Science Halloween Costumes

Here are some of the best ideas of heard of / thought up for geeky Halloween costumes.

1. Meso Woman - a meso compound is when you have a molecule two or more chiral centers, but the overall compound is not chiral - it's superimposable on its mirror image. Organic chemistry is often enough to frighten even the bravest souls!
One way to do it: Get two "bopper headbands with different balls (green (Cl) and white (H) make sense). Switch the balls so each headband has one ball of each color. Secure them to each shoulder with green pointing forward on one side and pointing backwards on the other side.
Bonus accessories: Wear non-polarizing sunglasses (meso compounds don't polarize light), label your shoulders R and S.
Credit: Bridget Trogden

2. Dark Matter - Physicists tell us that 80% of all the stuff in the universe doesn't interact with light (or any electromagnetic radiation) and we can't actually tell if its really there.
One way to do it: Wear all black and be really mysterious.
Bonus accessories: pin an image of gravitational lensing to your chest, or an image from one of the Dark Matter games. Play the song Dark Matter by Porcupine Tree or Andrew Bird

3. Schrödinger's Cat -  Schrödinger proposed an analogy to point out the weirdness of quantum mechanics. Part of the theory predicts that if you put a cat in a box under specific conditions and don't open the box, the cat will be simultaneously both alive and dead. It's a zombie cat! The ψ function tells us so.
One way to do it: get cat ears, paint on whiskers, and use a cardboard box with a head hole cut out to cover your torso.
Bonus accessories: Carry around a vial of poison (HCN) and a Geiger counter. Write Schrödinger's equation on the box. Bonus point if you dress as a zombie cat and explain quantum entanglement to people who ask what you're supposed to be.

4. Prion - Prions are "proteinaceous infectious proteins" that cause brain problems like mad cow disease. Their discovery changed  how we think about infectious agents.
One way to do it: The normal prion protein is shown at left. You can spiral tape up your legs to represent the helices, or drape 2 Slinkies from your shoulders. Use a rope to make the belt, and attach a couple of sheets of paper to represent the beta sheets.
Bonus accessories: Carry around a crazy looking cow, make a plaque that says "amyloid" and put it on your head.


What's the best science costume you've seen? Post thoughts in the comments.