The story of Franklin’s invention of the lightning rod

The story of Franklin’s invention of the lightning rod

As the inventor of the lightning rod, what stories does Franklin have? Below I have carefully compiled the story of Franklin’s invention of the lightning rod for everyone. You are welcome to read and learn!

Story Reading

One day in July 1752, in Philadelphia, North America, a scientist named Franklin made a sensation in the world. Experiment:

This afternoon, the sky was dark and dark clouds were rolling in. From time to time, blue-white lightning flashed in the sky, and there were bursts of dull thunder. It seemed that a terrible thunderstorm was coming.

"This is the most suitable weather!" Franklin and his son William took a kite and a Leyden bottle (a rechargeable container) and rushed to a hay shed in the suburban field. This is no ordinary kite: it is made of silk, with a thin metal wire tied to the top as a "receiver" to attract lightning; the wire is connected to the string used to fly the kite , so that after the string is wetted by rain, it becomes a conductor; a ribbon is tied to the other end of the string as an insulator (it must be dry) to prevent the experimenter from getting an electric shock; between the ribbon and the rope, a key is hung , as an electrode.

Franklin and his son quickly took advantage of the wind and flew the kite into the sky. The kite, like a vigorous bird, slowly flew into the sea of ??clouds.

The father and son hid under the eaves of the thatched shed, holding the ribbon that was not wet by the rain in their hands, watching the movement of the kite intently.

Suddenly, a dazzling lightning flashed across the sky. Franklin found that the fibers on the kite's lead rope suddenly stood up. This shows that the lightning has been transmitted through the kite and the lead rope. Franklin was so happy that he couldn't help but stretched out his left hand and touched the key on the lead rope. With a "chi" sound, a small blue spark jumped out.

"This is indeed electricity!" Franklin exclaimed excitedly.

"Bring the Leyden bottle." Franklin shouted to William. He quickly connected the key on the lead rope to the Leyden bottle. Electric sparks flicker on the Leyden jar. This shows that the Leyden bottle is full.

Afterwards, Franklin conducted a series of experiments using thunder and lightning collected in Leyden bottles, which further confirmed that thunder and lightning are exactly the same as ordinary electricity.

Franklin's kite experiment completely shattered the popular sayings that lightning is the "fire of God" and "gas explosion", allowing people to truly understand the nature of thunder and lightning. Therefore, people say: "Franklin separated God from lightning."

Franklin's kite experiment was by no means done on impulse. As early as a few years ago, he had devoted himself to the study of electricity, and pointed out the properties of electricity at a time when people did not know what electricity was.

In a research accident, he was enlightened. Once, he connected several Leyden jars together to increase the electrical capacity. Unexpectedly, during the experiment, his wife Lid who was standing by accidentally touched the Leyden bottle. There was a "boom" and a ball of electric sparks flashed. Lid was hit and fell to the ground, her face pale. She took a week off to recover.

"Isn't the roar and sparks emitted by the Leyden jar the same as thunder and lightning?" Franklin boldly proposed this idea. After repeated thinking, he speculated that thunder and lightning are ordinary electricity, and found out 12 similarities between them: they both emit bright light; the color of the light is the same; the routes of lightning and sparks are tortuous; their movements are extremely extreme. are rapid; can be conducted by metals; can make explosions or noises; can exist in water or ice; can break objects when passing through them; can kill animals; can melt metals; can make easily When something burns, it emits the smell of sulfur.

In 1747, Franklin wrote these ideas into a paper "On the Coherence of Thunder and Electricity." He sent the paper to his friend Collinson, a member of the Royal Society. But when Collinson sent the paper to the Royal Society for discussion, he received a burst of ridicule. Many authoritative scientists believe that Franklin's views are ridiculous and "treat science as a child's fantasy."

Franklin ignored the ridicule and ridicule from the authorities, and finally, with all preparations, he risked his life and did the kite experiment.

From the kite experiment, Franklin not only understood the nature of thunder and lightning, but also confirmed that lightning can "walk" down from the sky. "Tall buildings are often struck by lightning. Can we build a ladder for lightning and let it 'walk' down obediently?" Franklin thought.

While Franklin was thinking about this issue, unfortunately news came from Petersburg, Russia: On July 26, 1753, in order to verify Franklin's experiment, the scientist Lichmann was unfortunately hit by an electric shock while operating. Killed by sparks. This strengthened Franklin's determination to develop a device to avoid lightning strikes.

He first conducted an experiment at his own home: installing a 3-meter-long thin iron rod with a pointed top on the tall chimney on the roof; tying a metal wire to the lower end of the thin iron rod; along the stairs, The metal wire is led to a water pump on the ground floor (the water pump is in contact with the earth); the metal wire passing through the room is divided into two sections, and the two strands are separated by a certain distance, and a small bell is hung on each. In this way, if lightning enters from the thin iron rod and enters the earth through the metal wire, then the small bell will sway and make a sound when the two wires are stressed.

One day, there was lightning and thunder, and a storm was coming. Accompanied by the sound of thunder and rain, Franklin, who was waiting next to the small bell in the room, heard the clear and sweet sound of the small bell. He smiled happily.

Franklin called the thin iron rod a "lightning rod."

The advent of the lightning rod aroused opposition from the church. They believe: "The pointed poles on the roof pointing to the sky are disrespectful to God." "Interfering in God's affairs and dictating God will be punished by God."

However, there are Once, after a thunderstorm, the holy church caught fire, but the house equipped with lightning rods was safe. As a result, the role of lightning rods was recognized by people, and lightning rods quickly spread. By 1784, lightning rods were used on the roofs of tall buildings across Europe.

Character introduction

Benjamin Franklin (English: Benjamin Franklin, January 17, 1706 - April 17, 1790), American politician, physicist, and printer and publisher, author, inventor and scientist, as well as diplomat and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States.

Franklin was engaged in newspaper activities in his early years. North America's first traveling library was established in Philadelphia in 1731. In 1743, he organized the American Philosophical Society and later helped found the University of Pennsylvania. During the American Revolutionary War, he participated in the anti-British struggle, was elected as a representative of the Second Continental Congress, and participated in drafting the Declaration of Independence. From 1776 to 1785, he served as ambassador to France and successfully concluded the Franco-American Alliance. He also negotiated with the United Kingdom on behalf of the United States and signed the Treaty of Paris in 1783, allowing the United Kingdom to recognize the independence of the United States. In 1787, he was a delegate to the Constitutional Convention and advocated the abolition of slavery. He was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society for his scientific contributions. He also served as governor of Pennsylvania three times. Died in Philadelphia in 1790 at the age of 84.

;