If there’s one thing that gets people excited about learning, it’s a good science experiment. There’s nothing like seeing a principle in action in order to understand it. That is why viewers were captivated by a TikTok video of a man using aluminum foil to charge his iPad.
Using some everyday household items, Buddy6060 (@buddykickstand6060) showed just how simple it is to harness power from the sun. In a video that has received 1.1 million views and counting, he demonstrates this simple bit of science.
The man starts by holding up a roll of Good Value aluminum foil and tearing two squares. He places one shiny side up and the other with the dull side up.
“I’m going to show y’all that you can charge your products with just household regular foil,” he says.
He then grabs an iPad that is turned off. Buddy 6060 then demonstrates how it turns on once it is plugged into a power outlet.
After this, he wraps the plug of the charger in one piece of foil, making sure the the dull side is facing out.
“Wrap it around your charger, … and you want your prongs to stick out. You want it to be good and tight,” he instructs.
Charging his iPad with foil
He then grabs the second piece of foil, the foil-wrapped charger, and his iPad before going outside. The man places the foil on the ground with the shiny side facing up. He then pierces it with the prongs of his charger as thought he’s plugging it into the earth.
“Now I plug up my iPad. There you go. Y’all see the Apple logo?” he asks as the iPad seemingly powers up and the logo appears. “You get a charge from the floor guys. Now tell me what’s up with that.”
The Daily Dot reached out to the TikTok creator via TikTok direct message for further information.
Viewers share their theories
While viewers appreciated the TikToker’s tip for using aluminum foil as a charger, many were curious about whether the experiment actually worked.
One person asked, “Can you show this but show where the battery icon is actually charging?”
“I have the same question. The iPad can turn on [with] a 1% charging,” another wrote.
One person who did not believe that the experiment worked asserted, “If your iPad is off it automatically powers up when you insert the cable into the port of the iPad or if it’s already in the port and you plug into an outlet.”
This person’s comment can be verified by turning off an iPhone or iPad and plugging it into a power source. When the device is connected to electricity, the Apple logo does, in fact, appear on the screen as it automatically turns on.
Many assumptions as to how the charging system worked were also not based in scientific fact. Numerous people suggested that the aluminum foil was able to conduct energy from the ground.
“You are collecting the aether. Hidden technology. Energy all around us,” one person wrote, referring to the fringe science theory that aether, an energy field that permeates everything around us, can be tapped into and harnessed for practical uses like electricity.
“That’s just proof the ground is electrical. This is how we charge our bodies by walking barefoot,” a second person said, while another added that this was called “grounding.”
While grounding, or walking barefoot, certainly has its health benefits, there is no scientific evidence that humans can connect to the natural electric charge of the earth and transfer electrons into their bodies, thereby preventing health ailments.
Can you charge an iPad with aluminum foil?
Some commenters assumed that the TikToker was able to charge his iPad because he was using the aluminum foil to harness solar energy.
“U made a solar panel,” one person incorrectly assumed.
@buddykickstand6060 #january #money #funnyvideos #funnyvideo #jokess #fypシ゚viral ♬ original sound – Buddy6060
It is not possible to charge a large device like an iPad using aluminum foil. This is because the material is not designed to capture and convert solar energy into electric power. It is also not possible to use the foil as a solar panel since solar panels need to be made from specialized materials like silicon, which effectively convert sunlight to electrical energy.
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