There is a growing number of university and college campuses across the state, as well as the nation, that are banning hoverboards from their grounds.

However, ISU students so far have nothing to fear in this regard.

Hoverboards, otherwise called self-balancing two-wheeled boards, are devices that have boomed in popularity in the last couple of years.

eBay reported to have sold more than 5,000 boards on Black Friday and also “claims to have sold one hoverboard every 12 seconds on Cyber Monday,” according to Popular Science’s website.

Users can operate the motorized unit by standing on it and directing it through a shift of weight.

However, there has also been a growing risk associated with the device, prompting many public places to forbid them, including the University of Iowa.

University of Iowa housing officials “have prohibited the use and possession of so-called hoverboards in the university’s residence halls, apartments and dining areas,” according to The Des Moines Register.

Von Stange, director of the university’s housing and dining, said the decision at Iowa was reached after consultation with the Department of Public Safety, risk management and various student groups, according to The Register.

However, for ISU students, no such ban currently exists on their campus.

Peter Englin, director of the Department of Residence at Iowa State, said there are currently no plans in motion to ban hoverboards from campus.

“So we’re not looking to regulate something until we know that we have a significant issue on campus,” he said. “But we’re going to treat them like we use bicycles and skateboards on campus; you can’t ride them in our buildings.”

With the popularity of these devices, the Internet has not been short of “fail” videos as well. From dads at Christmas to the likes of Mike Tyson falling backward off of a hoverboard, many have begun to question the health and physical risk of hoverboards.

Not only that, but these units have had a history of setting on fire, or even exploding.

Englin said most of the frowns that he hears about hoverboards come from them being charged, but that’s a problem with those batteries.

“Our belief is that manufacturers and retailers don’t want to provide a product, from a liability perspective, that is dangerous,” Englin said. “Some are and some aren’t, depends on the manufacturer.”

This issue with the hoverboards catching aflame has even caused Amazon to pull nearly all brands of the device from its website, according to Today’s website.

Currently, Englin said they are approaching the subject with an air of caution.

“We’ve approached it from the standpoint that there have been cases of instances across the country where they have [exploded],” he said. “So we may move there if we have some challenges or issues, but I honestly haven’t yet seen one on our campus.”