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I'm an electrical engineer and well versed in the theory and practice of electrical phenomena of most known kinds, plus did a deep dive specifically into body s

I'm an electrical engineer and well versed in the theory and practice of electrical phenomena of most known kinds, plus did a deep dive specifically into body static a number of times, for assorted reasons. First one was related to ignition sources for explosive atmospheres, I have recognised certification for classification and design of equipment for explosive atmospheres and depending on the gas/liquid sometimes such things need to be considered. Secondly, my ex wife got a fibromyalgia diagnosis, along with a thyroid problem and this made her skin very dry and she had a lot of static problems (problems were sparks when she reached out to touch metallic objects, basically). The dry skin limited the normal rate of bleed off that occurs of static. If you know someone always getting static shocks when others don't, have them get their thyroid checked. There is a whole raft of issues associated, like atmospheric electricity etc. But, one thing to consider is any body charge someone does have is a result of the triboelectric effect, which is charge seperation, no charge is created, it's just shuffled around and concentrations of +ve or -ve charges accumulate in one place, but the tendancy is always to try and even out, like water finding level. If you want to really see a report of static so extreme it acted as an invisible wall, or force field, read the following link, but no associated reports of harm were ever made. http://amasci.com/weird/unusual/e-wall.html http://amasci.com/weird/unusual/e-wall.html

nomel 4y ago
> Plus if there was significant charge in your body, or structure you would feel it. The point of my comment was that you probably come from a humid climate, because in dry climates, with plastic everywhere (as you correctly say, charge buildup from triboelectric effects), you do feel it, often. The whole industry behind ESD testing, protection, straps, sensors, and equipment wouldn't exist if charge buildup on humans were rare. As an electrical engineer, you should certainly know about the human body model [1] and have possibly even used an ESD gun to meet the relevant ESD standards (probably MIL-STD-883H for you, ANSI for my line of work). > any body charge someone does have is a result of the triboelectric effect, which is charge seperation, no charge is created I don't think this is relevant, since I'm not aware of a power source that creates charges, that a human would be intentionally exposed to. But, that doesn't matter, in this context. Where the +ve is at the time is irrelevant if the accumulation of -ve (or visa versa, I don't know anything about "grounding" stuff) on the body is what is claimed to cause the problems. The separation of that charge appears to be the the problem, with the "grounding" acting as a way to keep the "water level", rather than "eventually level". 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human-body_model https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human-body_model
- airbreather 4y ago
  I live in a climate that is probably equivalent to Albuquerque, so it doesn't get much drier.

nomel 4y ago

> Plus if there was significant charge in your body, or structure you would feel it. The point of my comment was that you probably come from a humid climate, because in dry climates, with plastic everywhere (as you correctly say, charge buildup from triboelectric effects), you do feel it, often. The whole industry behind ESD testing, protection, straps, sensors, and equipment wouldn't exist if charge buildup on humans were rare. As an electrical engineer, you should certainly know about the human body model [1] and have possibly even used an ESD gun to meet the relevant ESD standards (probably MIL-STD-883H for you, ANSI for my line of work). > any body charge someone does have is a result of the triboelectric effect, which is charge seperation, no charge is created I don't think this is relevant, since I'm not aware of a power source that creates charges, that a human would be intentionally exposed to. But, that doesn't matter, in this context. Where the +ve is at the time is irrelevant if the accumulation of -ve (or visa versa, I don't know anything about "grounding" stuff) on the body is what is claimed to cause the problems. The separation of that charge appears to be the the problem, with the "grounding" acting as a way to keep the "water level", rather than "eventually level". 1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human-body_model https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human-body_model

airbreather 4y ago
I live in a climate that is probably equivalent to Albuquerque, so it doesn't get much drier.