Last post of the night, did Benjamin Franklin really fly a kite in a lightning storm? The answer...probably not. Here is what we do know...Franklin had proposed (in writing) the idea of conducting such an experiment. The image we have of Dr. Franklin waiting for his kite to get hit with lighting is not realistic, especially considering everyone knew (at the time) that you would be most likely killed by such a feat. However, his original experiment called for flying a kite LONG ENOUGH for the "electrical charge" from a storm that MIGHT PRODUCE lighting to travel down the kite string. Touching the key attached to the kite string would shock the person touching it, and thus proving that electricity and lighting were one in the same. This is MUCH DIFFERENT then waiting for a lighting bolt to hit your kite. In the end, Dr. Franklin is instrumental in developing the "lighting rod", which will save tens of thousands (if not more) of lives from fires started by lighting. The lighting rod harnesses the lighting and safely directs it into the ground. Dr. Benjamin Franklin was a genius (He invented Bifocals, Odometer, Daylight Savings Time, as well as others).
Posted on: Fri, 05 Jul 2013 04:09:39 +0000
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