What is the definition of static electricity?
Static electricity is stationary charge trapped on a surface. It can be trapped because the surface is a good insulator, so it can’t move at all (i.e. spots of charge on a balloon), or it can be trapped on a conductive surface because that entire surface is insulated from everything else (i.e. a metal ball hanging on a plastic thread). Static charges can be positive (shortage of electrons) or negative (excess of electrons). Neutral surfaces have the positive charges, of the protons in the nuclei of the atoms it is made of, in perfect balance with the surrounding electrons.
