirmed

It is impossible to bore a barrel out of a log in a single night using the technology available at that time. The cannon made of a log, loaded with 6 ounces of gunpowder, successfully fired a 1-pound granite cannonball a significant distance (exact measurement unavailable since the cannonball was not found). Loaded with 5 pounds of gunpowder, and with its barrel plugged, the tree cannon exploded violently enough to feasibly destroy part of a small medieval town like Paks. During the test, several blast shields and a tractor were placed between the cannon and the MythBusters crew for protection - large pieces of the gun were sent way behind them.

Using various substances and tricks (eating an onion, eating breath mints, drinking mouthwash, placing a penny in the mouth, etc.) when drunk can allow someone to beat the breathalyzer test.

busted

None of the tested methods worked and a blood sample can always be requested by the police. In addition, mouthwash actually made the breathalyzer give a higher reading than usual because of the inherent alcohol content.

Newer: Episode 7: "Stinky Car, Raccoon Rocket"

Older: Episode 5: "Hammer Bridge Drop, Buried Alive, Cola"

14 Comments

  1. Gregg:

    Metal body piercings increase one’s chances of being hit by lightning: “The lightning does seem to strike a pierced body more” sounds like a confirmation to me. The hypothesis says nothing about direct hit on the piercing(s).

    June 26, 2007 at 8:53 AM
  2. Peter:

    Recent evidence shows that you’re likely to burn your ears if struck by lightning when wearing an iPod (BMJ).

    August 3, 2007 at 9:15 PM
  3. Jeremy:

    I’ve got to agree with Gregg’s conclusions concerning the lightning and piercings test. Also, I suspect that even if Adam and Jamie had found a way to beat the breathalyser, there’s no chance they would have televised it, especially with the police participating in the test. The speed camara test they did in a later episode, with the help of the speed camera developer, is no different. I love the show, but I think that tests like this, where there is a blatant conflict of interest, are a bit of a waste of airtime.

    August 15, 2007 at 9:46 PM
  4. Twin sistas:

    we think the breath test is awesome with the mouth wash making it higher!

    And we agree w/ gregg!! we thought it would make it more common to get struck w/ the piercings!!

    August 30, 2007 at 5:06 PM
  5. BILL JENNINGS:

    can lighting be attracted to a wireless head set such as a blue tooth ? your show is a favorite among long haul drivers.

    October 2, 2007 at 12:49 PM
  6. Krystin:

    Me and a few of friends went to a party not to long ago and we got really drunk right and we got pulled over the cop had to take all of us girls in and for some reason gave us the test there and we had stuck penny’s in our mouths right before we got into the car and we all of our tests came out negative tho the officer new we were drunk and under age he had to let us go.

    October 22, 2007 at 2:20 PM
  7. Timothy:

    I was there and that is not what happened Krystin. Don’t you remember he let us go because you polished off his sausage like a champ. What a fun and crazy night that was!

    October 22, 2007 at 9:12 PM
  8. Croatia:

    I loved how Adam was so courageous to get his own tongue pierced. Congrats!!! Also I think the only reason why the myth was busted because they put the heads on metal mounts. That’s all I gotta say.

    January 8, 2008 at 6:15 PM
  9. Croatia:

    Also the reason why the mouthwash did’nt work was because it had alcohol in it. They should’ve used alcohol free.

    January 8, 2008 at 6:17 PM
  10. j boy:

    I think it would be impossible to make a
    cannon in one night with midevil tools.
    Nice try mythbusters!

    January 28, 2008 at 5:48 PM
  11. illjim:

    I heard many years ago that if you eat enough honey to coat your throat and the inside of your mouth, you can beat the breathalyzer. Of course, I heard this from an old beekeeper and I’ve never actually tried this out.

    April 21, 2008 at 4:29 PM
  12. ken:

    You can beat the breathalyzer by hyperventilating not the blood test

    May 1, 2008 at 8:08 PM
  13. Rick:

    Couldn’t you just tell the cop that you were using mouthwash if you flunk a breath test?
    Then if he asks for a blood test, you tell him you’re a hemophiliac and if they poke you, you’ll bleed out and die. By the time they figure out you’re lying, you’ll be sober enough to pass.

    May 8, 2008 at 1:33 PM
  14. Kari:

    I’ve often wondered if the “scent remover” disks they sell at stores like “bed bath & beyond” or “linens and things” that are the size of a small dog tag could be hidden in the top of your mouth and eliminate the smell enough to fool a breathalyzer.

    June 25, 2008 at 9:54 PM

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