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Re: Arcs off the fingers and getting killed in the process...

Perhaps the one thing that _should_ be exaggerated is the cost:  If you
tell kids that they can create "Incredibly powerful electrical displays
capable of shooting 10 foot arcs" you might as well tell them to have
fun building one with a pole pig and using it in the manner that one was
used in the "Coiler's Christmas" story.  (ya know, the one with the
circular saw as a rotary spark gap!)  In fact, warnings like these will
attract kids who want to break stuff and will scare off those who are
interested in the hobby.  (I nearly missed out on this great hobby
because warnings like that tend to make me think either "ok, shouldn't
mess with that" or "you've got to be kidding").  IMHO the best way to
discourage people who don't have the experience or interest in actually
learning about it would be to tell them these two things.  First: To do
it right, coiling is EXPENSIVE!  To do it wrong will get you
ELECTROCUTED / MAIMED / INCINERATED!  All of these are VERY PAINFUL! and
Second:  Coiling takes _a lot_ of time.  Don't expect to have a working
product until you have worked on it for (insert time frame of your
choice).  Even then it may not work.  

I'll tell ya, nothing discourages a kid more than expensive stuff and
telling them that they'll have to be patient.  But be sure to do one
thing:  Always include as much safety information as possible, maybe a
link to the pupman site.  Because, hey, people are looking at it, and
not every one of them is a moron who wishes do destroy some property. 
You do have to have something to ward off the idiots, but you also need
to help instruct those who want to know what's goin on.  They'll find
the information somewhere, so someone needs to tell them about safety.


Off the soapbox,

Raycroft

(Better paranoid than sorry!)

Tesla List wrote:
> 
> Original Poster: Stan <sdarling-at-columbus.rr-dot-com>
> 
> I would strongly urge ALL of us who maintain TC or even just HV web
> pages to have a prominent section 'advertising' this list.  I started in
> my early teens and was fortunate enough to be the paranoid kind who
> assumed everything was twice as dangerous as it really was.  But it took
> several years before I stumbled across a reference to this list; hence
> my suggestion to provide prominent info about it on all web sites.
> 
> Further, I have seen some pages that say things like "the experiments
> shown on this page are wildly and fantastically dangerous.  Don't blame
> me if you burn your house down or zap yourself with the humongously
> powerful 10 foot arcs".  I'm exaggerating to make a point, but
> disclaimers along these lines I think will immediately invite a
> youngster to attempt whatever is on the page.
> 
> -Stan