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 ...

Static electricity was first observed in 600 BC, but researchers have struggled to explain how it is caused by rubbing. With a better understanding of the mechanisms at play, researchers potentially ...

An invention made from waste polystyrene that generates static electricity from motion and wind could lower power usage by recycling waste energy in air conditioners and other applications. An ...

Static electricity—specifically the triboelectric effect, aka contact electrification—is ubiquitous in our daily lives, found in such things as a balloon rubbed against one's hair or styrofoam packing ...

Researchers discovered different electrical charges build up on the front and back parts of a sliding object, creating a current of static electricity. This explains why petting fur or shuffling along ...

Insects have been known to sense and tap into electric fields, but new research shows that swarms can actually produce atmospheric electric charges. By measuring the extent of this influence, the ...

Butterflies and moths collect so much static electricity whilst in flight, that pollen grains from flowers can be pulled by static electricity across air gaps of several millimeters or centimeters.

A new discovery was obtained by a group of researchers regarding ticks transferring to pets and people. Ticks can now be propelled across air gaps by static electricity, allowing them to make contact ...

Previous research has looked at the static electricity of bees, but the study authors write that the charges of butterflies hadn't been measured before. Richard A. Brooks / AFP via Getty Images ...

The spinning steel and plastic components of a combine, insulated from the ground by rubber tires and plastic skid shoes on small grain platforms, have been proven to create a static electric charge ...