How many electric shocks with 120V or greater have you received?

[KrazyHorse]

I can count 5:

3 with 120V AC (60 Hz)
1 with a 600V power supply (it was operating at some odd frequency)
1 with a capacitor I forgot to discharge (not sure what it was charged to, but the power supply to the equipment was 220V)

[Cort Haus]

As a kid I think I recieved about three short 240v shocks - probably from dodgy wiring. Quite stimulating, IIRC.

[KrazyHorse]

What I hate the most about getting hit with a jolt is the awful buzzing feeling it leaves in your fingers for hours afterwards.

[Asher]

Never.

[Ecthy]

Not sure, but it'd be a maximum of one:

I was tinkering with my monitor (tube, 15") a few years ago and since the image was always a bit flickering and fading I removed the case to check it out (as I touched the controler board the condition would change, must have been some dead contact somewhere). At some point I hadn't realized that it was plugged in and touched some metal part right next to the plug-in. No idea how much voltage there is, might be the whole 220V we get here in Europe, but I suppose it was already transformed down. Anyway, it felt like being whacked and I left the contact, sitting back shocked for a few seconds (agonized more mentally than physically no doubt).

Does this count?

[Ecthy]

AND we used to put the contacts of 7.5 V batteries to our tongue to enjoy the "acidic" feeling. Does this count?

[Cort Haus]

I don't think a little 7.5v tongue job counts, Ecthy.

[KrazyHorse]

The worst shock I ever got was as a kid. I was trying to plug in a little bedside christmas tree (it was the week before Christmas) in the dark, and couldn't manage to get the prongs into the socket. I decided to do it by feel, so I grabbed the prongs between my fingers and guided them into the socket. I was planning to just get the prongs into the edge and then let go of them, but I must have pushed too far. My hand went into the classic death grip when the first shock hit me, so I was stuck with current going up my arm for what must have been 2 or 3 seconds (but which felt like forever) before I jerked my whole body backward. My heart beat funny for a while after that (next 5 or 10 minutes), but it went back to normal. I decided not to wake my parents up because I was afraid of getting in trouble (I was 7-10 years old, IIRC).

[Ecthy]

I've heard before that the current wanders up your arm... why does it happen that way?

[KrazyHorse]

Originally posted by Asher
Never.

They should make you compsci guys do some hands-on electronics work. You're guaranteed to pop your cherry...

[KrazyHorse]

Originally posted by Ecthy
I've heard before that the current wanders up your arm... why does it happen that way?

Ohm's Law

[Patroklos]

I got a 120 when plugging in Christmas lights as a kid. Thats it.

[Asher]

Originally posted by KrazyHorse
They should make you compsci guys do some hands-on electronics work. You're guaranteed to pop your cherry...

I've done my fair share. Made a speaker once, plus the usual toy electronics dealies.

I have built many, many computers over the years, if that counts.

[Ecthy]

Originally posted by KrazyHorse
Ohm's Law

Elaborate for us non-physicists?

[KrazyHorse]

3 of mine were from dealing with lab equipment of one sort or another. I've already told the story of one of them. One of them was while I was messing around with the guts of some consumer electronics I evidently did not understand as well as I thought I did...