When I was a graduate student in the mid-1990s, hot plates were, well, hot. You might even say they were fire hazards. Nowadays they can be intelligent, too. The Barnstead RT Elite Stirring Hot Plate (Fisher catalog #11-400-023, $924) can heat to 350ᄚ C in 0.1-degree increments; features separate LCD displays for temperature, speed, and time; alerts you if the temperature of the plate rises above some fixed value; and features a port that can output data to an attached computer.












