Static electricity often just seems like an everyday annoyance when a wool sweater crackles as you pull it off, or when a doorknob delivers an unexpected zap. Regardless, the phenomenon is much more ...

MINNEAPOLIS — When someone touches something and gets shocked, it's awkward and a bit painful. What causes static electricity? And what actually happens when you get shocked? Visitors of the ...

The first documentation of static electricity dates back to 600 BCE. Even after 2,600 years’ worth of tiny shocks, however, researchers couldn’t fully explain how rubbing two objects together causes ...