this post was submitted on 13 Jul 2025
834 points (98.8% liked)
Science Memes
15777 readers
3637 users here now
Welcome to c/science_memes @ Mander.xyz!
A place for majestic STEMLORD peacocking, as well as memes about the realities of working in a lab.
Rules
- Don't throw mud. Behave like an intellectual and remember the human.
- Keep it rooted (on topic).
- No spam.
- Infographics welcome, get schooled.
This is a science community. We use the Dawkins definition of meme.
Research Committee
Other Mander Communities
Science and Research
Biology and Life Sciences
- !abiogenesis@mander.xyz
- !animal-behavior@mander.xyz
- !anthropology@mander.xyz
- !arachnology@mander.xyz
- !balconygardening@slrpnk.net
- !biodiversity@mander.xyz
- !biology@mander.xyz
- !biophysics@mander.xyz
- !botany@mander.xyz
- !ecology@mander.xyz
- !entomology@mander.xyz
- !fermentation@mander.xyz
- !herpetology@mander.xyz
- !houseplants@mander.xyz
- !medicine@mander.xyz
- !microscopy@mander.xyz
- !mycology@mander.xyz
- !nudibranchs@mander.xyz
- !nutrition@mander.xyz
- !palaeoecology@mander.xyz
- !palaeontology@mander.xyz
- !photosynthesis@mander.xyz
- !plantid@mander.xyz
- !plants@mander.xyz
- !reptiles and amphibians@mander.xyz
Physical Sciences
- !astronomy@mander.xyz
- !chemistry@mander.xyz
- !earthscience@mander.xyz
- !geography@mander.xyz
- !geospatial@mander.xyz
- !nuclear@mander.xyz
- !physics@mander.xyz
- !quantum-computing@mander.xyz
- !spectroscopy@mander.xyz
Humanities and Social Sciences
Practical and Applied Sciences
- !exercise-and sports-science@mander.xyz
- !gardening@mander.xyz
- !self sufficiency@mander.xyz
- !soilscience@slrpnk.net
- !terrariums@mander.xyz
- !timelapse@mander.xyz
Memes
Miscellaneous
founded 2 years ago
MODERATORS
you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments
view the rest of the comments
Is there actually any biologic mechanism to generat and conduct electricity at a high enough voltage and current that it can ionize air over a distance as large as that (looks like at least 1/2m) without damaging the actual animal doing it?
Looking around, electric eels can do 860V, which is well short from the 15kV needed to gap 0.5m of air at sea level, plus that animal's skin would need to be crazy insulating for all that power to not just go down the most highly conductive way possible (all the nice conductive water all the way down to the ground contained in the animal itself) instead of having to ionize 0.5m or air.
I mean, we can always claim it was possible but lost, but then again we can also claim that for magic or animal teleportation.
Just out of pedantry: Water has terrible conductivity. Blood is less terrible though and in any case air is far worse than either, so point stands.
We can get past that particular issue if the electric dinosaur was jumping such that its victim has the shortest air gap
Pure water is a terrible conductor, but water with dissolved ions is a pretty good conductor, and that's mostly (maybe always, since things like Sodium an Potassium ions tend to be pretty important in various processes, though IANAB so maybe there are exceptions) the water inside living beings.
More like an ok conductor, but yea that's what I meant with the blood (and whatever other ways water exists in our body). Though even pure water is more conductive than air by orders or magnitude.
Well, once you ionize it air is a great conductor ;)