Chapter 22, Problem 17CQ

When lightning strikes the ground, it generates a large electric field along the surface of the ground directed toward the point of the strike. People near a lightning strike are often injured not by the lightning itself but by a large current that flows up one leg and down the other due to this electric field. To minimize this possibility, you are advised to stand with your feet close together if you are trapped outside during a lightning storm. Explain why this is beneficial.

Hint: The current path through your body, up one leg and down the other, has a certain resistance. The larger the current along this path_, the greater the damage.