One of the most spectacular displays of nature's power is lightning. Lightning occurs when there is an electrical discharge during a thunderstorm, triggered when the electrical field within a cloud builds up enough of a charge. The result of that electrical discharge is lightning.

The main types of lightning discharges are cloud to ground, cloud to cloud, in-cloud, and cloud to air. Their titles are pretty self-explanatory. For example, cloud to ground lightning is the type that often results in lightning "strikes" to objects on the ground (such as trees or buildings).

It is estimated that lightning occurs about 100-125 times per second around the world, or around three billion times annually all across the globe.

In the United States, it's estimated that lightning hits the ground 25-30 million times each year. Some areas, such as Florida, are hit much more often by lightning than others.

On average, the chance that a person might get struck by lightning is between 1 in 250,000 and 1 in 400,000 in a year's time. This is just in the U.S. alone. Those chances are a lot higher if a person is in the wrong place at the wrong time during a thunderstorm.

You're probably in the most danger if you're outside during a storm, of course -- whether it's on the golf course, on a playing field, out on the water in a boat, or even standing under a tree. Not only are you vulnerable to being hit by lightning while under a tree, but that tree, if hit, can get blown down in the storm and fall on the person under it (or if the tree gets hit by lightning, anyone standing under it can get hit, too). So, when outside in a storm, your best bet is to go inside, if possible.

 

 

Asimov was also a visionary in his own right. In 1939, when he was only nineteen, he wrote a story entitled "Robbie", about a metallic robot from the year 1998. Asimov came up with the idea of positronic brains a year later. He was the one credited shortly after that with the creation of the term "robotics". In 1950, he was the first to describe pocket calculators and their use.

Subsequently, Asimov went on to examine such subjects as the future, and the possible end of the world and how it might take place, using various scenarios and incorporating geology, social history, and astrophysics, in books such as "A Choice of Catastrophies". He also compiled "The Intelligent Man's Guide to Science" in 1960, which was updated several times afterwards (along with a slight alteration of the title each time). Beginning with the first chapter, which defines science itself, and throughout the book, Asimov uses his talents to not only explain some of the most difficult scientific concepts, but does so in a way that is both enjoyable and easy to follow. Divided into two parts, Physical Sciences and Biological Sciences, this book includes a plethora of information for anyone who is even remotely interested in science of all kinds.

One of the last science-based books he wrote, in collaberation with his wife Janet, was "Frontiers II". Released in 1993, a little over a year after his death, it explores some of the most recent scientific advances, with subjects such as dinosaurs, the planets and the universe, robots and robettes, and much more.

Isaac Asimov was a man with an active and fertile imagination. Whether his subject was science fiction or factual scientific information, he was able to share his wisdom, and often his humor, in a fashion that made all of his books enjoyable.