Inventive, (mostly) edible DIY gadgets and projects guaranteed to captivate The Hungry Scientist Handbook brings DIY technology into the kitchen and onto the plate. It compiles the most mouthwatering projects created by mechanical engineer Patrick Buckley and his band of intrepid techie friends, whose collaboration on contraptions started at a memorable 2005 Bay Area dinner party and resulted in the formation of the Hungry Scientist Society—a loose confederation of creative minds dedicated to the pursuit of projects possessing varying degrees of whimsy and utility. Featuring twenty projects ranging from edible origami to glowing lollipops, cryogenic martinis to Tupperware boom boxes, the book draws from the expertise of programmers, professors, and garden-variety geeks and offers something to delight DIYers of all skill levels. This amusing how-to may be more fun to page through than to put into practice. A collaboration by mechanical engineer Buckley, Binns, and a group of self-proclaimed techie geeks, the book presents projects using scientific principles (and, often, long lists of supplies) to create edible products. There is a lollipop formed around an LED light, bread baked with wild yeast, and a giant polyhedron formed from separate sheets of pecan pie. Additionally, there are projects made with food-related items, such as a measuring spoon stethoscope and a Tupperware iPod boom box. Directions are clear and well illustrated. However, this is not a book for children: some projects use sharp tools or dry ice, never mind the instructions and photos for a caramel bikini! Likewise, recipes for beer, wine, and superchilled martinis make this book inappropriate for school libraries. Well done and fun to look at, it nevertheless has limited appeal and is recommended only for large public libraries.—Denise Dayton, Jaffrey Grade Sch., NH Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Inventive, (mostly) edible DIY gadgets and projects guaranteed to captivate The Hungry Scientist Handbook brings DIY technology into the kitchen and onto the plate. It compiles the most mouthwatering projects created by mechanical engineer Patrick Buckley and his band of intrepid techie friends, whose collaboration on contraptions started at a memorable 2005 Bay Area dinner party and resulted in the formation of the Hungry Scientist Society—a loose confederation of creative minds dedicated to the pursuit of projects possessing varying degrees of whimsy and utility. Featuring twenty projects ranging from edible origami to glowing lollipops, cryogenic martinis to Tupperware boom boxes, the book draws from the expertise of programmers, professors, and garden-variety geeks and offers something to delight DIYers of all skill levels. Patrick Buckley, a graduate of MIT, has worked at Lawrence Livermore Laboratories as a mechanical engineer. When not tinkering or inventing, he can be found kiteboarding, paragliding, or training for Ironman triathlons. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. Lily Binns is a writer and a producer for the dance company Pilobolus. She lives in Brooklyn. The Hungry Scientist Handbook Electric Birthday Cakes, Edible Origami, and Other DIY Projects for Techies, Tinkerers, and Foodies By Patrick Buckley HarperCollins Publishers, Inc. Copyright © 2008 Patrick Buckley All right reserved. ISBN: 9780061238680 Chapter One Edible Undies * Lace-Up caramel lingerie We had purely scientific intentions when we went into development for an edible lingerie prototype. Seriously—haven't you ever wondered how a chocolate thong works? We asked our fashionista-inventor friend Jenna Phillips if she knew how to go about designing undergarments suitable for salivation and mastication. Needless to say, we were very pleased by her invention. Caramel candy is formed by caramelizing sugar, or heating it until the sucrose molecules break down into different compounds, which become darker in color and toastier in flavor the longer they're cooked. The more you heat, let cool, and reheat the caramel, the stronger it will become—though you probably shouldn't count on this lace holding up all night. Then again, it's not really meant to last. Equipment 10-inch plastic-coated icing bag A variety of small-opening decorating tips for icing Wax paper or silicone mats Lingerie, to use as template Felt-tip pen Ingredients 1 stick butter 1 1/8 cups light brown sugar ½ cup dark Karo syrup ½ cup condensed milk ¾ tsp vanilla extract 1. To create a template, stretch a piece of lingerie out over a sheet of wax paper and trace its outline with the felt-tip pen. Fold the paper in half to check that its shape is symmetrical. Attach the smallest tip to the nonstick icing bag and set aside. 2. To concoct the caramel, combine the butter and sugar in a double boiler or a heavy-bottomed pan. Add the Karo syrup and evaporated milk. Stirring constantly, cook over low heat until the mixture st