2.13.12 Electricity and Magnetism

We covered a lot of information on electricity this week. O and I plunged into the world of Michael Faraday, a man who I give credit too for the many electrical advances that bless my life today.

He is called the Pioneer of electricity and quite rightly so as it encompassed his entire life. Every discovery brought a new set of questions and he ever ceased to search for the answers.

 

He was born poor to a Christian family in 1791. At 13 he was hired out to help the family income. It was there at his job for a book binder that his fate was sealed. Books all around and a parched thirst for knowledge he found what was needed to temporarily quench his thirst. Always though, he wanted to know more. He carried a notebook with him and journaled all his thoughts and discoveries.

We learned of some Michael Faraday’s science contemporaries; Humprey Davy, Andre’ Ampere, Alessandro Volta.

Michael Faraday is credited for many discoveries, some of which we learned were the first electric motor, the first generator.

He also had the most input on a safety light for miners, but Humphrey Davy took the credit and the lamp was called the Davy lamp. It saved many lives of coal miners.

We covered more on static electricity. I do believe O now has a good grasp on what it is.

 

BJ also covered electricity and magnetism in his Usborne Marvels and Mysteries of Science book.

We learned that electricity is inside everything and how essential it is to life. How it powers the brain, makes our lives more comfortable, solves crimes.

Magnetism by itself or in conjunction with electricity affects our daily lives and those of animals as well.

It is a part of the magnetic field that is generated around the earth, it helps us find our way when we use a compass, and birds to fly south for the winter.

The internet provides a good deal of extemporaneous information. So we took a stroll through the suggested sites and went “inside” a wire, battery and light bulb.
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/edison/sfeature/acdc.html

We also got to view an informative animation on lightning.

http://www.knowitall.org/nasa/simulations/electricity/lightning.html

As well as take a 3D tour of the brain. It itself, functioning on electrical currents.

http://www.pbs.org/wnet/brain/

From there we were able to take a virtual tour of an MRI machine.
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/brain/scanning/mri.html