"James Horn" wrote in message
...
: While not low voltage, I remember reading in the '60s in
Scientific
: American an article which mentioned how many milliamps of
current was
: enough to be felt / dangerous / deadly, etc. It mentioned that
: substantially larger currents could sometimes even be safer as
they could
: cause involuntary muscle contractions which would interrupt the
current
: flow.
:
: The example given was of a worker at a high-rise construction
site in New
: York who was changing out of his work clothes at the end of his
shift in a
: temporary shack that also housed the site electrical power
connections.
: While doffing his trousers he accidentally backed into a high
voltage
: panel. An estimated 60 amperes passed from one buttock to the
other
: through muscles that immediately straightened, propelling him
through the
: shack and its door and into two lanes of road traffic which
immediately
: stopped.
:
: Because the current didn't pass through any vital organs, he
only
: sustained surface burns and various bruises and scrapes though
the
: electrical panel manufacturer's logo is now mirror-image
tattooed to his
: behind.
:
: I've *gotta* find the source of all this...
: Jim Horn, WB9SYN/6


60 amps though "Human flesh" will cook it well done! 15mA through
the vital organs will kill! As little as 30 microamps will cause
a severe muscle reaction and not even the sturdiest will be able
to resist movement if the current reaches 2 mA.

Roger Gt wrote:

60 amps though "Human flesh" will cook it well done! 15mA through
the vital organs will kill! As little as 30 microamps will cause
a severe muscle reaction and not even the sturdiest will be able
to resist movement if the current reaches 2 mA.


Generally true, Roger, but *time* is as important a variable as well. To
cook anything well done takes substantial energy and that's a function of
current, voltage and time. The point of the story was that the effect was
immediate, the current flow brief, and the surface was still burned.

I don't volunteer to try recreating the experiment though!

Jim Horn, WB9SYN/6

"James Horn" wrote in message
...
: Roger Gt wrote:
:
: 60 amps though "Human flesh" will cook it well done! 15mA
through
: the vital organs will kill! As little as 30 microamps will
cause
: a severe muscle reaction and not even the sturdiest will be
able
: to resist movement if the current reaches 2 mA.
:
:
: Generally true, Roger, but *time* is as important a variable as
well. To
: cook anything well done takes substantial energy and that's a
function of
: current, voltage and time. The point of the story was that the
effect was
: immediate, the current flow brief, and the surface was still
burned.
:
: I don't volunteer to try recreating the experiment though!
:
: Jim Horn, WB9SYN/6
:


I wasn't trying to paint a picture, that was the story tellers
job, I only volunteered a little information. However, I do
doubt that he got 60 amperes through his buttocks! The current
would have caused the required impulse to part with the voltage
rather early on. (:)

I actually worked in a place where they were testing nerve
stimulus devices which allowed for diagnosing whether there was
damage in some particular part of the body. As a final test they
had the technicians put needles into their arms to take a sample
reading. I passed on that one. Those poor guys ever got stopped
by the police they would have a hard time explaining the tracks.