Constructing a Competitive Alternative to the Tesla Coil: Tips and Tricks

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In an electronics competition, a participant seeks alternatives to a Tesla coil project, which their opponent is using. They consider building a movement detector that counts and displays detected movements, inspired by supermarket sensors. The participant has enough time to complete the project and plans to collaborate with a knowledgeable friend for components. Suggestions include using a light source and phototransistor for detection. Overall, the focus is on creating an innovative project that can compete effectively against the Tesla coil.
DemoNibs
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[SOLVED] pls HELP me

There is an electronics competition, so can somebody tell me if there is something better than Tesla coil. The opposition is going to have a demonstration with a Tesla coil. What is your suggestion? What should I construct against the Tesla coil?
 
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What have you studied about electronics? It seems to me that a Tesla coil is more of a construction problem rather than an electronics problem. There are many areas to choose from. Do you have any paticular areas of interest other than high voltage?
 
What type of stuff do you have to work with?

There's like 45 bajillion digital circuits you could make, if you could get some low power speaker cones you could make a keyboard, make some RAM, a calculator, etc.
 
This is primary school competition, so it was very easy to win until this year. My friend is the best opposition, his project is Tesla coil. We are learning the basics of the electricity, but my friend went too far. I think that I am going to build some kind of a movement detector so it count and display the number of movements detected. So what do you say? And thanks for the replies.
 
DemoNibs said:
I think that I am going to build some kind of a movement detector so it count and display the number of movements detected. So what do you say?
I think this is an excellent idea. What kind of time are you looking at? Also will you be able to purchase any supplies such as LED display, power supplies(batteries), chips, etc?

What have you considered for detecting movement? You could use a light source and a phototransistor to count objects as they break a light beam. What are your thoughts here?
 
Well, I have enough time to complete this project. Actually, I should send the request until March. I asked my friend for help, he is an expert in electronics, so he is going to send me the board and all the needed components, however, there is an electronics store in range of 50km. The movement detector is going to be some kind of a sensor (as at the supermarkets ex. the self opening doors...). Today, I'll talk with my friend for the details. Thank you very much for the support.
 
The book claims the answer is that all the magnitudes are the same because "the gravitational force on the penguin is the same". I'm having trouble understanding this. I thought the buoyant force was equal to the weight of the fluid displaced. Weight depends on mass which depends on density. Therefore, due to the differing densities the buoyant force will be different in each case? Is this incorrect?

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