Early Discovery Of Electricity By Benjamin Franklin example essay topic

Ever since the discovery of electricity, many advances in technology have changed the very way we conduct our lifestyles. Without electricity, technology as we know it today would be non-existent. The use of electrical impulse in medicine and electrical charge technologies are still being perfected to this day. The following paragraphs will describe how they use of electricity has evolved over time, the disadvantages of electricity, and how electricity has changed the overall lifestyle of Americans. Most people visually remember the discovery of electricity from the stories of Benjamin Franklin's world-renowned kite-flying experiment in the middle of a thunderstorm.

What Franklin discovered was static electricity, a usually harmless yet potentially dangerous form of electrical charge. Had it not been for the shelter Franklin was standing under, the dry length of string would have been wet and Franklin most likely would have been killed. What most people do not realize is that this is not the same form of power used in appliances today. Not even the direct current (DC) power that Thomas Edison produced with his generators to light the incandescent lamp was used.

A man by the name of Nicola Tels a perfected a form of electrical current named alternating current (AC). This form of power, although dangerous, is a much more safer form of current than direct current at the same voltage. AC voltage has the capabilities, through step up and step down transformers, to travel great distances on high voltage power lines. If these lines, or any power cords or cables are grounded thru a conductive object such a person, the results are usually fatal. This brings us to disadvantages of electricity. Although AC power is a much more safer form of electricity, AC power can be just as dangerous as DC power.

Presently, the U.S. the Department of Health requires all residential areas within city limits to be powered. This means electrical power is readily available, and this increases the risk of an electrocution accident. Small children, if not retained, can injure themselves by inserting small, metallic objects into household outlets. These receptacles are usually located in arm's reach for small children. Even skydivers and aircraft can become entangled in high-rise power lines, which can carry hundreds of thousands of volts.

Many safety precautions can overcome these and all electrical accidents by using easy to follow safety precautions. The use of electricity has also changed the very way of the live our lives. More than 99 percent of all homes in America are AC powered. Electricity heats our water, heats our home, cooks our food, and provides entertainment.

Modern computers are becoming more and more invaluable to productivity. Electricity has actually helped to industrialize America by converting the largely agricultural community of previous American society in accordance with steam and gasoline engines. With electricity, there's no need to fill oil tanks to heat the house, boil water for baths, or wait to air-dry hair. Electricity is a priceless commodity, and without it, the main infrastructure of society would collapse, and the American lifestyle as we know it would not exist. To try and put a price tag on electricity would be ludicrous; there is no scale to go by and measure the worth of electricity in light of the fact that electricity is a part of a life. Without the early discovery of electricity by Benjamin Franklin, electrical power would not be as developed as is today.

With the use of standard safety precautions, all electrical injuries can be avoided and prevented altogether. All of society will never recognize the importance of electricity, and the simplicity it brings to our lifestyles. If people will realize electricity's importance, they will better themselves by conserving it and power down electrical devices when not in use. Without the early discovery and evolution of electricity, safety precautions when using electricity, and the simplicity electricity brings to the American lifestyle, life would be extremely different than we know it today.