The surprising history of nitrous oxide

boingboing.net

24 pointsshill4 comments

I used to be able to buy bulbs from behind the counter at supermarkets. Now none of them carry them. I used to use them for whipped cream and mousse. My creamer hasn't been used for nearly a decade. I don't want to buy boxes to huff the stuff at raves so I couldn't be bothered chasing it further.

It isn't a controlled substance or anything and in my experience is pretty damn harmless. Just seems like more nanny state nonsense. Sure it can kill you if you suffocate on it but then so can water. Meanwhile legitimate use gets penalised.

They're available through Amazon these days. I mainly use them for rapid flavor infusions for cocktails.

...some shows would enact the chemical reaction to yield it on stage as part of the theatre...

Wouldn't this be very dangerous? Back then stages were illuminated using fire, and nitrous oxide is a famous explosive.

Nitrous Oxide itself isn't explosive. It's used to add additional oxygen, which effectively boosts explosives.

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