[TowerTalk] original source of "avoid sharp bends" in lightning

[Drax Felton]

How come few houses of modern construction have lightning rods if they were such an important invention?



On Apr 12, 2012, at 10:50 AM, Jim Lux <jimlux at earthlink.net> wrote:

> On 4/12/12 7:19 AM, Barry Merrill, W5GN wrote:
>> I'm fairly certain that some of the earliest telegraph lines were curved
>> rather than bent because there was a belief the signals would go
>> straight if the turn was too sharp.
>> 
>> 
> that's interesting.. do recall where you might have seen that?
> 
> In the 19th century and even well into the 20th, there were a lot of 
> physical analogies used to understand Electricity and Magnetism.  You 
> see references to "electric pressure" for instance.  Lots of references 
> to "electric fluid" and analogies to hydraulics (which are still used)
> 
> And inductance does have a parallel to inertia in the mechanical world, 
> so you can see how the thought that a fast moving transient might have 
> trouble "staying on the tracks" might originate.  Or, comparing electric 
> currents to water flow in a pipe, where bends ARE a big deal.
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