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Great post, AFLineman!! Very true. I've gone out to homes where some lazy SOB had simply shoved the ground wire in the ground or the ground wire had corroded off the ground rod or had been damaged by some other means. It sure won't work if it isn't connected.
Here in the U.S. we have something called the National Electrical Installation Standards (NEIS) often referred to as the National Electrical Code. It's part of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) codes. While it isn't a law, it is often used as the basis for state and federal laws and is a unified source of requirements.
It covers an enormous amount of ground but in a nutshell it says that utilities should have a common ground. We used to ground telephone to our own ground rod or to a water pipe but no more. Doing so can establish different potentials between the utilities and can create a situation that actually aids a lightening strike. Today you'll see cable TV and telephone run to the power entrance or as close as physically possible in an effort to use a common ground and eliminate any differences in potential.
If you have some extra time and are really interested here's the NEIS web site.
http://www.neca-neis.org/standards/
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EMP Tests and Results
I thought those of you on this thread might like to see this:
The Commission to Assess the Threat to the US from an EMP Attack completed a 200+ page report (PDF), includes: Executive Report and a Critical National Infrastructures Report describing findings and recommendations. The participants are impressive and their findings, quite a read: http://www.empcommission.org/index.php
I'm not sure which scared me more, this Report or One Second After.
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I don't know, TM. It's just one more threat in a basketful of stuff that keeps trying to wipe out mankind. Now that we finally have the ability to do it ourselves, who knows, maybe we'll get lucky and be successful. Of course, who would know?
That is a great site and a good read. If you are interested in or concerned about EMP then take some time to read through it.
Thanks, TM!!
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EMPs have other, even positive uses.. this is interesting:
Electromagnetic Pulse Cannon Has The Attention Of The USAF (w/ Video)
The EMP cannon will only work on cars that have on board computers. The disabling power relies on the cars microprocessors and various other electronics that controls the engine.
http://www.physorg.com/news183296601.html
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I actually saw one of those in use a few years ago. It was a device that sat under the front of the police car. If they got in a pursuit they would fire a rocket engine on the gizmo, it would shoot out from under the squad car and run underneath the bad guys car. The cops would throw a switch and it would fry the electronics in the car. It worked. The problem was the bad guys couldn't control the car without the engine running so the idea was apparently abandoned.
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