Who said you can't get something from nothing? A group of mechanical engineering students at Dalhousie University in Canada designed and built a go-kart that runs on compressed oxygen. A Crave report said that in a series of test laps, the students lasted just under two minutes while going flat out at 43 km/h on two tanks—its makers admit that it wants to improve the go-kart's range, but it still sounds pretty cool just the way it is now.

To build the thing, the students modified a 40-year-old snowmobile engine and ran compressed air through the engine to produce power similar to a gas engine, according to the project's Web page. The students attached the engine to a refurbished go-kart using two scuba tanks to hold the air. The air is then released through a standard scuba fitting with a high-flow regulator; it travels through tubing to a ball-valve connected to the foot pedal and throttle, according to the report.

"It operates much like a normal rotary engine,"said David Langille, one of the five mechanical engineering students responsible for the project.