John Winter
Hero Member
www.coolthings.com
If you are going through a lean spell, not finding much and need a change, why not engage in a bit of lateral thinking and detect for the black gold that is oil? A project called the Urban Prospector, tells you exactly how to make lots of cash. It works like this …
You purchase a second-hand (although it's called pre-loved across the Pond) detector from eBay and modify it — full instructions are given. Basically you remove the ‘metal sensor’ and replace it with either a benzene or hydrocarbon sensor. Maybe easy for you, but I’m lost already. Have I just removed the coil?
For the experts still reading this, the analogue data emitted by the sensor will be analysed by a microchip that will interface with the main computer running the detector. That’s okay, then. Even I can see that using a basic machine as the host and using its many built-in features such as sound response will create a useful tool.
It says here, ‘by scanning the surface of ones neighbourhood, you will be able to determine pockets of oil. Until recently oil prospecting has been a field left to the professionals, because they require sophisticated tools for detection. But in much the same way gold prospecting empowered people to find small nuggets of profit, urban prospecting now has the potential to find small nuggets of oil near oil spills, abandoned gas stations, and industrial sites. Given the current high cost of oil these urban spills or potential gold mines are waiting to be tapped.’
You know, this all sounds very neat. I might try converting my old machine and go prospecting for dirty oil some guy dumped while doing an oil change. Then take it home to my refinery that I conveniently built in the back garden and never pay for fuel again. Untold riches!
Trust Mrs John to bring me back down to earth. She’s just said that if it does work and I do manage to find crude oil, how will I manage to extract it and where will I sell it? Good point. Trust a woman to put the kibosh on a good idea!
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