Sunday, September 02, 2007

Trick #12: Burning Sugar

You can make sugar burn, but no one else can!



REQUIREMENTS: Several lumps of sugar, some cigarette ashes, matches or a lighter.

In this age of granulated sugar substitutes, and with the fortunate decline in the popularity of smoking, both lump sugar and cigarette ashes are becoming less common items. Not that this won't work with granulated real sugar, but it is more impressive with lump.
If you have access to both items, you can perform a scientific magic trick that has become nothing short of a classic! Normally, if you try to light sugar with a flame, it may bubble and melt, but it won't actually catch fire. Unless you know how.
Challenge the members of your audience to light a cube of sugar, and pass out several cubes of sugar to them. While they are attempting to get one of the sugar cubes to light, secretly get some cigarette ash on your finger tips. Try to get as much as you can.
Have an audience member select a sugar cube, and as you pick it up transfer the ash to the sugar cube. Now, hold a flame to the portion of the cube with the ash on it, and it will light easily!



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