If lightning takes the shortest path to ground....

Typical of the troll that you are. Reported for unsolicited insults and flaming..

 

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Good answer. So the air itself may be charged or resistant at different levels at different locations depending on previous lightning strikes and the lightning bolt thus follows this rather jagged course to it's ground?

 

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Previous lightning strikes would be possible sources of conductive path, but I doubt the most likely - the charge centers they connect would be depleted to equilibrium at first, and ionized (conductive) paths don't last long in the air.

Note: the first strike of a cloud to ground bolt is often up - from the ground to the cloud.

 

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I'm certainly NO troll - but you qualify for that label yourself based on *many* of your posts here. All I've done is call a spade a spade in commenting on your poor/incomplete education. Have you even finished your basic first 12 years of school yet? It appears that you haven't. And reporting me is just fine - I'm very *happy* to join the list of people you've reported.

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Troll reported again for unsolicited insults and flaming..<shrug>

 

Here's a brief article about "leaders" and "streamers" and their influence on forming the lightning bolt. Interesting stuff!

http://science.howstuffworks.com/nature/natural-disasters/lightning4.htm

 

Plastic's an insulator and is NOT a path to ground. Ionized air otoh...

 

Exactly! Thus if there is a more-ionized path off to the side, the discharge will choose that path rather than the shortest distance.

 

I'm certainly NO troll - but you qualify for that label yourself based on *many* of your posts here. All I've done is call a spade a spade in commenting on your poor/incomplete education. Have you even finished your basic first 12 years of school yet? It appears that you haven't. And reporting me is just fine - I'm very *happy* to join the list of people you've reported.

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Troll reported again for unsolicited insults and flaming..<shrug>

 

Was not trying to be Sigmund Freud - I was using an analogy.
I posted that in response to MR's post : "Why would the path of least resistance ever be anything other than the shortest distance?"
Electronics theory is different from whatever theory he was using when stating shortest path.
Name calling and deciding nice or not- would not seem to be very nice.
BTW, I know electronic/electrical engineering.
If MR would just do searches on any search engines, he would be able to find quick answers to most of his questions. But for whatever reasons, he seems to not choose to do that.

 

That's true but we could say that for virtually every topic here, and a forum such as this wouldn't exist.

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Sometimes, the net offers conflicting answers to the same question.
Most ppl here would steer a person correctly.

 

Thanks - I consider it an honor to be among those you've reported.

And I ask once again - HONEST question: have you finished 12 years of schooling yet?

 

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Reported for continued insult and harassment..

 

Cannot say for sure about most ppl - I do always try to steer a person correctly.

 

I don't know any one on this forum very well yet, but it sounds like he was asking a reasonable question that he clearly did not know. To put a guy down for that is low.

 

This is typical of Read Only. He/she has jumped my shit about 10 times in the past just for posting something he/she didn't like. I don't even talk to this troll except to notify of reporting. Each time he/she goes into the same bit of how uneducated I am and how I must never have graduated high school. Honestly I hate bothering mods with reporting this petty shit. I wish I could just ask questions here and engage in enlightening dialogue without getting a bunch of smart ass retorts. But trolls abound here. Which won't stop me one bit from posting new threads, a risk I gladly take just to keep this forum from dying of boredom.

 

Indeed it was a reasonable question - AND I clearly answered it early on. I treated it as a reasonable question and provided a reasonable AND accurate answer. He's received the SAME answer from other people since - have you bothered to read the entire thread from the beginning?

 

This was uncalled for. Please desist.