Helium Raft. On this episode, the senior crew busts the myth that you can fill a regular raft with helium and make it fly. In fact, they also fill an airplane life raft with helium and an airplane escape slide with helium. Neither of those fly either. Adam does ably demonstrate how to not use the escape slide. Not to be beaten, however, they set out to construct a craft that will work to fulfill the myth - one that will float on water when filled with air and fly in the air when filled with helium.
This results in the largest build ever. It also results in a colossal screw-up in launching the beast when they detach the ballast, but it does create a lighter-than-air craft, filled with helium, and Adam suspended from the craft (though he is dangling in a net under the craft, rather than riding on top). They seem to have neglected the part about using the ‘raft’ filled with air on a body of water, however. Probably a good thing, as anything that size would have been unwieldy on the water, and Adam might miss the next episode (or more). Busted.
Cell Phones & Planes. Meanwhile, the junior crew had a more interesting task, to debunk the myth of the use of cell phones interfering with the instruments aboard aircraft. In fact, the homemade setup that is built by Grant and Tory to simulate an airplane cockpit is rife with interference. However, once they load up their gear into a real plane (sadly, a plane on the ground, since they aren’t allowed airborne with such equipment due to federal law), no such interference is found.
Perhaps the problem wasn’t with the interference - perhaps it was with the older equipment used for the cockpit, or even in the cockpit-building process itself. This isn’t to say that that was done poorly. I’m sure Grant did a fine job. I’m just saying that perhaps that had something to do with it being, uh, less than ideal conditions. Busted.
