2007-09-03 22:46:37 · 10 answers · asked by zerohourkevin 3 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Other - Science
"ELECTRICITY is neither a solid, liquid, nor gas; it has no weight, is invisible, occupies no space, moves at enormous speed, and yet it is something that is a normal part of nature." (1) It is "everywhere in the things around us. It is part of each leaf and stone. It is in the ground we walk on and in the air we breathe.. [A]ll the things we touch and use are really swirling clouds of ELECTRICITY." (2)
Our unraveling of this mystery has enabled us to transform our environment and our minds into a wholly new paradigm of REALITY. Yet to define what ELECTRICITY is is not simple.
ELECTRICITY is a force, an action, an event, something happening, a movement. It is a phenomena. It is a word that represents so many things that we are still not exactly certain what it is, where it begins and where it ends. Even a scientific explanation of what it is comes up short in describing its full effect. For example, Webster's Dictionary (3) defines it as follows:
electricity: (noun) a basic form of energy that is a property of certain fundamental particles of matter and consists of mutually attractive positively and negatively charged particles (protons and electrons, respectively, or positrons and electrons). It is characterized by magnetic, chemical and radiant properties, measured in electrostatic or electromagnetic units. || an electric current, or stream of electrons || static electricity || the science or study of electricity.
This definition quickly becomes complex, and yet even this definition lacks the cultural value of ELECTRICITY as a motive FORCE in CIVILIZATION. Even its definition as a noun is to be questioned. There is not one PARTICLE of stuff called ELECTRICITY. Instead, it is more an interaction between CHARGED PARTICLES of MATTER. It is an event, unfolding over TIME, with action as its key. A poetic definition of ELECTRICITY inscribed on a Washington, D.C. train station (4n) helps us to understand its role as a cultural force,
2007-09-03 22:56:39 · answer #1 · answered by Peach Mind 2 · 3⤊ 1⤋
It is not a thing in itself, it is a flow. Just as wind is not air, it is a movement of air, and an ocean current is not water, it is a movement of water, electricity is a movement of electrons. Since electrons can move freely through some solids and liquids, and through a vacuum, and can be carried by charged molecules or atoms in other liquids and gases, all of these things can conduct electricity. Electricity should be thought of as a form of energy or plasma... a stream of charged particles
2016-05-21 00:22:43 · answer #2 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
none of the above
it is energy - that is the force that moves those atoms. it is a force that acts upon whatever the atoms in its path. and in whatever form they take. the state of the matter dictates how the electricity will affect those atoms. ie it travels most qickly through liquid water than solid or gas h2o
but more quickly and explosively the through vapor of a volatile substance like gasoline than the liquid form.
2007-09-07 11:23:42 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
No. Electricity is the flow of electrons. The solid/liquid/gas states of matter relate to the kinetic energy of its component atoms and molecules, compared to the inter-molecular bonding energies.
2007-09-04 04:49:32 · answer #4 · answered by Frank N 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
None of those things. Electricity is a type of energy that takes the form of a flow of electrons. There are also electric charges that are properties of subatomic particles and that take the form of attractive and repulsive forces among particles and differences in electrical potential from one particle to another.
2007-09-04 11:18:04 · answer #5 · answered by aviophage 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
electricity, is the flow of electrons.
Electrons are the part of the atom and allignment of the atoms decide whether anything is soid ,liquid or gas
Thats why electricity is none of them. You can say it is just a form of energy
2007-09-03 23:01:01 · answer #6 · answered by pihoo 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Electricity is the force that holds atoms and molecules together so technically all three. What we use in households and witness in lightning strikes is the transfer of charges built up in static transfers of electricity. Could be wrong, guess i will find out how wrong or right I am in your eyes by your choice.
2007-09-03 22:54:57 · answer #7 · answered by Billy Dee 7 · 1⤊ 4⤋
it is the form of energy which works on law of conservation of mass i.e. it can never be created nor distroyed.it is specificly electrons which move from higher level to lower level
2007-09-04 05:24:11 · answer #8 · answered by deepak s 1 · 1⤊ 1⤋
you can't tell if what is it but i can only say that the electricity came from water.
2007-09-03 22:54:54 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 5⤋
it is an atom.
2007-09-03 22:54:23 · answer #10 · answered by donald 3 · 0⤊ 5⤋