There’s always someone who thinks it would be a great joke to make one.
The sign is right.
I’ll bet the CIA has tons of them.
Huh, never thought about that. The child part of me wonders what would happen.
I think electrocution would happen if you touched one end while the other end was plugged in. Or it could ignite all sorts of flammable materials (even invisible, airborne ones). Just not a good idea in general, but like I said above, I’m sure the CIA has uses for them.
I was wondering about plugging the ends in two sockets.
Mark covered this a while back:
Too bad it’s dangerous because how many Xmas light scenarios would it have saved?!
Well shucks. I knew that image looked familiar when it showed up on my Facebook feed.
Thanks, that’s an interesting thread.
I think one of my brothers made one of those to hook his generator into the wall sockets to power them during Sandy. He disconnected the house from the main line coming in & turned off most areas of the house by flipping the breakers. Allowing him to power a small area and the furnace.
He was way handier than just about everyone. And a former mechanic.
Then where was he when they sacked Rome, eh?
Hardware boffin starts work on simulation of an entire IBM S/360 Model 50 mainframe
Hardware guru Ken Shirriff is working on a simulator for the IBM S/360 Model 50 mainframe, launched in April 1964. His program runs the original machine’s microcode so it can control and be controlled by an original front panel.
[…]
For now, the controls too are simulated in JavaScript, but the plan is ultimately to attach a real IBM operator’s console to the emulator. Specifically, the console below.
This is what makes them dangerous. When the power comes back on unexpectedly the circuit gets overloaded and fires ensue.
Another way they are used is when someone wants to make an addition without permits, then doesn’t want to tie the new electric back to the panel. One of these is made to jumper the new wiring to the old, sometimes snaked behind a wall where it causes a fire later.
An emergency is one thing - by someone who knows what they’re doing and will monitor things ongoing - don’t chintz out on your homes wiring.
Have a main breaker- turn it off.
I worry most about the people who don’t know what they’re doing, who unfortunately comprise most people when it comes to home electricity (especially in an emergency).
The other place they get used is for Christmas lights. Someone (like me) hangs all the lights then realizes that the female end is closest to the socket. Aargh!
Yeah - and possibly electrocute some poor lineman because they didn’t disconnect from the system.
No worries with me trying this these days - high rise living and generators don’t play well together. I have other emergency backups. Mantle oil lamps & other lights, those heater packs, a solar charger to recharge the phone and pad, one of those butane burners that are safe indoors - liquor. 
