<p>No, they are different. Poppers were originally amyl nitrite ampoules, broken under the nose of a person with severe angina pain. Whippettes, or Whip-its, were little canisters of nitrous oxide used to make whipped cream. One could release the gas into the cream maker, and inhale it. I heard of people using nitrous oxide with a mask, as in the dentist’s office. That is really dangerous, because one could potentially knock oneself out and die from lack of oxygen. I never saw anyone do it, though, just heard about it. (This, BTW, involved all of those engineering students and pre-meds at MIT that some CCers love to idolize. Some of them were even–gasp!–ROTC members and actual veterans!)</p>