Oxford students and explosives 
2003 Reader Submission
Pending Acceptance
Since this story concerns illegal live ammunition,
it was cunningly kept from the relevant authorities and hence does not have a newspaper reference unless the college bog sheet counts...
Anyway, you'd think chemistry students at Oxford
University would understand a few of the more obvious properties of gunpowder. But no. One keen hunter of small fluffy animals attending an undisclosable college found a live .22 calibre rifle bullet in his pocket left over from his last session of carnage in the highlands of Scotland. A friend of his, a chemistry student, decided that it might be a good idea to hold a cigarette lighter beneath it to see what happened. Despite the assurances of a bystander that 'don't worry, all that will happen is the bullet will heat up a bit' it did in fact, predictably enough, explode, showering shrapnel around the general vicinity. Fortunately, all that happened to the foolish student was a scratch to the neck, a small piece lodged in her finger and a very embarrassing trip to the hospital. As she said the next day 'Well, I now understand the whole "gunpowder exploding" thing.' Submitted on 01/13/02
Submitted by:
Pat Sanderson
Reference:
Personal Account Jan 2002
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