TAPPING THE JUICE

Tapping the Juice lives by several clocks: 
A 555 integrated circuit regulates the pulses that illuminate the little lights.
A biological clock regulates the decay of the lemons. They deteriorate far more rapidly than if they had not been violated by the electrodes that had been violently inserted into them. Their complexion changes over time to reveal the effects of the exchange of energy.
A metalurgical clock regulates the decay of the zinc electrodes which corrode into nothingness in a matter of months, enduring through the life of several lemons.

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"It uses thin wires connecting tiny electric light bulbs [LEDs] and conductors that are stuck into the lemons. Somehow...the lemons produce the electricity that lights the bulbs. 'After two weeks the lemons get green, like skin in a horror movie....It's like this thing is sucking all the juice out.' " - Genie Carr, The Winston-Salem Journal, January 19, 1992.

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Technical Description:
Tapping the Juice connects an electronic circuit board to a battery of six wet cells (lemons with zinc and copper electrodes) so that 5 LEDs (Light Emitting Diodes) light up, one after another, while a tiny speaker (Piezo Buzzer) clicks quietly. Each lemon cell produces less than 1 volt of electricity, but when they are wired together in series, they produce enough voltage to make the piece operate effectively.