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Chris · Posted: Tue Sep 13, 2005 12:45 pm Post subject: MythBusters

Does anyone else like to watch MythBusters? Its on Discovery Channel and I find it amazing.

The show basically is about Adam and Jamie who find urban myths and try and recreate them in a controlled experiment. The do wacky things: Check out these episode guides:

Episode 1: Ice Bullet, Exploding Toilet, Who Gets Wetter?
Jamie and Adam set out to methodically bust three urban legends in the premiere episode of Mythbusters. Smoking in the bathroom — a bad habit made worse when shards of flaming toilet start flying. But is it really possible to explode a commode by spraying a flammable substance down the bowl then lighting a match? Jamie and Adam find out if this myth holds water. Speaking of soggy, do you get wetter running or walking in the rain? And can assassins use bullets made of ice in order to not leave evidence in their victims? Our guys put these fables to the test.

Episode 2: Cell Phone Destruction, Silicone Breasts, CD-ROM Shattering
In this episode, Jamie and Adam test several explosive theories. Can chatting on a cell phone while pumping gas cause the pump to blow up? Our mythbusters put themselves at risk so you don't have to. They also put silicone breast implants to the test at high altitude. Will they burst under pressure? Finally, we'll learn once and for all if high-speed CD-ROM players can really shatter a compact disc.

Episode 3: Barrel of Bricks, Pissing on the Third Rail, Eel Skin Wallet
Is it really that dangerous to answer the call of nature on the electrified third rail of a train track? Can an eel skin wallet erase all the magnetic information on your credit cards if the skin came from an electric eel? How about the story of the unluckiest construction worker on earth? A pulley system breaks down while he is lifting a barrel filled with 500 pounds of bricks. Will the barrel come straight down on the guy doing the pulling, or will he walk away without a scratch? Jamie and Adam take a crack at these classic legends.

Episode 4: Penny Drop, Deadly Microwaves, Radio Tooth Fillings
Can pennies from heaven kill? Or, more specifically, can a penny dropped from a skyscraper kill a pedestrian on the sidewalk below? Jamie and Adam take the challenge, hopefully without deadly results. Speaking of fatal fallacies, is it possible to literally bake yourself on a tanning bed from the inside out? The guys also investigate the claim that Lucille Ball exposed a Japanese spy ring by listening to radio signals transmitted by her tooth fillings. Hmmm ...

ADAM SAVAGE, MYTHBUSTER AND CO-HOST

Simply put, Adam Savage makes stuff. He's constructed everything from spaceships to Buddhas, from puppets to rifles, from sculptures to toys ... and just about anything else imaginable.

Adam's fascination with creating things started when he began building his own toys at age 5, and he hasn't stopped since. He's served as an animator, graphic designer, stage and interior designer, carpenter, welder and scenic painter, and he's worked in everything from metal to glass, plastics to injection molding, and pneumatics to animatronics.

But for the past eight years, Adam has concentrated on the special-effects industry, honing his skills through more than 100 television commercials and 12 feature films, including Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace and Episode II: Attack of the Clones, Galaxy Quest, Terminator 3, A.I. and the Matrix sequels. He's also designed props and sets for Coca-Cola, Hershey's, Lexus and a host of New York and San Francisco theater companies.

His skills don't end there. Not only has he worked in the research and diagnostic division for several toy companies, but he's also acted in several films and commercials — including a Charmin ad, in which he played Mr. Whipples' stock boy.

And now, in addition to co-hosting Discovery Channel's MythBusters, Adam also teaches advanced model making, most recently in the industrial design department at the San Francisco Academy of Art. And somehow, he also finds time to devote to his own art; his sculptures have been showcased in over 40 shows in San Francisco, New York and Charleston, W.V.

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JAMIE HYNEMAN, MYTHBUSTER AND CO-HOST

Wilderness survival expert, captain, diver, linguist, animal wrangler, machinist, chef and, of course, model-maker.
Hailing from Indiana farm country, Jamie Hyneman is a multifaceted man: wilderness survival expert, boat captain, diver, linguist, animal wrangler, machinist and chef, to name a few. His career has been equally diverse: Jamie earned a degree in Russian languages and literature and ran a sailing/diving charter business in the Caribbean for several years before he moved over to the visual-effects industry.

Once he had joined that field and had worked for several production companies, Jamie found his way to Colossal Pictures' model shop, where he managed the production of models and special effects for hundreds of commercials and movies. Then, eight years ago, Jamie took over the shop and created M5 Industries Inc.

Today, the top U.S. production companies seek out M5 Industries when unusual or problematic props need to be fabricated, especially if they involve animatronics or robotics. Jamie has worked on the Matrix sequels for Eon Productions, as well as Star Wars: Episodes I and II for Industrial Light and Magic, among others.

Jamie has also worked on commercials for major automobile manufacturers, soft-drink companies (including 7-UP) and athletic shoe companies (including Nike). And in the midst of all this activity, Jamie has diversified his company into toy prototyping as well.

The holder of several patents and the winner of numerous industry awards Jamie is also a long-standing Screen Actors Guild member.

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CHRISTINE CHAMBERLAIN, MYTHTERN

Artist, globetrekker and now, mythtern.
Born in Washington, D.C., Christine Chamberlain spent her formative years in Northern Virginia. Shunning a traditional teenage "career" in the fast-food industry, she worked in a stained-glass studio, where she learned how a studio/shop runs and operates.

She then started college in Richmond, Va., studying fine art, and continued her studies at Western Washington University, focusing on printmaking. After college, Christine landed a job as a graphic artist and producer for a Fox affiliate. She also bought an etching press (a machine for etching, or engraving with acid on metal) to continue her printmaking, which she ships each time she moves (and she moves a lot).

