It was a dark and stormy night, and Dr. Frankenstein was pondering how to bring his monster to life. Chilled, he yanked a woolen sweater over his head, and as the sparks flew, he suddenly cried out, "Eureka!" Not the way you remember it? Well, we may have gotten a few details wrong. But we do know that the force that frizzed the good doctor's hair can certainly be impressive. See for yourself with this tribute to static electricity.

MATERIALS

Modeling clay
Large metal paper clips
Inflated balloon
Wool sweater

DIRECTIONS: The first step is to create a monster--literally--out of clay. Any shape creature will do, just be sure to insert paper clips somewhere into its body (we favor the side-of-the-neck look, like you-know-who). Bring your monster--and your lab assistants--into a darkened closet, and rub an inflated balloon against a piece of wool for 30 seconds. Hold it close to, but not touching, the paper clip, and watch the spark jump between the balloon and the paper clip.

WHY IT WORKS: All that rubbing causes some electrons from the wool to collect on the balloon, giving it a negative charge. Holding the negative balloon near the neutral paper clip causes the electrons in the clip to move away (the two negative forces repel), leaving the metal surface with a positive charge. When the charge is great enough, the air between the balloon and paper clip becomes charged, too, creating a path where the electrons can move--and letting the sparks fly.
NOTE: This experiment works best in low humidity.