"Jeff Wisnia" wrote in message
et...
z wrote:

# Fred # wrote:

"Toller" wrote in message
...

"z" wrote in message
egroups.com...

Catching up on Tivoed Monk episodes; episode from a couple of weeks
ago, the school gym teacher is murdered while showering at school by a
mysterious hand pouring water all over the floor, then dropping onto
the water on the floor a hair drier, which we have just seen the hand
plugging into a GFI.....


Even without the GFCI it would harmless; why would current flow up
through
the body when it can just go through the water?
But it is just a TV show, and a comedy at that.


Looks like current divides between the water and the gym teacher assuming
he
is touching something that is grounded like a faucet handle. Don't think
this could kill a normal person even without GFI.


No, the teacher steps onto the floor and zzzt. I never understood how
that was supposed to work in tv and movies in general. One wire here,
the other wire inches away, both sitting in a presumably somewhat
grounded puddle, a person several feet away touches the water and drops
dead. We didn't cover that in Kirchoff's Law class.

Yeah, and I'm not sure I understand the potential differences which caused
several dog electrocutions (while they were being walked on city streets)
here in Red Sox Nation. I do know that some pet shops did some extra
business selling insulated doggie boots to pet owners after the news hit.

See:

http://tinyurl.com/etmee

and

http://tinyurl.com/zkpjb

My guess is that voltages higher than 120 were involved and somehow enough
potential difference occurred between a manhole cover and a patch of wet
pavement within the dog's leg span to fry the poor pooch.


I use to inspect underground electrical vaults with 12kV and 13.8kV cables
and at times even with the cables under water after a heavy rain - no
problem. Could be a bad or open ground shield on the cable - ungrounded
shield on a long cable is equivalent to a high voltage capacitor which could
easily kill a dog or person.



Anybody have a more detailed explanation?

Jeff

--
Jeffry Wisnia
(W1BSV + Brass Rat '57 EE)
"Rudeness is the weak man's imitation of strength."