microwave - open - switched on

[matty-hodgson]

does anyone actually know what would happen if i was to switch on my microwave for about 15 seconds with the door open?

this was brought up in another thread, and i'm just wondering if anyone knows if anything cool would happen?

[Blaineoliver]

It would start heating up your cells, causing them to either burst, you to over heat, or just make you a tad warm. Then you would cool off and or be damaged permanantly.

[shadowmaster]

does anyone actually know what would happen if i was to switch on my microwave for about 15 seconds with the door open?

this was brought up in another thread, and i'm just wondering if anyone knows if anything cool would happen?

I dont think you can switch on a microwave with the door open.

[matty-hodgson]

there must be a way?
my microwave's pretty old, the only thing i can see is the door latches, surely i can just stick pencils in?

[SiM]

You might get cancer. I heard a guy got testicular cancer after using a microwave (with a closed door) underneath a counter at a shop he worked at...

Make a video when you do it please

[Clunk]

[TAKTAK]

I dont think you can switch on a microwave with the door open.

You just need an object to depress the door latch, that's all that stops it AFAIK, but it would be easy enough to remove the window, that way the door is intact, as to whether it has additional protective measures in place, i have no idea.

[Magnets]

It won't turn on, and if it did, I guess you would just feel some heat.

[GoNz0]

you get warm, used to have one with no glass at a place i worked at a long time ago, we used to turn it on and leg it out the room, if you forgot and stood near it you felt heat. being an idiot i put my hand near it and my hand got warm.


still have my hand so...

[AD-15]

I wouldn't do that if I were you...

I know someone whose grandfather died from having his kidneys literally cooked from standing close to a microwave oven that did not (I don't know why) have the protective mesh thing in the door.

I don't see how it can give you cancer. Microwaves are not an example of ionising raditation, which is what can cause cancer. You will however begin to heat up just as quickly as your food would should you stand in front of a microwave without the mesh installed in the door, or with the door open. This is because microwave ovens work by using the fact that the water in your food will absorb energy from microwaves in the form of heat. You have a very considerable amount of water in your body.

It's definetly no laughing matter, don't try it mate.

[grayg1]

still have my hand so...

[Mama Sumae]

You just need an object to depress the door latch, that's all that stops it AFAIK, but it would be easy enough to remove the window, that way the door is intact, as to whether it has additional protective measures in place, i have no idea.

Or just seat in front of these





Set frequency to 2.4GHz, the magnitude is harder to specify so just have a go untill you feel something

[TeePee]

You weren't planning on having children, were you?

[shadowmaster]

You weren't planning on having children, were you?

The bigger question, do we really want him to have children?

[Konan555]

This is because microwave ovens work by using the fact that the water in your food will absorb energy from microwaves in the form of heat. You have a very considerable amount of water in your body.

To elaborate there... the water absorbs the radio energy as it happens to be at the right wavelength to resonate them, converting it to heat energy.

Most of the energy would be absorbed as it passed through the first layers of tissue (i.e. your skin) I would guess. Microwaves DO NOT cook from the inside out, it's an urban myth born of taking an example out of context involving cooking something very wet inside of something dry.

However, like any cheaply made radio transmitter, a microwave's going to be putting out all sorts of spurious frequencies that don't resonate water molecules. As AD-15 pointed out, it's not like ionising EM radiation (something like 10 raised to the 10 below) so it's not going to be ripping DNA apart the moment you come into contact with it. However, there are cumulative effects to radio exposure.

Without getting into ERP blah blah a mobile phone on GSM1800 is putting out about 1W of radio energy at 1.8GHz. Microwaves are around 800W and H2O picks up radio at around 2.5GHz. I can't say I'm an expert at what it'd be chucking out of the door if it where open, but I'd not be all that interested in finding out.

[malfunction]

I think you should buy an inverter for your car so that you can take the door off your microwave and use it in your car. Put it next to a jerry can full of petrol, cut your brake lines and find the steepest, iciest hill and drive down it as fast as you possibly can... For extra effect load the car with a few open boxes of nails, broken glass and bricks. Don't forget to get someone to record it... And ask them if they mind picking up your darwin award for you.

(or in other words no, something cool won't happen, what have you been smoking?)