the power of electricity

[i2dx]

this is a video of a 500kV switch opening

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Warning: Do not try to do this at home, only try this at work. Do NOT use NI switching devices when trying that at work!

[crelf]

QUOTE(i2dx @ Apr 24 2007, 05:16 AM)

this is a video of a 500kV switch opening

That's shocking!

[i2dx]

I found an other remarkable video:

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[jpdrolet]

Wow. That switch requires some serious debouncing...

[crelf]

QUOTE(i2dx @ Apr 24 2007, 06:03 AM)

I found an other remarkable video...

Not much going on today Chris?

[AnalogKid2DigitalMan]

I have driven by that substation many times on the way in/out of Las Vegas. Pretty big facility, it is part of the Hoover Dam grid.

Here is an explanation of Basic Electricity:

[Tomi Maila]

QUOTE(i2dx @ Apr 23 2007, 11:03 PM)

I found an other remarkable video...

I wonder if the symmetry always breaks in a same way i.e. so that the same canister always gets the positive charge and the other the negative charge or is it truly random. The system construction can never be 100% symmetric, so this would indicate in my intuition that the symmetry break always happens to the same direction. Also the potential difference may not complitely unload during the spark so that the system indeed can be initially charged. This would make the phenomenon easier to initiate. I wonder if all components of the system are initially grounded and then the water flow is initiated and only then the grouding is removed, would we still see this phenomenon or will the grouding make the symmetry break too long to take. Has anybody played with these things?

[AnalogKid2DigitalMan]

I found an other remarkable video:

But does it work with BEER?

[Grampa_of_Oliva_n_Eden]

QUOTE(i2dx @ Apr 23 2007, 03:16 PM)

this is a video of a 500kV switch opening

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Warning: Do not try to do this at home, only try this at work. Do NOT use NI switching devices when trying that at work!

I have to admit that is the largest "Jacobs Ladder" I have ever seen. Frankenstien would have bee pleased.

About three weeks ago I was touring a cust facility that builds BIG ckt breakers.

I witnessed a test of one of their breakers and loved it!

The breaker tripped at 32K Amps with fire, sparks, flames.

As as I was walking to the next building I explained to the group that the electrician that had recently installed a new service entrance to my home insisted that it would not pass inspection as long as there was a toilet in the corner of my basement. The test I witnessed made it clear why I had to go through what my wife called the "de-bathification" project.

Sorry about no pictures to share but I do have a memory that should last a life time.

Ben

[Mark Balla]

QUOTE(i2dx @ Apr 23 2007, 03:03 PM)

I found an other remarkable video:

Ok so what is the answer?

[Tomi Maila]

QUOTE(mballa @ Apr 24 2007, 02:39 AM)

Ok so what is the answer?

The answer: http://www.newphys.se/fnysik/3_1/kelvin/index.html''>http://www.newphys.se/fnysik/3_1/kelvin/index.html' target="_blank">http://www.newphys.se/fnysik/3_1/kelvin/index.html

Tomi

[i2dx]

QUOTE(crelf @ Apr 23 2007, 10:25 PM)

Not much going on today Chris?

lol yea,

end of project -> next one starting on monday => I have 3 days holliday <yippie>

[Tomi Maila]

QUOTE(i2dx @ Apr 24 2007, 11:01 AM)

end of project -> next one starting on monday => I have 3 days holliday <yippie>

I'm jealous, as a research scientist our projects evolve and never really end. Perhaps I should consider moving to the dark side some day

Tomi

[i2dx]

QUOTE(Tomi Maila @ Apr 24 2007, 12:56 PM)

I'm jealous, as a research scientist our projects evolve and never really end. Perhaps I should consider moving to the dark side some day

Tomi

that's a question of taste.

