A faulty fridge can spoil anything—leftover pasta, eggplants, sections of a skull.
A man who had been undergoing brain surgery awoke to the bad news that a large area of his skull, removed and placed in cold storage while surgeons operated, had to be jettisoned because it wasn't stored in chilly enough conditions. Instead, doctors affixed a plastic prosthesis, which the man claims has been giving him headaches and making him strangely sensitive to the weather.
He sued the hospital for $27,000, but a court yesterday rewarded him only $4,100. Apparently, experts concluded that the plastic cap was actually better than the spoiled skull—the problems he'd been experienced probably resulted from the way it was attached. Either way, the lesson here is clear. If you're going to put part of your head in the fridge, first make sure the appliance is working properly.—Gregory Mone
Five amazing, clean technologies that will set us free, in this month's energy-focused issue. Also: how to build a better bomb detector, the robotic toys that are raising your children, a human catapult, the world's smallest arcade, and much more.


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I think I'm gonna have nightmares.
We've all had that happen. You come home and the fridge quit working and next thing you know you open it up and whew, rotten hamburger, spoiled fruit, decaying piece of skull... hate it when that happens.