h a l f b a k e r yVeni, vedi, fish velocipede
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Sending electricity through a screen does not electrify everything that touches it. Same concept as birds on power lines. Bad science. |
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Bad science, maybe, but I think we can easily improve on it. |
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Electrify only the wires going across (say), the ones going down being insulators. Then, if wires are alternately given opposite polarity, the bugs will close the circuit between the two, frying their sorry thoraxes. |
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If your cat is in the habit of sitting on the windowsill, this might not be such a good idea. And if you have ever seen how a bug zapper looks after a few months of use, you might also think this is not such a good idea. |
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Thank you for the improvement, [DrCurry]. Perhaps if the voltage is extremely low (or should this be the current that is low?) it will not get gooey with cooked carcasses. Rather, flies will be stunned and fall away from the screen. |
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The insects that get zapped by an electric flyswatter tend to stick when they fry... I mean die, so you could end up looking at more bugs than normal. |
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Those hand=held swatters with a 9V battery, and HV oscillator, have alternate plus and minus wires in one direction. They are made to kill, but I agree with bungston that a lower voltage would potentially (ha, ha) make them fly away. |
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When I was a kid in rural nowhere there was a method of dealing with possums which bridged the power lines by cycling the power to make their muscles twitch until they fell off. If that didn't work then somebody would have to drive out there and poke it with a stick. |
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Maybe the same can be done with insects? |
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Or just use more power, to ensure they're properly vapourised. |
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Anyway, what caught my attention is that with an electrified screen you can have larger holes, and this would improve airflow. |
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Also, for extra airflow you can adapt the insect screen into a sort of ion drive. |
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