In fact, Christine has lived in Saudi Arabia, where she developed a deep appreciation for the desert and Middle Eastern cultures. From there she relocated to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and then back to the United States, where she worked at Capital Television Network as head of the graphics department.

For two and a half years Christine also worked as an auditor for a communication company, traveling across the States with bolt cutters in order to gain access to the sites she was evaluating.

Finally, Christine is a collector of vintage skirts, including decorative skirts from South America and Victorian underskirts.

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KARI BYRON, MYTHBUILDER
Sculptor, painter, actor and one-time-only backside-model.

While Kari Byron was studying film and sculpture at San Francisco State University, her parents were wondering what kind of job she'd actually end up with in the real world. She’d be writing, directing and starring in B-level schlock-horror films one day; the next she'd be sculpting intricate model dragons for Dungeons & Dragons fans.

Luckily for us that all turned out to be perfect training for the world of MythBusters.

After graduating, Kari began her career as an artist, working in sculpture and painting and holding successful exhibitions at some of San Francisco's leading galleries.

Her sculpting skills then led her into the world of model-making and toy-prototyping: a job with Jamie Hyneman at M5 Industries. It was here that Kari got her first big break with the Mythbusters team. During the "vacuum toilet" segment of one of the first episodes (which examined whether a person could get suctioned into an airline toilet), Jamie needed a 3-D scan of a person's backside, and Kari had the right ... well, you know. Basically, she was in the right place at the right time.

The rest is history (although we'd be remiss if we overlooked Kari's former job experience working in a kosher bagel store and posing as a store mannequin to foil shoplifters).

An erratic fencer and knife thrower, Kari has been chased by machine-gun-toting Egyptian police for painting a mural in Dahab, has trekked in the Himalayas, and has scuba-dived in most of the world oceans.

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SCOTTIE CHAPMAN, MYTHBUILDER

The MythBusters mistress of metal.
A former horse trainer, video-game tester and graveyard-plot telemarketer, Scottie Chapman is the MythBusters mistress of metal. Trained in welding, machining and metal fabrication she has built, burnt and bashed everything from bridges and amusement-park rides to seaplanes and race cars.

In the course of her career Scottie's worked in set-building, carpentry, model-making and architectural restoration; she's also taught high-school metal-fabrication and studied special-effects makeup. Her building talents have been used by San Francisco's famous industrial performance-art collective, Survival Research Laboratories.

A passionate snow boarder, Scottie loves gardening and tending her prized pet koi. She's also raised three orphaned baby squirrels, who come to visit her back yard each morning for breakfast.

In addition, Scottie has played bass guitar for several underground punk/noise bands including the Wizards of Ozzie, a group that performed "lounge" covers of Black Sabbath songs. Plus, she can belly dance and fire dance — often at the same time.

Beyond all that, Scottie really loves getting behind the wheel of her 1973 Lincoln Mark IV race car and competing in full-contact auto races.

Scottie was born in Virginia Beach, Va., and grew up in rural Maryland.

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TORY BELLECI, MYTHBUILDER

Model-builder who once graced the halls of Industrial Light and Magic.
Tory first walked into Jamie Hyneman's workshop in 1994 as a fresh-faced young film student from San Francisco State University looking to start a career in movie special effects. Jamie quickly put him to work buying lunch, sweeping the shop floor and running errands.

But a determined Tory quickly learned all he could and moved up the ranks. Three years later he landed a job with George Lucas' special-effects division, Industrial Light and Magic; one of his biggest projects there was building models for the most recent Star Wars trilogy. The Federation battleships and podracers you see in The Phantom Menace and Attack of the Clones are some of Tory's finest pieces of work.

Tory's other special-effects work can be seen in the Matrix trilogy, Van Helsing, Peter Pan, Starship Troopers, Galaxy Quest and Bicentennial Man.

When he's not busting myths, Tory's busy dreaming up his own ideas for films and TV shows. One of his short films has already appeared in the Slamdance film festival and on the Sci-Fi Channel.

Tory was born and bred in Monterey, Calif., right near the famous Pebble Beach golf course. He once shot a blistering 15 over par round of 87 there ... then decided special effects was more his game.

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GRANT IMAHARA, MYTHBUILDER

Electronics and radio-control specialist who operated R2-D2 and kept the Energizer Bunny going and going and going ...
Electronics and radio-control specialist Grant Imahara is a former animatronics engineer and model maker for George Lucas' Industrial Light & Magic, where he worked on such movies as The Lost World: Jurassic Park, Star Wars: Episode 1 - The Phantom Menace, Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, A.I.: Artificial Intelligence and The Matrix Reloaded.

In addition to operating R2-D2 (one of only a handful of official operators), Grant has another claim to beloved-character fame: developing a custom circuit to cycle the Energizer Bunny's arm beats and ears at a constant rate. In fact, he's responsible for all the electronics installation and radio programming on the current generation of bunnies, even serving as the bunny's driver and crew supervisor on numerous commercials.

While he earned a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering from the University of Southern California, Grant actually picked up many of his mechanical skills from the machinists at the ILM model shop, many of whom date back to 1986's Howard the Duck. He's also the author of the book, Kickin' Bot: An Illustrated Guide to Building Combat Robots. His own machine, Deadblow, is a BattleBots champion that continues to strike terror into the hearts of fellow competitors.

If you haven't seen it... check it out.. not only do you learn cool new things... but Adam and Jamie are funny as heck. Some of the stunts they do just make me laugh.

If you want to see more... check this out http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/mythbusters/mythbusters.html
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