Electricity

Electricity (from the New Latin ēlectricus, "amber-like")is something essential in our everyday life.You need it to cook, charge your electrical appliances and anything you can think of.
Before starting on some facts about electricity, lets us discover on some of the history of electricty. Benjamin Franklin believed that electricity could be harnessed from lightning. In 1752, he devised an experiment to test his theory. Although details of the experiment remained a mystery to this day, Franklin originally wanted to test his theory atop a spire that was to be built on a church. As he thought about it in detail, he realized that his theory could be better tested by using a mobile kite, rather than a stationary spire. Franklin prepared the kite by tying a handkerchief to two crossed sticks of proper length. Extending vertically about a foot from the vertical stick was a wire. The apparatus was extended into the air by a length of string. Along the string of the apparatus was a metal key that would apparently conduct the electricity. Franklin hypothesized that the wire would draw 'electric fire' from the thunder clouds which would then be conducted through the apparatus and be contained in the key.

Based on this experiment that he had done, Franklin invented the first lightning rod. The lightning rod was built to attract electricity to his house. The lightning rods were attached to a system of bells that would ring throughout his house each time electricity had been attracted. The sparks produced would illuminate the house. Franklin's experiments helped the evolution of the common battery we use today. Walk around, can you see a metal rod on top of the houses? Without it, our lives could be in danger. Thanks to Benjamin Franklin, we are protected by his discovery.



Now for some fun. Electricity can be dangerous but there is one kind of electricity which is harmless. It is static electricty.
Try rubbing a balloon on your hair. After rubbing for some time, put it near your hair. What do you see? Can you see your hair rising?


Do you notice the same thing happening to you?
This is Static Electricity.It refers to the build up of electric charge on the surface of objects. The static charges remain on an object until they either bleed off to ground or are quickly neutralized by a discharge. Although charge exchange can happen whenever any two surfaces come into contact and separate, a static charge only remains when at least one of the surfaces has a high resistance to electrical flow (an electrical insulator). The effects of static electricity are familiar to most people because we can feel, hear, and even see the spark as the excess charge is neutralized when brought close to a large electrical conductor (for example, a path to ground), or a region with an excess charge of the opposite polarity (positive or negative). It feels just like a spider crawling on the surface of the skin!
Picture taken from google images.