Have you ever heard of starting a car battery using the power of your own body? It may sound unbelievable, but recent online videos have sparked curiosity about this unconventional approach.
While we do not recommend attempting it, understanding the science behind it can be fascinating. Let’s explore the concept and how it theoretically works.
The Science Behind It
Typically, when jumpstarting a car, we rely on jumper cables to transfer electrical energy from a working battery to a dead one. However, it is interesting that our bodies can conduct electricity under certain circumstances. This is due to the presence of electrolytes within our bodies, which facilitate the flow of electricity between two points.
To jumpstart a car using your body, you would need to establish a complete circuit for electricity to flow — here’s a theoretical explanation of the process:
- Find a Volunteer: Seek someone who is willing to assist you in this experiment.
- Assuming the Position: The volunteer should stand next to the car with the dead battery and firmly place one hand on a metal part of the car’s body, like the door frame or the hood. This establishes a connection to the ground.
- Making Contact: With the other hand, the volunteer should grip the positive terminal of the functional car’s battery tightly and securely.
- Starting the Engine: Once the circuit is complete, instruct the driver of the working car to start the engine. As the engine runs, electrical energy will flow through the volunteer’s body and into the dead car’s battery.
- Disconnecting: After a few minutes, the volunteer can release their grip on the positive terminal and step away from the cars. The dead car’s battery should have received enough charge to start the engine.
Safety first
While the recent viral video might make us question whether starting a car battery with your body is possible, it’s important to approach such claims cautiously.
Safety should always be the top priority, and professional methods like using jumper cables are recommended for jumpstarting a car battery. Nonetheless, understanding the underlying science behind unconventional concepts can be intriguing.
It’s a hoax!
First of all, electricity does not flow like shown in the video — after all, you’d need two conductors representing a plus and a minus to jump charge a dead battery. Second, the original source of the video was found by the Twitter profile hoaxeye.
The original was posted on Vimeo by Hernan Pettinaroli as a part of a campaign portraying regular people as superheroes to promote a company that sends money to South America.
Filed in . Read more about Car.