Yes, a physicist once lit his cigarette with a nuclear-bomb explosion. Here's how it worked.A popular Reddit thread suggested a US scientist once lit his cigarette with a nuclear explosion.The story appears to be true: The theoretical physicist Ted Taylor ignited his smoke with thermal energy released by a test blast on June 1, 1952, according to a book published in 1999.Taylor used a cup-shaped mirror to focus the light from the detonation onto the tip of his cigarette.A 1955 video by the US Department of Defense suggests word (and emulation) of Taylor's gag may have spread among o... [Read more]