Planetarion Forums

Marilyn Manson · 23 Sep 2005, 11:57

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4252692.stm

Quote:

An Australian man built up so much static electricity in his clothes as he walked that he burned carpets, melted plastic and sparked a mass evacuation.

Frank Clewer, of the western Victorian city of Warrnambool, was wearing a synthetic nylon jacket and a woollen shirt when he went for a job interview. As he walked into the building, the carpet ignited from the 40,000 volts of static electricity that had built up.

"It sounded almost like a firecracker or something like that," he said. "Within about five minutes, the carpet started to erupt."

Perplexed firemen evacuated the building and cut its electricity supply, thinking the burns could have been caused by a power surge.

"There were several scorch marks in the carpet, and we could hear a cracking noise - a bit like a whip - both inside and outside the building," said fire official Henry Barton.

Mr Clewer said that after leaving the building, he scorched a piece of plastic in his car. His clothes were measured by firemen as carrying an electrical charge of 40,000 volts, the Reuters news agency quoted Mr Barton as saying. The fire official added that the charge was close to being high enough to cause the items to spontaneously combust.

"I've been firefighting for over 35 years and I've never come across anything like this," he said.

Unfashionable clothing - the silent killer.

djbass · 23 Sep 2005, 12:31

I was thinking the same, but the truth of it was he had a polar-fleece jacket on which is not nearly as shocking (ho ho) as having a nylon jacket over a woolen shirt. I think that reporter may have misinterpreted the story somewhat, a more accurate account can be found at http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117....html?from=rss

Minty · 23 Sep 2005, 12:39

On TV last night they did a documentary regarding the mobile phone situation in a petrol station.

They put 50 or so phones in a dummy petrol station and called them all.

It is just a myth, as there is no danger.

You're more in danger if you're wearing a shell suit (Nylon)

Whilst we're on the subject of Nylon, does anyone else here know why it is called Nylon?

skiddy · 23 Sep 2005, 13:11

I once holidayed in Warnambool.

Nice park. Had toy diggers in the sandpit.

Appocomaster · 23 Sep 2005, 13:18

I think it's cool. I mean, all these problems with people arguing about whether or not fossil fuels will run out. Who cares? Stealing electricity from people with dodgey dress senses seems to be as useful as the "perpetual motion" of the cat with buttered toast tied to it's paws. It's the technology of the future for sure*

*Yes i'm aware in real life this probably isn't practical / scientificially / economically possible. But it's a cool idea anyway.

pyirt · 23 Sep 2005, 13:32

Why is it called nylon? No one really knows for sure http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nylon

1-X · 23 Sep 2005, 13:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by pyirt

Why is it called nylon? No one really knows for sure http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nylon

it's getting so there's no evidence for any popular belief these days

Appocomaster · 23 Sep 2005, 13:43

I wouldn't call Nylon a "popular belief"

but yes, there's a lot of people who don't care, or just say "God did it". All sorts of scientific claims and counter claims come out - what's good for you, what's bad for you, how to improve the quality of your life ....
We're taught not to actively disbelieve things, that other points of view are valid and everything is equal. Scepticism is pretty popular too. Fun fun fun

1-X · 23 Sep 2005, 13:55

Quote:

Originally Posted by Appocomaster

I wouldn't call Nylon a "popular belief"

the popular belief that nylon was named after new york and london, not it's very existence

Appocomaster · 23 Sep 2005, 13:59

I still think the No-Run / Nylon thing looks far more real.
I didn't think that the belief of nylon being NY LON from NY and London was actually that popular anyway

Minty · 23 Sep 2005, 14:09

Quote:

Originally Posted by pyirt

Why is it called nylon? No one really knows for sure http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nylon

There is no evidence for the popular belief that "nylon" is a contraction of "NY" (for "New York") and "Lon" for "London", the two cities where the material was first manufactured.

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1-X

the popular belief that nylon was named after new york and london, not it's very existence

Exactly

Appocomaster · 23 Sep 2005, 14:11

Quote:

Originally Posted by Minty

There is no evidence for the popular belief that "nylon" is a contraction of "NY" (for "New York") and "Lon" for "London", the two cities where the material was first manufactured.

