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Darwin Awards
2006 Darwin Awards
Named in honor of Charles Darwin, the father of evolution, the Darwin Awards commemorate those who improve our gene pool by removing themselves from it. Next Prev Random

Email a Friend Copper Kite String
2006 Darwin Award Nominee
Confirmed True by Darwin

"One string short of a kite."

(19 March 2006, Belize) Benjamin Franklin reputedly flew his kite in a lightning storm, and discovered that lightning equals electricity. However, certain precautions must be taken to avoid sudden electrocution. Kennon, 26, replicated the conditions of Ben Franklin's experiment, but without Ben's sensible safety precautions.

Kennon was flying a kite with a short string that he had extended with a length of thin copper wire. The copper made contact with a high-tension line, sending a terminal bolt of electrical "lightning" sizzling towards the man.

Just bad luck? Not according to Kennon's father, who said his son was an electrician and "should have known better."

Reader comments:
"Let me put it this way, I wouldn't want him wiring my house!"
"An electrifying experience!"

DarwinAwards.com © 1994 - 2008
Submitted by: Anonymous
Reference: Belize Reporter

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The Darwin Awards: Evolution in Action

Hardback. 327 pages. Autographed.
$15
185 Stories! In the ongoing saga of Survival of the Fittest, meet the thief who steals electrical wires without shutting off the current! Marvel at the would-be pilot who suspends his lawnchair from helium balloons! Learn from the man who peers into a gas can using a cigarette lighter...!

This book also includes a History of the Darwin Awards, Darwin Haiku, and a dozen humorous discussions of the implications of evolution, including the origin of idiots, and the role of testosterone.

Autographed by Author!

 


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