Fun with electricity.
Series: Gernsback Library books,; 83
Publisher: Gernsback Library
Published: 1961
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Format: Paperback
Number of pages: 128
Subjects: Electricity -- Experiments.
First sentence: Electricity has been called the stuff of the universe. Early scientists believed it was a kind of fluid that flowed through wires, that it was of two kinds, and that it was contained in equal amounts in neutral bodies. Now it is known as a movement of electrons — a negatively-charged body indicating an excess of electrons; a positively charged body a deficiency of electrons.
Electrons flow through wires to equalize a difference of electrical charges on two bodies (or electrical qualities), just as water flows through a pipe to equalize water pressure between two tanks. Thus, we arrive at an understanding of electric current, and the channel through which it flows — the electric circuit.
Electricity may best be regarded as an invisible conveyor of energy. Of the two kinds of electricity we know best, electricity at rest is known simply as a static charge (or more simply, static,) that equalizes a difference of potential in the form of a spark. Electricity as a current occurs when a difference of potential is equalized more slowly, as when a current flows through a wire from one battery terminal to the other.
One of the basic things to remember is that, in an insulating material, electrons are not free to move from atom to atom, or are very few in any given quantity of the substance. In a conductor, such as copper, brass, silver or other such metals, there are many free electrons capable of being moved or pushed along under the influence of a difference of electrical potential (voltage). Thus, they are great conveyors of energy. Some materials have widely different degrees of this electronic freedom...
Description: Building and operating simple electrical apparatus in the home workshop is probably the most effective way of starting the foundation for a career in that most exciting and magical of all worlds — science. This book is a simple how-to-do-it and how-to-understand-it guide for beginners in electricity. This subject, the foundation of electronics, is the gateway to learning something of the great fundamental truths of the laws of nature.
Familiar analogies are included where possible to help fix in the mind of the experimenter the purpose of each problem and to illustrate the relationship between mechanical, electrical and magnetic phenomena. The builder not only learns to make galvanometers, motors, generators, transformers and electric meters, but also how to apply them in the solution of simple electrical problems. With this as a basis, the reader can then refer to more advanced books for an explanation of the underlying theories.
The student is guided in the handling and care of tools, and how and where to procure electrical supplies. There are many sources where materials can be purchased. These would include radio parts stores, hardware stores, department and 5- and 10-cent stores. Radio parts catalogs are excellent in this respect. And finally, with a little ingenuity, many of the items found around the home can be put to new and unexpected uses.
In  this  book   the  use  of  mathematics  has  been completely avoided.  However, no  study of electricity and electronics  can proceed very far without some  use of simple arithmetic. The reader should become familiar, as soon as possible, with the arith-metical relationships to be found in these subjects.