It's been way too hot for me today. It's been around 27C and it's only May. I don't do well in this sort of temperature and consequently my concentration is poor and it's hard for me to focus on learning.
I read an article today about people being hit by lightning. Surprisingly, to me anyway, 9 out of 10 people survive a lightning strike! Very few are direct hits (3-5%). It's more likely to jump to someone when something else like a tree is hit (20-30%), but by first the most common is the lightning coursing through the ground.
Apparently only some of the charge goes through the body and the rest forms a kind of halo around the body. The resulting injuries to the skin depend on the clothes worn. The charge heats the sweat, so if the sweat can't escape, the skin gets burnt. Some material melt, some hold the heat in.
What should you do when lightning strikes? Get inside a building or car, but if you can't then there is no foolproof survival method. You should avoiding trees, tall objects, and water. Try to find a low area, spread out (at least 6 metres to the next person). Don't lie down since that increases your contact with the ground, but try crouching on the balls of your feet, feet close together and making yourself as low as possible. Don't be too eager to get up as lightning can strike after the threat appears to have passed. Wait half an hour after the storm has moved on.
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