Bismarck, Mandan install Van de Graaff generators on local playgrounds

Here’s a renewable fuel for you: the charge of static electricity generated by sliding a toddler butt down one of the many plastic slides adorning the playgrounds of our beloved cities! Yeah, I tried it…adults get zapped, too. I’m just glad I don’t have my 19-inch mohawk, like back in my adrenaline junkie days. That’s a lot of hair to have standing up, although I suppose it’s cheaper than hair gel.

If you never got to play with a Van_de_Graff_generator in science class as a kid, just go down the slide somewhere! Make sure it’s one of the newer plastic ones, though.

Little PJ never seems daunted by the static charge he gets from going down the slide. Since I often catch him at the bottom, I appreciate those old metal slides from my youth! I might have to take a can of Static Guard with him next time we hit the playground.

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