Crossing London tube tracks
 

From: "MaxB"
Subject: Crossing London tube tracks
Date: 03 April 2008 08:52

On 3 Apr, 06:02, "Roger T." wrote:
Up to around 3000v DC off a local generator IIRC (thus the dimming of
the prison lights as seen in many films is a load of old cobblers).
There was a DC v AC competition involving the public killing of an
elephant in the early days of deciding the "best" way to fry people;
prior to that Thomas Edison "perfected" his AC system by killing
numerous cats and dogs in experiments :-
http://www.ccadp.org/electricchair.htm

The local SPCA used to electrocute animals. Then they went to gassing,
now
it's the needle.

--
Cheers

Roger T.
Home of the Great Eastern Railway
at:-http://www.highspeedplus.com/~rogertra/
Latitude: 48° 25' North
Longitude: 123° 21' West

When we lived next to a 750v 3rd rail line, in the days when you could
have an allotment on the bank, our cat used to wander on to the tracks
quite regularly until one day, we assume, his tail swished against the
rail. When we finally caught up with him, there was a horrible smell
of singed fur and a bald patch on his tail. He kept away from the
rails after that.

I always understood that AC killed by high voltages but threw you off
so you might survive, but DC killed with low voltages because you just
stuck there!

MaxB

Reminds me of a time, hundreds of years ago, when I was about 10, and my dad
was repairing the electric iron. He had it in bits, looking for why it
didn't get hot any more. After he had put it back together he plugged it in
and while he was putting his tools away, asked me to touch it. Being
extremely naive I assumed that he wanted to know if it was getting hot or
not. So I touched it. "No. it' still cold", I said. "Oh, but you have sports
shoes on, take one off", he said. I really couldn't imagine how this was
going to affect my appreciation of how hot or cold the iron was, but I took
a shoe off and felt the iron again. "Zappaaloo !!!" I wasn't thrown across
the room, I simply couldn't let go! Dad pulled the plug out of the socket,
and more in frustration than sorrow, complained that obviously the iron
still wasn't fixed.

All this is true, whatever that means.

Crossing London tube tracks
 

On Thu, 3 Apr 2008 07:42:49 +0000, Bill Again wrote

Reminds me of a time, hundreds of years ago, when I was about 10, and my dad
was repairing the electric iron. He had it in bits, looking for why it
didn't get hot any more. After he had put it back together he plugged it in
and while he was putting his tools away, asked me to touch it. Being
extremely naive I assumed that he wanted to know if it was getting hot or
not. So I touched it. "No. it' still cold", I said. "Oh, but you have sports
shoes on, take one off", he said. I really couldn't imagine how this was
going to affect my appreciation of how hot or cold the iron was, but I took
a shoe off and felt the iron again. "Zappaaloo !!!" I wasn't thrown across
the room, I simply couldn't let go! Dad pulled the plug out of the socket,
and more in frustration than sorrow, complained that obviously the iron
still wasn't fixed.

All this is true, whatever that means.

I guess it means that you quickly gained a *real* appreciation of what
electricity can do - and you've remembered it all these years!

Crossing London tube tracks
 

Roger T. wrote:

Even the Americans can't electocute instantly, with 100% certainty,
people who have been sentanced to death by electric chair. That can
be a slow, painful death, requiring several attempts, before the
subject dies.

I thought you couldn't be charged twice for the one crime?

Crossing London tube tracks
 

"John Rowland" wrote in message
...
Roger T. wrote:

Even the Americans can't electocute instantly, with 100% certainty,
people who have been sentanced to death by electric chair. That can
be a slow, painful death, requiring several attempts, before the
subject dies.

I thought you couldn't be charged twice for the one crime?

There are now circumstances under which you can be tried again, following an
acquittal, if new evidence is discovered which could not have been available
at the original trial.

Peter

Crossing London tube tracks
 

On Thu, 3 Apr 2008 14:19:26 +0100, "John Rowland"
wrote:

Roger T. wrote:

Even the Americans can't electocute instantly, with 100% certainty,
people who have been sentanced to death by electric chair. That can
be a slow, painful death, requiring several attempts, before the
subject dies.

I thought you couldn't be charged twice for the one crime?

*groan*

Crossing London tube tracks
 

"James Farrar" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 3 Apr 2008 14:19:26 +0100, "John Rowland"
wrote:

Roger T. wrote:

Even the Americans can't electocute instantly, with 100% certainty,
people who have been sentanced to death by electric chair. That can
be a slow, painful death, requiring several attempts, before the
subject dies.

I thought you couldn't be charged twice for the one crime?

*groan*
'Shocking'
Someone had to say it.....
Brian

Crossing London tube tracks
 

On Thu, 3 Apr 2008 16:44:27 +0000, BH Williams wrote

I thought you couldn't be charged twice for the one crime?

*groan*
'Shocking'
Someone had to say it.....

I know someone who got arrested for being in possession of a stolen battery
and some fireworks...

They charged him then let him off :-)

Crossing London tube tracks
 

On Wed, 2 Apr 2008 23:52:23 -0700 (PDT), MaxB
wrote:

On 3 Apr, 06:02, "Roger T." wrote:
Up to around 3000v DC off a local generator IIRC (thus the dimming of
the prison lights as seen in many films is a load of old cobblers).
There was a DC v AC competition involving the public killing of an
elephant in the early days of deciding the "best" way to fry people;
prior to that Thomas Edison "perfected" his AC system by killing
numerous cats and dogs in experiments :-
http://www.ccadp.org/electricchair.htm

The local SPCA used to electrocute animals. *Then they went to gassing, now
it's the needle.

When we lived next to a 750v 3rd rail line, in the days when you could
have an allotment on the bank, our cat used to wander on to the tracks
quite regularly until one day, we assume, his tail swished against the
rail. When we finally caught up with him, there was a horrible smell
of singed fur and a bald patch on his tail. He kept away from the
rails after that.

I always understood that AC killed by high voltages but threw you off
so you might survive, but DC killed with low voltages because you just
stuck there!

There's a lot of pub science involved. Whether you get thrown away or
hang on more likely depends on which muscles are affected and/or
whether being thrown away is actually the result of a reflex reaction
to a shock that might not actually be life-threatening. Either are
equally harmful from the POV of burns (which can be internal and
follow bones) caused by the passage of enough current through the body
distinct from any effect upon the heart's rhythm.

Crossing London tube tracks
 

On Thu, 03 Apr 2008 20:31:30 +0100, Charles Ellson wrote:

Whether you get thrown away or hang on more likely depends on which
muscles are affected

Aye all muscles work in pairs and one is normally stronger than the other.
Think of the bicep to bend your arm at the elbow and triceps to straighten
it. If the current is stimulating the stronger muscle you end up being
"locked on".

and/or whether being thrown away is actually the result of a reflex
reaction to a shock that might not actually be life-threatening.

Being thrown across the room is again a function of massively stimulating
the muscles, you involuntarily throw yourself across the room.

--
Cheers
Dave.

Crossing London tube tracks
 

me wrote:
Hence the advise....

Test if a wire is live by touching it to the BACK of the hand. The muscle
action is then to throw your hand away

Better still, test with a meter!