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We've written about the inventive EepyBird before. Some of the GeekDads have even seen them live. But the EepyBird guys, Fritz Grobe and Stephen Voltz, really deserve a post of their own.
Even if you don't know the name, you definitely know their work. They're best known for their their exquisitely choreographed video of a Diet Coke and Mento fountain on YouTube. Like those other playful experimenters, the MythBusters, EepyBird inspires the rest of us to look at ordinary objects a new way.
But while the MythBusters are all about explosions, EepyBird brings an artist sensibility to what they do. It's not surprising to learn that Grobe left mathematics studies at Yale University to become a circus performer, and has won 5 International Jugglers Championship gold medals. (Voltz is a trial lawyer who has also dabbled in street performance.)
The other thing I like about EepyBird is that — unlike the MythBusters — most of their demonstrations are ones you can try yourself. Go to the EepyBird website and visit the page called Try This at Home! to find tutorials on Diet Coke and Mentos constructions, Post-It note kinetic sculpture, and homemade 3D glasses.
EepyBird's latest project is a Diet Coke and Mentos-powered rocket car. The vehicle dribbles and fizzes along a blistering total of 221 feet before sputtering to a halt. While EepyBird cautions that this experiment is not for amateurs, I'm sure it won't be long before soda-driven soapbox cars and skateboards are blazing down driveways across the globe.
Kathy Ceceri teaches science and art workshops and is the author of Around the World Crafts.
