Hold onto your fishing rods guys. We’re tracking down the origins of batteries and it turns out it has a lot to do with a fish with a nasty sting in its tail. Zzzaaap!!Human’s have known that an electrical force existed for thousands of years. But it wasn’t until the turn of the nineteenth century that we were able to harness it for the first time in a battery. It opened the doors for a whole new way of life.Get ready for stories of reanimated corpses, bitter scientific rivalries, shocking ancient medicine and electric fish.Our guest today is Tim Jorgensen, author of Spark: The Life of Electricity and the Electricity of Life.Produced and edited by Freddy Chick. Executive Producer is Charlotte Long.If you'd like to learn even more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts, and audiobooks at History Hit - enter promo code PATENTED for a free trial, plus 50% off your first three months' subscription. To download, go to Android or Apple store. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.