Mythbusters: Pee on the PS2 edition
It's the stuff great urban legends are made of: A drunk University of Wyoming student supposedly knocked himself out and earned a trip to the hospital after urinating on a still-plugged-in PS2 at an off-campus party. The story got pushed by Fark on Monday and is slowly making its way into the mainstream media, getting a mention yesterday on Fox News Live.We're a bit incredulous. First of all, it's arguable whether or not the physics of the story would even work. The popular Discovery TV show Mythbusters determined that it's nearly impossible to get shocked by peeing on the supercharged third rail of a train track because the urine stream isn't consistent enough to carry a charge. Even if the drunken party-goer somehow did get close enough for a solid stream, we find it hard to believe that the measly power output of a PS2 would knock someone out for a full ten seconds.
The original report itself doesn't exactly inspire confidence, either -- Fun Tech Talk is not exactly a well-known and respected source for news. While the post reads like an AP brief, there's no link to any outside sources or mention of who originally reported the story. There are some journalistic inconsistencies too -- the party supposedly happened late Saturday night, but the dateline says it was written that same Saturday.
The final nail in the coffin? None of the three students mentioned in the piece turn up on the University of Wyoming's online student directory.
While we'd like to believe in the poetic justice for anyone stupid enough to pee on a game system, we've got to nip this one in the bud. As the Mythbusters themselves might say, this one is busted.











Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Lance @ May 16th 2007 5:52PM
You said University of Wisconsin, then said it was Wyoming. I'm so confused!
C. Grant @ May 16th 2007 5:58PM
Typo! It's been corrected.
Abscissa @ May 16th 2007 6:04PM
"we find it hard to believe that the measly power output of a PS2 would knock someone out for a full ten seconds."
That part isn't a problem. Remember, the PS2 is plugged directly into a regular household power outlet. So, assuming the whole "getting zapped through a urination stream" was possible (debatable, as you pointed out), the power supply within the PS2 could certainly zap someone with all the same power as the outlet itself. The fact that the system draws less power under normal circumstances is irrelevant.
Eville1 @ May 16th 2007 6:09PM
Yeah, I'm going to cry foul. No way is this going to happen. What really happened? How about the guy was so drunk he could barely stand (as the article states.) And fell over while trying to piss on the PS2.
tcc3 @ May 16th 2007 6:08PM
Wisconsin, Wyoming, its all the same. =P
Poisoned Al @ May 16th 2007 6:11PM
While I can believe someone would piss on an old machine (hell, the Game Nerd set a 32X on fire and shot arrows at it in this weeks episode), WHY would it still be plugged in? It would have to be indoors, and if you piss anywhere other then a toilet indoors, you have other problems other then electrocution. I would have called bullshit on this even without Mythbusters.
Aex @ May 16th 2007 6:19PM
The Mythbusters thing, is a sorta two-fer. While you can't get shocked from peeing on a 3rd rail in a normal setting, due to the stream breaking up far too much from the distance, you can easily be shocked if you were closer to the rail. There was another Mythbusters episode where they revised the experiment, and set up an electric fence, from the normal height one would piss, and found the stream can carry electric current thru your wii... hehehe
So unless the guy was peeing from on top of the couch to to floor, it is physcially possible for him to be electrocuted by the current from the wall outlet connected to the ps2.
http://kwc.org/mythbusters/2004/06/return_of_mythbusters.html
Possiblity of being shocked by PS2 while peeing on it: Nearly Confirmed!
Shagittarius @ May 16th 2007 6:20PM
On the other hand if you pee on a Wii you create a rift in space time which can destroy the delicate fabric of the two universes that are duct-taped together.
Phillip @ May 16th 2007 6:23PM
Then there was the Darwin award that went to a guy who peed off a water tower and died when his urine stream hit a power line.
Jay @ May 16th 2007 6:30PM
Yeah, I was about to mention the electric fence one. As long as the stream is continuous, the electric can travel the path -- the direction of the stream doesn't matter :P
Since they were all plastered, I expect the stream was pretty strong :D
hvnlysoldr @ May 16th 2007 6:32PM
Mythbusters would say "I take your reality and substitute my own."
Otter @ May 16th 2007 6:40PM
Having accidentally peed on an electric fence myself once as it was hidden in grass (it's like being kicked in the balls, just for the record) I can vouch for electric current DEFINITELY traveling through pee.
kftgr @ May 16th 2007 6:41PM
If this incident did happen, then I suspect that it was due to the following:
1) never underestimate what stupid things that a drunk ass would do (like peeing indoors)
2) if it was a lot of pee, he could have made contact with his electrified puddle of pee.
If it was a puddle of pee, then all questions of whether one can get electricuted through a stream of pee and whether enough current could get to him once the stream made contact would not apply.
Sam G. @ May 16th 2007 10:40PM
You couldn't have thrown me a bone for emailing this to do earlier this week?
Aberu @ May 16th 2007 7:09PM
But there was a kid from Russia who peed on an electric fence, and his penis exploded. They made him a new one from grafting and shaping his forearm skin.
It's possible IMO.
KazeSaint @ May 16th 2007 7:54PM
I suppose it could be possible, but I doubt it. The only place enough vac would exist would be in the power supply, before the transformer and before the rectification circuitry. In the slim ps2, I think the vac is stepped down before it gets to the console, so that's out of the question. In the older ones, it would be very hard to hit the right spot. If anything, the nearby TV would be more likely. After reading the article, I'd guess that he passed out after drinking too much.
shaoron @ May 16th 2007 9:19PM
maybe he kneeled down THEN peed on the console...
stupid git!
mike @ May 16th 2007 11:29PM
If you watch the mythbuster mtyhs revisited episode of season 2, you can see they redo the peeing on the 3rd rail experiment, and discover that if you are close enough, the urine stream does indeed stay solid and carry the current. The left the peeing on the 3rd rail myth at busted because they figured no1 would get their dick that colse to the rail, unlike with an electric fence.
Remember now, this guy was drunk. He could of easily been close to the ps2 when he took his leak, and thus could of been electricuted. Furthermore, Mythbusters only tried 1 person for each experiement, and at 1 time. Sometimes when I take a piss, I can piss a ton and real fast, other times barely any. Mythbusters never tested if its a constant stream even from far when you have had tons to drink and just have lots of piss to do.
I believe the story.