Electric Circuits Inquiry:
Project Outline:
In this unit, we learned a lot about the physics phenomenon: electricity. We spent a couple weeks wiring circuits with bulbs, resistors, alligator clip wires, and resistors, just learning the basics. Then, we moved onto using a breadboard, potentiometers, smaller wires, 555 timers, and capacitors. Using our knowledge on circuits, we then learned how to solder.
In this unit, we learned a lot about the physics phenomenon: electricity. We spent a couple weeks wiring circuits with bulbs, resistors, alligator clip wires, and resistors, just learning the basics. Then, we moved onto using a breadboard, potentiometers, smaller wires, 555 timers, and capacitors. Using our knowledge on circuits, we then learned how to solder.
Below is a picture of one of our electronic experiments involving the breadboard. You can see the 555 timer in the center (the black rectangle), and the LED light that's glowing. There's also the (gray) potentiometer and multiple resistors.
Physics Concepts - Electric Circuits:
Circuit: a complete loop of conductive material with a power source
Resistors: poor conductors that reduce voltage (ex: light bulbs)
Voltage: power that electricity gives off, push/pull of electricity, pressure or Potential Energy difference
Series circuits: draws less electricity because each additional bulb is extra resistance. Voltage changes, but current remains the same throughout.
Parallel circuits: draws more electricity because as the number of bulbs increases, the resistance in turn goes down. Parallel circuits are independent, unless they're in series with another set of parallel circuits.
Kirchoff's 1st Rule: "The total current out of a node equals the total current into the node."
Breadboards: vertical rows are connected in the outermost columns on both the left and right side; in the center columns, horizontal rows are connected
[ When resistors are in series, add up each individual resistance and that is the total. ]
[ When resistors are in parallel, add up each individual resistance, and that total becomes the denominator, with numerator 1. ]
Resistor's Code:
First band: 1st digit
Second band: 2nd digit
Third band: number of zero's in the amount of resistance
Fourth band: tolerance
Circuit: a complete loop of conductive material with a power source
Resistors: poor conductors that reduce voltage (ex: light bulbs)
Voltage: power that electricity gives off, push/pull of electricity, pressure or Potential Energy difference
Series circuits: draws less electricity because each additional bulb is extra resistance. Voltage changes, but current remains the same throughout.
Parallel circuits: draws more electricity because as the number of bulbs increases, the resistance in turn goes down. Parallel circuits are independent, unless they're in series with another set of parallel circuits.
Kirchoff's 1st Rule: "The total current out of a node equals the total current into the node."
Breadboards: vertical rows are connected in the outermost columns on both the left and right side; in the center columns, horizontal rows are connected
[ When resistors are in series, add up each individual resistance and that is the total. ]
[ When resistors are in parallel, add up each individual resistance, and that total becomes the denominator, with numerator 1. ]
Resistor's Code:
First band: 1st digit
Second band: 2nd digit
Third band: number of zero's in the amount of resistance
Fourth band: tolerance
0 Black
1 Brown 2 Red 3 Orange |
4 Yellow
5 Green 6 Blue 7 Violet |
8 Gray
9 White 0.1 (+/- 5%) Gold 0.01 (+/- 10%) Silver |
For example, using the Resistor's Code above:
a resistor's band with color order [ yellow + violet + brown + gold ] = [ 4 7 0 Ohms ] plus or minus 5% of resistance
a resistor's band with color order [ yellow + violet + brown + gold ] = [ 4 7 0 Ohms ] plus or minus 5% of resistance
Ohm's Law:
Voltage = Current x Resistance
Voltage = Current x Resistance
The History of Electricity:
Electricity has been something that has fascinated mankind since the very beginning. Benjamin Franklin helped us take a huge leap towards uncovering the truth behind electricity with his kite-flying experiment in the middle of a lightning storm. With the help of thousands of scientists, today we have a better understanding of the force of electricity than ever before.
Greek experimenters first observed that invisible fields of attraction coulld be generated by rubbing amber on lamb's wool. Once charged this way, the wool would attract light objects, such as feathers and straw. The Greeks rubbed harder, and with added rigor, small sparks were observed. This was the first written account of electricity. In 1600 AD, the English scientist Dr. William Gilbert replicated the Greeks' experiment with amber and wool. By a chance of luck, Gilbert moved the piece of charged wool close to a compass, and saw the magnetic needle move a bit. Gilbert had come across one of the most fundamental precepts of modern electrical theory: electromagnetism. Soon after his discovery, Gilbert published his findings in a book called De Magnete, or "On the Magnet."
In the 18th century came the well-respected, American: Benjamin Franklin. He experimented with electricity, and coined many of the terms we use today, such as: battery, positive/negative, conductor, and charge. He was the first to believe that the static sparks generated from rubbing, similar to the Greek experiments, were like a smaller version of lightning. After unlocking the first doors to the theory of conduction in 1729. Franklin saw that electricity had similar qualities to fluids. Franklin is most known for his kite-flying experiment in 1752. In reflection, many people say it was a stupid experiment that could have resulted in his death, but it is because of Franklin's experiment that we have the lightning rod/electrode system that we have today.