Surely the fact it contains the letters "Ny" followed by "lon" is evidence, which caused the popular belief?
It should read "Apart from the name, there is no evidence..." [/pedantic]

JonnyBGood · 23 Sep 2005, 14:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by Appocomaster

I still think the No-Run / Nylon thing looks far more real.
I didn't think that the belief of nylon being NY LON from NY and London was actually that popular anyway

Well gee whiz scotty we better call the encyclopaedia people dontcha think?

Appocomaster · 23 Sep 2005, 14:15

Indeed! Phone the internet police, there's an entry wrong.*

*I couldn't care less tbh

JonnyBGood · 23 Sep 2005, 14:19

Stop being so confrontational and worried about your internet image as a moderately intelligent poster please. Thanks and good luck with the rest of your day.

Minty · 23 Sep 2005, 14:22

Quote:

Originally Posted by JonnyBGood

Stop being so confrontational and worried about your internet image as a moderately intelligent poster please.

He is classed as a "moderately intelligent poster"?!?!?!!!!!!

Marilyn Manson · 23 Sep 2005, 14:46

If I'd know that this would develop into a discussion about nylon, then I wouldn't have posted it.

Appocomaster · 23 Sep 2005, 15:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by Minty

He is classed as a "moderately intelligent poster"?!?!?!!!!!!

only if moderately intelligent means "shallow" ,"random" and "generally useless"

Minty · 23 Sep 2005, 16:23

Quote:

Originally Posted by Appocomaster

only if moderately intelligent means "shallow" ,"random" and "generally useless"

Hit the nail on the head

s|k · 23 Sep 2005, 17:32

Quote:

Originally Posted by Minty

On TV last night they did a documentary regarding the mobile phone situation in a petrol station.

They put 50 or so phones in a dummy petrol station and called them all.

Yeah that's smart, what if it had been dangerous? I hope something would have happened just so the producers of the show would have gone to jail for reckless endangerment.

Appocomaster · 23 Sep 2005, 17:37

Quote:

Originally Posted by s|k

Yeah that's smart, what if it had been dangerous? I hope something would have happened just so the producers of the show would have gone to jail for reckless endangerment.

being a dummy petrol station I assume it wouldn't have exploded and killed lots of people. I doubt they said "ok, lets get lots of mobile phones, ring them all, and try and blow up a petrol station. That'll be cool" ... and expensive.

You can cook an egg with two mobile phones, but the egg needs to be between them - the mobile phones both give off microwave signals, which cook the egg in the middle. I guess they were seeing if bigger amounts of microwave signals would ignite petrol, but you can test that just as easily by putting petrol in a microwave.

JC · 23 Sep 2005, 17:42

You can also cook an egg by applying a lot of pressure to it.

Random fact of the day.

Appocomaster · 23 Sep 2005, 17:44

But that'd lead to this happening:

<Member of GD> I'll just cook this egg. JC said you can do it by applying pressure to it, so I'll give it a squeeze.
*Member of GD now covered in raw egg*

JonnyBGood · 23 Sep 2005, 19:07

Niggas You Like Over Nylon.

Oh shit I've created an infinite regress again. God won't be best pleased

djbass · 24 Sep 2005, 02:59

Quote:

Originally Posted by Appocomaster

being a dummy petrol station I assume it wouldn't have exploded and killed lots of people. I doubt they said "ok, lets get lots of mobile phones, ring them all, and try and blow up a petrol station. That'll be cool" ... and expensive.

You can cook an egg with two mobile phones, but the egg needs to be between them - the mobile phones both give off microwave signals, which cook the egg in the middle. I guess they were seeing if bigger amounts of microwave signals would ignite petrol, but you can test that just as easily by putting petrol in a microwave.

You know that mythbusters already did it first, maybe not with 50 phones, but a singular phone in a heavily combustable environment and didn't do jack.

Also, there is quite a significant difference in power between what comes out of a microwave oven and what comes out of a mobile phone, or even a an entire network of mobile phones. Putting petrol into a microwave oven wouldn't prove a lot other than when petrol gets very hot, it ignites, doesn't take a genius to figure that one out.

Microwaves are probably one of the most misunderstood sciences by the general public, and they are not nearly as hazardess as people think they are.