how does electricity find the easiest way to ground?

Question

if electrical current has many paths to ground or earth it always chooses the path of least resistance how does it know this.

Answer 1

Because it's not as though one single entity moves throughout the whole path - when you see a spark, there's no one electron which moves from cathode to anode.

What has to happen is that a whole stream of electrons along the way have to be shunted along one place. Imagine a bunch of people sitting in a row of theatre seating - a new person comes one end, but the only gap is at the other end. Everyone moves along one space to accomodate them - there has been a "person flow" the length of the whole row, but no one person moved more than one seat.

If there are two rows, but one row contains a big fat person who refuses to move (and who nobody can pass), nobody at all will move in that row, and the other row will be the one which accomodates the new person.

In order for an electric flow to happen, there has to be sufficient potential drop across each electron to push it into the "seat" (potential well) next to the one it currently occupies. No flow can happen until the whole set of moves along a path can be completed - and as electrical potential builds, that happens first on the path of least resistance.

Answer 2

Think of electricity like a river flowing, water always takes the path of least resistance even if it is not the shortest route.

In an electrical circuit you could have 2 grounds, one with a massive resistor just before the ground terminal. Some electricity would still come through the very resistive ground but the majority of it would go down the other ground - as it is easier to do so.

Answer 3

If you have two paths, one with 100k resistance and the other with 10k resistance. if you were to test each connection, I'll call them. You will find that each has electricty flowing through them but more current will travel through the connection / path of less resistance.
In other words, the electrons can flow faster through the path of low resistance, that is why there is more current flowing along this path.
The other path will have less current because the resistance slows things down proportionally. A certain percentage of the current will flow to each path.
the reason we say " electricty takes the path of least resistance" is to imply this very idea, not to imply all of the current will take one path only- Don't take that saying literally.
Just remember it like this " current will take all paths but flow easiest through the path of least resistance."

Answer 4

It takes all paths but flows easiest in the circuit with lowest resistance.

Answer 5

To find is to make use of memory in comparing the factual theory in brain with the environment. Does electricity have brain to do so? Electricity is nothing but flow of electrons. Actually electricity is omnipresent and it is its material nature to move along. It expresses where there is minimal or zero resistance and does not where there is maximal or complete resistance! Is that clear?

Answer 6

the earth is magnetic so
hence e.m.f electrical
magnetic field