Luigi Galvani, Italian professor of medicine, stumbled across a huge discovery of electricity when he made a dead frog's leg twitch. At the time, Galvani was not able to explain where the source of electricity came from. But his account led to the beginning fundamentals of natural science, and the fact that electric signals move muscles to contract. His findings later helped other scientists come up with the chemical battery.
One of the most important scientists in the history of electricity was James Watt, a Scottish mechanical engineer. He is most known for his development of the steam engine, but also renowned for his development of the unit known as horsepower. According to Watt, one horsepower equals approx. 745 watts. Watt's improvement on the steam engine made it efficient and well-desired; it transformed the world of work, and was the key innovation that sparked the Industrial Revolution.
Andre Marie Ampere, French mathematician and physicist, was very devoted to the study of electricity and magnetism. He was the first to "formulate measure electrical current flow." He founded the study and science of electrodynamics, which is now known as electromagnetism.
The German mathematician, George Simon Ohm, came up with the simple formula E = IR (energy = current x resistance) in 1827. To this day, his formula is referred to as Ohm's Law. His work was highly received in Great Britain, and they named the unit of electrical resistance after him.
Michael Faraday came with an experimental breakthrough in the 1830's concerning electromagnetism. HE was the first to create electrically charged magnets, and could sustain magnetically generated electricity. The modern age of electricity began because of Faraday's ingenious ability and contributions to the electrical system. Faraday showed that applying mechanical energy to move a coil of wire in a magnetic field creates an electric current through the coil. He discovered that interacting magnetic fields could produce mechanical force, and with this information, he created the first electric generator and motor.
The science of electricity went into a sort of standstill for the next fifty years until Thomas Edison came along in 1879. His brilliance brought America out of the dark, and with the invention of the light bulb, electricity created a huge demand for an "electrical distribution infrastructure." In 1881, Edison helped open the Pearl Street Direct Current Generation Station in New York City: the first commercial power plant. More of these were built all over America, transforming it more into the place full of light that we know today. Following Edison, Louise Latimer created the first incandescent bulb with carbon filament, making Edison's invention even more efficient and useful.
In 1886, a man by the name of William Stanley stumbled across a system of high-voltage transmission through a "parallel connected transformer." He had defined the first parallel circuits. This system made spreading electricity over large areas possible, since voltage remains the same in parallel circuits (despite how many branches there are) and allowed alternating current to be available at different voltages.
All of these scientists, leading up to the 19th century, set up the ropes for modern electricity and technology today. Without them, their brilliance, and their creativity, the world we know would be a much more different place.
Electricity has been something that has fascinated mankind since the very beginning. Benjamin Franklin helped us take a huge leap towards uncovering the truth behind electricity with his kite-flying experiment in the middle of a lightning storm. With the help of thousands of scientists, today we have a better understanding of the force of electricity than ever before.
Greek experimenters first observed that invisible fields of attraction coulld be generated by rubbing amber on lamb's wool. Once charged this way, the wool would attract light objects, such as feathers and straw. The Greeks rubbed harder, and with added rigor, small sparks were observed. This was the first written account of electricity. In 1600 AD, the English scientist Dr. William Gilbert replicated the Greeks' experiment with amber and wool. By a chance of luck, Gilbert moved the piece of charged wool close to a compass, and saw the magnetic needle move a bit. Gilbert had come across one of the most fundamental precepts of modern electrical theory: electromagnetism. Soon after his discovery, Gilbert published his findings in a book called De Magnete, or "On the Magnet."
In the 18th century came the well-respected, American: Benjamin Franklin. He experimented with electricity, and coined many of the terms we use today, such as: battery, positive/negative, conductor, and charge. He was the first to believe that the static sparks generated from rubbing, similar to the Greek experiments, were like a smaller version of lightning. After unlocking the first doors to the theory of conduction in 1729. Franklin saw that electricity had similar qualities to fluids. Franklin is most known for his kite-flying experiment in 1752. In reflection, many people say it was a stupid experiment that could have resulted in his death, but it is because of Franklin's experiment that we have the lightning rod/electrode system that we have today.
Luigi Galvani, Italian professor of medicine, stumbled across a huge discovery of electricity when he made a dead frog's leg twitch. At the time, Galvani was not able to explain where the source of electricity came from. But his account led to the beginning fundamentals of natural science, and the fact that electric signals move muscles to contract. His findings later helped other scientists come up with the chemical battery.
One of the most important scientists in the history of electricity was James Watt, a Scottish mechanical engineer. He is most known for his development of the steam engine, but also renowned for his development of the unit known as horsepower. According to Watt, one horsepower equals approx. 745 watts. Watt's improvement on the steam engine made it efficient and well-desired; it transformed the world of work, and was the key innovation that sparked the Industrial Revolution.
