Do you know why a person can get shocked with a million Volts and live just because the Current level is low. I learned about this in high shcool, and even got shocked by half a million Volts and was fine, I just can't remember the science behind it. All I really know is that its current that harms you, not Voltage. Let me know the scientific explanation or a website that has the explanation. Thanks.
2006-11-09 03:50:59 · 4 answers · asked by Agnostic 4 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Other - Science
Voltage is the power potential. Current is the speed and power at which that voltage goes through a given medium.
Think about this, Hoover dam. It has inordinate amounts of potential. If it sprung a small leak at the top and shot out watter, the force of that wouldn't be much at all to hurt you. But, if you blew an 8 foot wide hole at the bottem of the dam, the force of the water would disentegrate you in an instant.
Electricity was a very difficult concept for me to get. However, when you start comparing it to something that is easy to see, touch, and feel, then it helps a lot. Water is a perfect analogy in many ways.
2006-11-09 04:34:30 · answer #1 · answered by Manny 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
yes, ur resolution that current is harmful but not voltage is correct.
voltage is the defined as potential difference between two points, that is energy difference between two points in electric field.
current is the rate of flow of charge. charge flow is nothing but electrons flow. when there is a potential difference, the energy from the higher potential point tries to flow to the lower potential point. in this connection , the energy carriers, electrons flow.
every electron has a charge of 1.602e-19 coulumbs over its head and for one ampere of current is made up of one couloumb discharge per one second of time
One amp is 63 with 17 zeros after it of electrons flowing in a conductor past a given point in one sec.
so u can now understand if a person is electocuted then this many no of electrons pass through him in one sec. this will cause a lot of disturbance in the cells of the human being.
but if the path is not closed, i mean if the path of discharge of electrons doesnt include a human being or it the path is of high resitance , where only few hundreds or thousands of electrons or no electrons are allowed to pass through the human body, then the person will not be electrocuted or shocked. and so no effect will be on the person.
and voltage never flows. current only flows.
a few milliamps of current, like about 500 milli amps is enough to kill a person and an ampere is fatal.
2006-11-09 13:26:29 · answer #2 · answered by Krishna D 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
The electrical hand Manuel lays it out like this, The voltage is the pressure to push the current,the danger is in a current of 100 to 200 mili amps through the chest cavity will start the heart to flutter. less than 100 mili amps will hurt but normally does not affect the heart. above 200 mili amps and it will produce burns and sometime will destroy nerves or muscle.
2006-11-09 19:21:49 · answer #3 · answered by JOHNNIE B 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If you think of electricity using flowing water as an analogy, it makes it very easy to understand: Voltage is like the "speed" of the stream of water, and current is like the "width" of the stream of water. Clearly a pin size stream of water could hurt, but a six foot wide gush has much more power, even if it's moving much slower...
2006-11-09 13:33:17 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