© William Biscorner
The Electric Universe hypothesis proposes that electricity lights the stars and forms the web of galaxy clusters in the Universe. But what is it?
First, "electricity" is a catchall term that describes several different phenomena: piezoelectric, thermoelectric, and even bioelectric activity are all forms of electricity. In a similar vein, "heat" has many faces: radiant heat, contact heat, convective heat, etc. One thing to keep clear, though, is that heat is a form of energy while electricity is not. However, continuing with the analogy, a flood of molten lava is not a flow of heat, nor is an electric current a river of electricity.
Defining what is meant by electricity often depends on who is providing the definition. Physicists and mathematicians define it in one way, while the "man on the street" defines it in another. Electricity is a fundamental quality of matter, so it is used to characterize other things, thus consensus opinion is lacking precision.
Like all bedrock presumptions such as "gravity" or "time", reducing electric terminology into smaller units is impossible because it lies at the bottom of the lexical well. All we can do is draw water from the well, but we can't make more water. So, electricity must be defined in comparison to other observations that appear to have a relationship with one another.
It may be dissatisfying to realize that we can go no further than that in our search. However, neither can we go deeper into ideas such as "length". Length is the end of the line when units of physical measurement are considered. No matter how small or how large an object is, length remains as a principle that underlies all units, whether meters, or light-years. The question, "how many lengths of string does it take to reach the Moon?" is illustrative of the point. The unit measure of length must be considered. It depends on the unit value before the question can have meaning.
Scientists use the word "electricity" when they mean "the flow of electric charge". Maxwell and other early investigators thought of it in that way, and that is how it is used today when electric current is discussed. That leads into significant inconsistency when the expression is used among other groups of people, though. For example, consider this definition from a website designed for high school students:
[Electricity] is a form of energy, evident from the fact that it runs machinery and can be transformed into other types of energy such as light and heat.Electrical energy is a valid phenomenon, but it is not the same as electric charge. Electrical energy (otherwise called, "electromagnetism") is measured in units called "joules", while electric charge is measured in "coulombs". Electricity, which we define as the flow of electric charge, travels through a circuit continuously when there is sufficient voltage to push it along through the wiring. It moves slowly.
Electromagnetic energy is different; it flows in only one direction at near the speed of light. Whereas electric charge is conserved in the circuit - it cannot be created or destroyed, only moved from place-to-place - electrical energy is converted into another form. It moves out from the source to the load and then away from the circuit as light or heat, never to return.
In a direct current (DC) circuit, electric charge hardly moves at all. In fact, electricity in DC circuits has been measured at speeds of only
meters per hour. The electromagnetic energy in a circuit, on the other hand, travels like a wave through water, moving at speeds of millions of meters per second. Just as waves travel "through" water molecules in the ocean, electromagnetic energy travels "through" electric charge.
As previously mentioned, electric current is measured in coulombs per second (amperes) while electromagnetic energy is measured in joules. There is no way to convert one to another, they are unrelated - electric current is matter (charged particles) and electromagnetism is energy.
Electricity moves through a DC circuit in the wires as particles of charge. Electrical energy travels outside the wires as units of electromagnetism: it is a "field" rather than packets of material charge. In alternating current (AC) circuits, the movement of electricity is different, but the distinction between matter and energy remains. In AC circuits the electric charge does not flow. Instead, charged particles in the wires oscillate back and forth at 60 times per second in America, or 50 times per second in Europe. The energy flow is identical. However, it travels along
outside of the wires at close to light speed.
So electric charge is not electrical energy. Electrons and protons are not carriers of electrical energy. Both are necessary in the Electric Universe, but each must be considered as unique phenomena.
Written by Stephen Smith from information provided by William Beatty.
Author says "In AC circuits the electric charge does not flow."
If this were so, then the electric meter outside one's home would not be incurring ANY kW/hr charges, as if the dials would somehow be stationary ( even when the A/C kicks on ? ).
AC current ( black or red wires, or AC hot ) is a complicated subject, because the average voltage oscillates around zero ( white or AC neutral ), but that hardly means that there is no voltage to shock one's life away, or that there is no current flowing. There is a term called power factor which folks can look into, if interested, because it means that the relative phasing between the current and voltage waveforms ( e.g. leading or lagging ) matters. Those living in "Flatlands" 2D world, will necessarily have trouble understanding and imagining 3D and 4D aspects of a much broader and deeper cosmos.
In a home's AC Service Entrance ( where the meter and breakers are ), the home ground is connected to the main supply's neutral ( green to white to huge copper spear sunk deep into the Earth ). This is a safety feature older homes didn't have with use of 2-prong outlet receptacles, that by adding a 3rd wire the outside metal surfaces of an electronic device could carry an accidental short circuit ( chassis grounded ), and eliminate many occasions that would otherwise electrocute a human being. The electricity is carried by green wire and will cause the rude to blow or circuit breaker to open.
BTW, circuit breakers open the path to prevent further electrical current flow, by using a bimetallic structure that when heated up, bends away from any longer making an electrical connection (open = open circuited ). When it cools down and is reset, the electricity can once again flow ( closed circuit ), up to that limit where the heat generated exceeds that breaker's rating ( e.g. 15A, 20A, 30A, etc )
GFIC circuit breakers go an additional step to ensure circuit safety ( designed for severe risks near water ), that measure undesired currents between neutral and ground that might otherwise kill a nearby person ( e.g. feet in water on floor, touching something plugged into protected circuit near sink or outside ). This prevents the current from flowing through the person and killing them, instead being routed through the GFIC device and then opening up the circuit ( therefore needing a reset ).
Zero current flow is a nonsensical, totally erroneous way of imagining what is happening. If there's no AC current flowing, why do we circuit breakers to interrupt the flow, as a means to prevent electrical fires from devices that short out ( e.g. frayed wires unexpectedly connecting to chassis ) ?
Obviously a motor translates an incoming flow of electricity into rotational mechanical energy, whereas a generator ( e.g. auto alternator ) translates rotational movement into electricity.
Namaste