Andre Marie Ampere, French mathematician and physicist, was very devoted to the study of electricity and magnetism. He was the first to "formulate measure electrical current flow." He founded the study and science of electrodynamics, which is now known as electromagnetism.
The German mathematician, George Simon Ohm, came up with the simple formula E = IR (energy = current x resistance) in 1827. To this day, his formula is referred to as Ohm's Law. His work was highly received in Great Britain, and they named the unit of electrical resistance after him.
Michael Faraday came with an experimental breakthrough in the 1830's concerning electromagnetism. HE was the first to create electrically charged magnets, and could sustain magnetically generated electricity. The modern age of electricity began because of Faraday's ingenious ability and contributions to the electrical system. Faraday showed that applying mechanical energy to move a coil of wire in a magnetic field creates an electric current through the coil. He discovered that interacting magnetic fields could produce mechanical force, and with this information, he created the first electric generator and motor.
The science of electricity went into a sort of standstill for the next fifty years until Thomas Edison came along in 1879. His brilliance brought America out of the dark, and with the invention of the light bulb, electricity created a huge demand for an "electrical distribution infrastructure." In 1881, Edison helped open the Pearl Street Direct Current Generation Station in New York City: the first commercial power plant. More of these were built all over America, transforming it more into the place full of light that we know today. Following Edison, Louise Latimer created the first incandescent bulb with carbon filament, making Edison's invention even more efficient and useful.
In 1886, a man by the name of William Stanley stumbled across a system of high-voltage transmission through a "parallel connected transformer." He had defined the first parallel circuits. This system made spreading electricity over large areas possible, since voltage remains the same in parallel circuits (despite how many branches there are) and allowed alternating current to be available at different voltages.
All of these scientists, leading up to the 19th century, set up the ropes for modern electricity and technology today. Without them, their brilliance, and their creativity, the world we know would be a much more different place.
Reflection:
The electricity unit was really rigorous and interesting at the same time. I came in knowing close to nothing about DC circuits and how to route a circuit board, but overt the course of the project, I feel like I learned a lot of invaluable experience regarding the subject. I loved the hands-on aspect as we wired parallel and series circuits; it really helped me visualize and see what the textbook was saying.
With electricity, we did a variety of different mini experiments in order to explore how electricity worked. We started off using batteries, light bulbs, and alligator clip wires to learn the basics of electric circuits. It took us a while to learn the ropes, figuring out how to read electric circuit diagrams as well as construct them. As the weeks progressed, our class was able to move up from simple parallel circuit series to more complex diagrams including 555 flashers, capacitors, and LED lights. Since electricity was sort of a difficult subject for many in our class, including myself, I was really happy with how much improvement we demonstrated.
I admit there were a couple of pitfalls in our experiments, but we learned from them as individuals and as a class. For one, we started off using 9-Volt batteries and ended up shorting out a bunch of our bulbs. Further on in our experiments, our group accidentally blew up a LED light because of this same reason. If I took anything from this unit, it would probably be this: unless you have an adequate amount of resistance, straight unrestricted electricity can do a lot of damage.
From an emotional standpoint, the electricity unit honestly was a bit frustrating for me. As a class, we quickly learned that the experiments took a lot of tweaking and patience. Often times, one misplaced wire could break the entire connection; a resistor not entirely plugged in could ruin the entire circuit. Putting the circuit in series instead of parallel could short out the Ammeter -- and so on.
All in all, learning about the force of electricity was an extremely interesting, eye-opening experience.
The electricity unit was really rigorous and interesting at the same time. I came in knowing close to nothing about DC circuits and how to route a circuit board, but overt the course of the project, I feel like I learned a lot of invaluable experience regarding the subject. I loved the hands-on aspect as we wired parallel and series circuits; it really helped me visualize and see what the textbook was saying.
With electricity, we did a variety of different mini experiments in order to explore how electricity worked. We started off using batteries, light bulbs, and alligator clip wires to learn the basics of electric circuits. It took us a while to learn the ropes, figuring out how to read electric circuit diagrams as well as construct them. As the weeks progressed, our class was able to move up from simple parallel circuit series to more complex diagrams including 555 flashers, capacitors, and LED lights. Since electricity was sort of a difficult subject for many in our class, including myself, I was really happy with how much improvement we demonstrated.
I admit there were a couple of pitfalls in our experiments, but we learned from them as individuals and as a class. For one, we started off using 9-Volt batteries and ended up shorting out a bunch of our bulbs. Further on in our experiments, our group accidentally blew up a LED light because of this same reason. If I took anything from this unit, it would probably be this: unless you have an adequate amount of resistance, straight unrestricted electricity can do a lot of damage.
From an emotional standpoint, the electricity unit honestly was a bit frustrating for me. As a class, we quickly learned that the experiments took a lot of tweaking and patience. Often times, one misplaced wire could break the entire connection; a resistor not entirely plugged in could ruin the entire circuit. Putting the circuit in series instead of parallel could short out the Ammeter -- and so on.
All in all, learning about the force of electricity was an extremely interesting, eye-opening experience.