Electricity 1
Everything on Earth is made of ____________.
matter
Matter is made of ______________.
atoms
What are the 3 parts of an atom?
Protons, Neutrons, Electrons
What kind of charge does an electron have, and where are the electrons located in an atom?
A negative charge, electrons move around the nucleus and are located on the outside of an atom.
What kind of charge does a neutron have, and where are the neutrons located in an atom?
A neutral charge, found in the centre (nucleus) of an atom.
What do opposite (unlike) charges do? Repel each other or attract each other?
Opposites attract.
If you have two negative charges, what happens?
Charges that are the same repel one another (push one another away).
What is an electric circuit?
When an electric current moves along a wire or a path. Circuit means to "go around".
What defines a series circuit?
A series circuit has only one path for the electric current to follow. If one lightbulb (load) goes out and breaks the circuit, no lightbulbs in the circuit will light.
What is a parallel circuit?
A circuit that has more than one path for the electric current to travel. If one lightbulb (or load) goes out, the rest will still light up.
The steady flow of electricity.
If a material is a conductor, what does that mean?
It means that an electrons can move easily through the material, and that an electric current will flow through the material.
What are some examples of materials that are conductors?
Examples are: copper, aluminum, steel, iron.
What does static mean, in terms of static electricity?
Static means "stays". The electric charge stays built up on an object until it comes into contact with an object with the opposite charge.
If you remove a light bulb from a series circuit, what happens to the rest of the lights in the circuit?
All of the lights will go out.
What does an insulator do, and what is an example of a material that is an insulator?
An insulator stops the flow of electrons. Examples are: rubber, plastic, glass.
How does static electricity occur?
When electrons jump from one atom to another (attracted by an opposite charge), a spark is created.
What is the difference between static and current electricity?
Static electricity is caused by the build up of electrical charges on an object, and is naturally occurring.
Current electricity is the flow of electrons through a circuit.
In a circuit, give an example of the load.
The load is the thing that is using electricity to work, such as a lightbulb, a toaster, a television.
A circuit that is working is ____________.
(open or closed)
closed
Why does a lightbulb light up when electrons move through the filament?
The filament in a lightbulb is very narrow, and creates resistance for the electrons that are trying to pass through. The electrons have to work hard to get through. The energy produced from the electrons trying to get through the filament creates heat, and the heat makes the filament glow.
What is a resistor?
It resists the flow of electricity. It slows the current, but doesn't stop the flow completely.
What is an electric cell?
Something that gives energy to move charges through a circuit, like a battery.
If one lightbulb on a string of lights goes out, but the others stay on, this is an example of a __________
circuit.
parallel
Name one type of resource from which we generate electricity.
Examples are: Fossil fuels, nuclear energy, solar (sun), hydro (water), wind energy.