As a research scientist you have *lots of time* and you can follow ideas, even if the result is "that doesn't work" ... but your projects never end , which is bad, if you want to see a result or a product

As a Project engineer you see the happy faces of your customers in periodic intervals and you see a direct result of your work, but you have allways the preassure to be faster, quicker, better or cheaper ... and you allways lack of time. Allthough I like this business, and am happy with my current state, from time to time, I wish myself back on my working place at NI, where I could have allmost any NI hardware and play around with it a little bit, just to figure out, how it works and where are the limits, etc ...

QUOTE(AnalogKid2DigitalMan @ Apr 23 2007, 10:54 PM)

But does it work with BEER?

hmm ... I don't know, I'll try it out today evening

[crelf]

QUOTE(Tomi Maila @ Apr 24 2007, 08:56 PM)

I'm jealous, as a research scientist our projects evolve and never really end....

I used to be a research physicist (some of the best times of my short life) - now I apply science to test and measurement - the best of both worlds

[Grampa_of_Oliva_n_Eden]

QUOTE(crelf @ Apr 24 2007, 09:44 AM)

I used to be a research physicist (some of the best times of my short life) - now I apply science to test and measurement - the best of both worlds

Same here.

Yes the adentures were fun but there was no oppertunity to say "NO".

As a contractor. I can hit my customers with a big "$$" to convince them that they really do not want to do that.

Ben

[Tomi Maila]

QUOTE(crelf @ Apr 24 2007, 04:44 PM)

I used to be a research physicist (some of the best times of my short life) - now I apply science to test and measurement - the best of both worlds

I'm a physicist too from my education. I worked for a few years for the industry, not in the field of physics but in IT R&D. I planned new technology and business concepts together with a handful of startups. I returned back to research world as the projects in a large enterprise were not challenging enough mostly because our enterprise never had money to actually implement anything. However I gave up physics and now work on Bio-IT, a field of applying IT to biosciencens. The work is challenging now, although the resources are not the same as they were in the industry. So much time is consumed in constant funding applications, one after another. That's frustrating.

[PJM_labview]

QUOTE(Tomi Maila @ Apr 24 2007, 07:02 AM)

...So much time is consumed in constant funding applications, one after another. That's frustrating.

I used to work in research too (for about 9 years). While the work was challenging (understatement here), the end result was basically as follow: Do research so we can get more funding to do research so we can get more funding do to ...

I eventually got tired of this and decide to join the other side where people are actually using my work for doing stuff, not just for getting more funding.

PJM

[i2dx]

QUOTE(PJM_labview @ Apr 24 2007, 04:58 PM)

Do research so we can get more funding to do research so we can get more funding do to ...

after all, research is a business, too: it kreates knowledge. And if you want to succedd in your business, you have to sell something. Ok, in research, you don't have a product you can / have to sell, but you sell the promise to deliver *deeper* knowledge.

someone has to pay the bill and last but not least, you can't drink E=mc² ...

cheers

CB

[PaulG.]

QUOTE(PJM_labview @ Apr 24 2007, 10:58 AM)

I used to work in research too (for about 9 years). While the work was challenging (understatement here), the end result was basically as follow: Do research so we can get more funding to do research so we can get more funding do to ...

I eventually got tired of this and decide to join the other side where people are actually using my work for doing stuff, not just for getting more funding.

PJM

My experience in R&D was a bit better. It was for a medical manufacturing company. I guess the operative word is "manufacturing", but I got the best of both worlds: R&D with an end and a new product, then moving on to the next new product. Nowdays the "R&D" is writing code to make LV do things I've never seen before.

[Grampa_of_Oliva_n_Eden]

It appears physics type are heading for industry in greater numbers.

See this Physics Today article.

http://ptonline.aip.org/journals/doc/PHTOA...ss_4/28_1.shtml

Ben

[AnalogKid2DigitalMan]

Here's the page I was looking for:

http://teslamania.delete.org/frames/frameindex.html

Click on the Big Arcs and Sparks link

That arc in the Nevada substation was 100 feet in length! Look down to the 3rd or 4th topic on that Arc/Spark page for a description of that test.

There's also some cool videos regarding high power tests and disasters, click on the images to play the videos.