Lightning Injuries: Electrical, Medical, and Legal Aspects

There are few natural phenomena as frightening and, at the same time, as fascinating as lightning. Perhaps tornados and grizzly bears come close. Lightning kills more people in this country than any other natural event including floods, hurricanes, tornados, and earthquakes. I spend a lot of time backpacking in the wilderness and have observed lightning up close and personal. I was especially intrigued by the subtitle of this book, and why it was thought necessary by the authors. Surely the titleLightning Injurieswould be sufficient. The editors of the work are two electrical engineers, a physician, and an electrical engineer—physician. Three of four editors and ten of the 19 contributors are from Australia, which gives the book a distinctive tone. In the preface the senior editor outlines the purpose of the book, which is to bridge the gap between "hard" and clinical science. He writes, "Technologists will, it is