Germany, 17th century.  The first static electric generating machine
	The first static electric generating machine The first real experimentation with electricity began to take place around the middle of the 17th century. At that time, a German scientist named Otto von Guericke noticed that sparks resembling lightning jumped from a spinning sulfur ball that he had been rubbing with his hand.  Thus was born the first static electric generating machine.  Experimenters improved and developed this frictional type of machine until the largest versions of it could produce sparks in excess of two feet. The operation of such machines, however, was very dependent on weather conditions - it was relatively easy to produce large electrical discharges in cool dry weather, but very difficult in warm humid weather.