Identify three items that have an effect of an electrical shock on the body and explain why
Added by Elijah B.
Step 1
- **High-voltage power lines**: These lines carry a significant amount of electrical current at high voltages. If a person comes into direct contact with these lines, the high voltage can cause a severe electrical shock, leading to tissue damage, burns, and Show more…
Show all steps
Your feedback will help us improve your experience
Adriano Chikande and 93 other Physics 102 Electricity and Magnetism educators are ready to help you.
Ask a new question
Labs
Want to see this concept in action?
Explore this concept interactively to see how it behaves as you change inputs.
Key Concepts
Recommended Videos
The hands and arms as a conductor While doing laundry you reach to turn on the light above the washing machine. Unfortunately, you touch an exposed $120-\mathrm{V}$ wire in the broken switch box. Your other hand is supporting you on the top of the grounded washing machine. Assume that the resistance is $100,000 \Omega$ across the dry skin of each hand and that the resistivity of tissue inside your arms and body is $5 \Omega \cdot \mathrm{m}$. (a) Estimate the total resistance of the tissue inside your arms from one side to the other (ignore the resistance across your chest). (b) Estimate the total resistance across the skin of one hand through the tissue in your arms and then across the skin of your other hand. (c) Are you in danger?
Adriano C.
The effect of electricity on human body is determined not by the voltage but by the current that flows through our body (which is why it is safe to touch a van de Graaff generator at 100,000 volts but not safe to stick your finger into a 110-volt wall socket). Match each level of electrical current with the effect of the electrical current on our body. 1 mA 5 mA 10 mA 50 mA 100 mA a. threshold of sensation b. heart rhythm may be disrupted; often fatal c. cannot let go for the duration of shock because of muscle contraction d. maximum harmless current e. onset of pain Having said this, higher voltage does allow more current to be pushed through our body, according to Ohm's Law. So what makes a high-voltage van de Graaff generator safe to touch is the fact that it has a very low current limit (it quickly discharges on touch and does not maintain its high voltage), not that it has a high-voltage.
Sri K.
Electric currents in the body A person accidentally touches a $120-\mathrm{V}$ electric line with one hand while touching a ground wire with the other hand. Determine the current through the body when the hands are dry $(100,000-\Omega$ resistance) and when wet $(5000-\Omega$ resistance). If the current exceeds about $10 \mathrm{mA}$, muscular contractions may prevent the person from releasing the wires- a dangerous situation. Is the person in danger with dry hands? With wet hands? Explain.
Recommended Textbooks
University Physics with Modern Physics
Physics: Principles with Applications
Fundamentals of Physics
Transcript
Watch the video solution with this free unlock.
EMAIL
PASSWORD