Partial excerpt wrote:SYDNEY (Reuters) - An Australian man built up a 40,000-volt charge of static electricity in his clothes as he walked, leaving a trail of scorched carpet and molten plastic and forcing firefighters to evacuate a building.
Frank Clewer, who was wearing a woolen shirt and a synthetic nylon jacket, was oblivious to the growing electrical current that was building up as his clothes rubbed together.
When he walked into a building in the country town of Warrnambool in the southern state of Victoria Thursday, the electrical charge ignited the carpet.
This is really interesting. I have heard those spontaneous combustion stories and wondered if they really happened and what on earth could have caused them. The paranormal explanations did not go over with me at all. So, it must be static electricity. Wow! Of course, now there is one more thing to worry about. How does one not build up too much static electrictiy? Okay, don't wear wool and nylon. But there must be other things to avoid. Oh dear.
herbivore12 wrote:
(What's a guy in southern Australia doing in a woolen shirt and nylon jacket, anyway?)
It is winter in Australia... or early spring... and southern Austalia is colder than the rest of the continent. It is pretty cool there.
Sure, it's chilly, but that's no excuse for a fashion travesty.
(When I was in northern Aus a while back, we were surrounded by souther Aussies escaping the winter chill; met an awful lot of folks from Melbourne...)
They are starting to advertise Australian wine on tv here - Wolf Blass, I think. All I can think of is Monty Python's review of Australian wines (bouquet of an aborigine's armpit, not meant for drinking but rather for hand-to-hand combat, etc.). Poor Australian wine makers. They don't stand a chance.
djm
I'd rather be atop the foothills than beneath them.
Tell us something.: I've picked up the tinwhistle again after several years, and have recently purchased a Chieftain v5 from Kerry Whistles that I cannot wait to get (why can't we beam stuff yet, come on Captain Kirk, get me my Low D!)
“First lesson: money is not wealth; Second lesson: experiences are more valuable than possessions; Third lesson: by the time you arrive at your goal it’s never what you imagined it would be so learn to enjoy the process” - unknown
Tell us something.: I've picked up the tinwhistle again after several years, and have recently purchased a Chieftain v5 from Kerry Whistles that I cannot wait to get (why can't we beam stuff yet, come on Captain Kirk, get me my Low D!)
Careful there, Tyler. They'll be making sport of your sense of color next.
I'll just put on my wool shirt and nylon coat and chase after them!!!!
“First lesson: money is not wealth; Second lesson: experiences are more valuable than possessions; Third lesson: by the time you arrive at your goal it’s never what you imagined it would be so learn to enjoy the process” - unknown
Partial excerpt wrote:SYDNEY (Reuters) - An Australian man built up a 40,000-volt charge of static electricity in his clothes as he walked, leaving a trail of scorched carpet and molten plastic and forcing firefighters to evacuate a building.
Frank Clewer, who was wearing a woolen shirt and a synthetic nylon jacket, was oblivious to the growing electrical current that was building up as his clothes rubbed together.
When he walked into a building in the country town of Warrnambool in the southern state of Victoria Thursday, the electrical charge ignited the carpet.
I suppose it's a very good thing that he didn't walk into a petrol station then, huh?
anniemcu
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