Article: 327298 of sci.skeptic From: erg@panix.com (Edward Green) Newsgroups: sci.skeptic,alt.fan.cecil-adams,alt.folklore.urban,sci.physics,alt.folklore.science Subject: Re: Balls on Power Lines Date: 28 Sep 2000 05:07:52 GMT Organization: Public Access Networks Corp. Lines: 37 Message-ID: <8qujn8$orh$1@news.panix.com> References: <8qud6k$563$1@nnrp1.deja.com> <8quen2$nrj$1@news.panix.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: panix2.panix.com X-Trace: news.panix.com 970117672 25457 166.84.0.227 (28 Sep 2000 05:07:52 GMT) X-Complaints-To: abuse@panix.com NNTP-Posting-Date: 28 Sep 2000 05:07:52 GMT X-Newsreader: trn 4.0-test72 (19 April 1999) Path: news.meer.net!nntp1.ba.best.com!news1.best.com!newshub.sdsu.edu!news-spur1.maxwell.syr.edu!news.maxwell.syr.edu!howland.erols.net!panix!news.panix.com!not-for-mail Xref: news.meer.net sci.skeptic:327298 alt.fan.cecil-adams:174058 alt.folklore.urban:289591 sci.physics:270432 alt.folklore.science:36361 Firky wrote: >On the 28 Sep 2000 03:42:26 GMT. Edward Green came into alt.folklore.urban and >said... > >Þ Artemis wrote: >Þ >Þ >On high voltage power lines there are often balls attached to >Þ >them, usually orange. One explanation is that they are so that >Þ >low flying airplanes can see them. The second explanation is >Þ >that the wind blowing across the power lines causes them to >Þ >vibrate. Anyone got the straight dope on this or is it another >Þ >urban legend? >Þ >Þ What is the legend? That there are orange balls on power lines? I have >Þ not seen any orange balls on power lines in a city, so I guess that >Þ would be an urban legend. Assuming that somewhere there are power >Þ lines festooned with orange balls, then it is a sure bet that >Þ visibility is one of their functions, since orange has been chosen for >Þ their color. > >That is quite possiably the most boring thing I have ever read in my life. Well, I am glad you achieved some extremum today. Most of us can go through weeks, maybe months, with no extremum or personal best. You might ask myself "Will I ever eat more cornflakes than I ate on Dec. 7, 1982", and the answer will come back, no; no new personal best on cornflakes. Life is like that. Well, here you have pushed your personal enuiatrope (TM), and I am glad to have had some small part in it. Of course, we must always strive to continually excel, and never rest on our laurels, which is why I modestly make this effort to immediately push the record. Of course, you did elect to read alt.folklore.urban, and so I suspect you must be a gourmand of boredom. And do continue posting in those funky non-universal ISO character sets. That "d" character which my text editor cannot handle correctly is very interesting.