There are two types of electric charges that push and pull on each other: positive charges and negative charges. Electric charges push or pull on each other if they are not touching. This is possible because each charge makes an electric field around itself. An electric field is an area that surrounds a charge. At each point near a charge, the electric field points in a certain direction. If a positive charge is put at that point, it will be pushed in that direction. If a negative charge is put at that point, it will be pushed in the exact opposite direction.
It works like magnets, and in fact, electricity creates a magnetic field, in which similar charges repel each other and opposite charges attract. This means that if you put two negatives close together and let them go, they would move apart. The same is true for two positive charges. But if you put a positive charge and a negative charge close together, they would pull towards each other. A short way to remember this is the phrase opposites attract likes repel.
All the matter in the universe is made of tiny particles with positive, negative or neutral charges. The positive charges are called protons, and the negative charges are called electrons. Protons are much heavier than electrons, but they both have the same amount of electric charge, except that protons are positive and electrons are negative. Because "opposites attract," protons and electrons stick together. A few protons and electrons can form bigger particles called atoms and molecules. Atoms and molecules are still very tiny. They are too small to see. Any big object, like your finger, has more atoms and molecules in it than anyone can count. We can only estimate how many there are.
Because negative electrons and positive protons stick together to make big objects, all big objects that we can see and feel are electrically neutral. "Electrically" is a word meaning "describing electricity", and "neutral" is a word meaning "balanced." That is why we do not feel objects pushing and pulling on us from a distance, as they would if everything was electrically charged. All big objects are electrically neutral because there is the same amount of positive and negative charge in the world. We could say that the world is exactly balanced, or neutral. Scientists still do not know why this is so.
The electrons can move all around the material. Protons never move around a solid object because they are so heavy, at least compared to the electrons. A material that lets electrons move around is called a conductor. A material that keeps each electron tightly in place is called an insulator. Examples of conductors are copper, aluminum, silver, and gold. Examples of insulators are rubber, plastic, and wood. Copper is used very often as a conductor because it is a very good conductor and there is so much of it in the world. Copper is found in electrical wires. But sometimes, other materials are used.
Inside a conductor, electrons bounce around, but they do not keep going in one direction for long. If an electric field is set up inside the conductor, the electrons will all start to move in the direction opposite to the direction the field is pointing (because electrons are negatively charged). A battery can make an electric field inside a conductor. If both ends of a piece of wire are connected to the two ends of a battery (called the "electrodes"), the loop that was made is called an electrical circuit. Electrons will flow around and around the circuit as long as the battery is making an electric field inside the wire. This flow of electrons around the circuit is called electric current.
A conducting wire used to carry electric current is often wrapped in an insulator such as rubber. This is because wires that carry current are very dangerous. If a person or an animal touched a bare wire carrying current, they could get hurt or even die depending on how strong the current was and how much electrical energy the current is transmitting. You should be careful around electrical sockets and bare wires that might be carrying current.
It is possible to connect an electrical device to a circuit so that electrical current will flow through a device. This current will transmit electrical energy to make the device do something that we want it to do. Electrical devices can be very simple. For example, in a light bulb, current carries energy through a special wire called a filament, which makes it glow. Electrical devices can also be very complicated. Electrical energy can be used to drive an electric motor inside a tool like a drill or a pencil sharpener. Electrical energy is also used to power modern electronic devices, including telephones, computers, and televisions.
Here are a few terms that a person can come across when studying how electricity works. The study of electricity and how it makes electrical circuits possible is called electronics. There is a field of engineering called electrical engineering, where people come up with new things using electricity. All of these terms are important for them to know.
Electrical energy is mostly generated in places called power stations. Most power stations use heat to boil water into steam which turns a steam engine. The steam engine's turbine turns a machine called a 'generator'. Coiled wires inside the generator are made to spin in a magnetic field. This causes electricity to flow through the wires, carrying electrical energy. This process is called electromagnetic induction. Michael Faraday discovered how to do this.
Many sources of heat can be used to boil water for generators. Heat sources may use renewable energy resources in which the supply of heat energy never runs out and non-renewable energy resources in which the supply will be eventually used up.
Sometimes a natural flow, such as wind power or water power, can be used directly to turn a generator so no heat is needed.
Sailor Moon
Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon or Sailor Moon is a shojo manga by Naoko Takeuchi. It was adapted to an anime series by Toei Animation CO., LTD. "Sailor Moon" was one of the most popular anime/manga series during the 1990s, spanning five seasons, four movies, and multiple video games. It continues to hold a strong fanbase with many fansites devoted to it.
Usagi (Serena in English) is an eighth grader who is clumsy, a crybaby and who also gets bad grades. One day, she meets a talking cat named Luna, who tells her that she is Sailor Moon, a superhero. She has to fight monsters to save people from getting their energy stolen by evil beings. Usagi has some friends who fight evil along with her. They are named Sailor Mercury, Sailor Venus, Sailor Mars, and Sailor Jupiter. They make up a team called the Sailor Senshi ("Senshi" means "soldier" or "guardian in Japanese"). The Sailor Senshi are named after different planets in the solar system. Each of the Sailor Senshi uses magical powers to become a Sailor Senshi. They are also young Japanese girls. Their real names are not Sailor Mercury, Sailor Venus, Sailor Mars, and Sailor Jupiter. For example, when Sailor Mercury is not fighting evil, her name is Ami Mizuno (Amy in English). The name of Sailor Venus is Minako Aino (Mina in English). The name of Sailor Mars is Rei Hino (Raye in English). The name of Sailor Jupiter is Makoto Kino (Lita in English). Each of them has a transformation sequence where they turn into their Sailor Senshi form, with many colourful effects.
Mamoru Chiba (called Darien Chiba in the English manga and Darien Shields in the English anime) is Usagi's boyfriend. He uses magic powers to transform into a man named Tuxedo Mask, who fights evil along with the Sailor Senshi. In the future, Usagi and Mamoru get married and become the king and queen of the earth. Their daughter, named Chibiusa (Rini in the English version), travels through time to help them and the Sailor Senshi.