| When I was in kindergarten in the late '50s, I pranked my class with electricity. I had a big fat electrolytic capacitor that I charged up before bringing it to school, and a screwdriver. I don't remember the exact voltage I charged the cap up to, but it was definitely only a few volts. So for show and tell, I explained how electricity worked, and then I grabbed one of the cap's terminals in each hand and started twitching and shaking like I was being electrocuted! Finally I somehow managed to break free, took a deep breath, and told my classmates "don't be as foolish as me." To protect them from the danger, I then took the screwdriver blade and shorted it across the capacitor's terminals, with a big spark and a loud bang! Clearly, this cap had enough power to kill you. I told my classmates, "Now it's safe. I discharged it. You can touch it now." And they did. Nobody was harmed. School was great back in those days. When I got to third grade and I wanted to etch a printed circuit board, I told my teacher I needed a tank of nitric acid, and she got it for me! But that is a story for another day. |
How were you able to learn about electricity at such a young age?
I grew up on all-in-one kits from Radio Shack and was heavily influenced by my grandfather (lots of HeathKit builds, ham radio, and model railroads).