happycc Posted December 20, 2011 Share Posted December 20, 2011 I am going through it and have some problems still trying to understand what a short circuit is. I know the definition but can't seem to identify it while looking at a schematic. problem 1.16 on pg. 9 and problem 1.17 pg. 9. I have been reading the student guide over and over again but still don;t get it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julikins Posted December 20, 2011 Share Posted December 20, 2011 That's way over my head and right up my husband's alley, so I would just hand the kit and kaboodle over to him and ask him to take it over. My kids wouldn't think it was school though and I'm not sure how consistent my husband would be able to be, but I know that's not something I have the mental capacity to take on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Once Posted December 20, 2011 Share Posted December 20, 2011 Where did you get the teacher's guide? My son might be interested in that. I would be like julikins, hand it over to someone who knows better and concentrate on other subjects. Sorry, no help here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBarnes Posted December 20, 2011 Share Posted December 20, 2011 A short circuit is a path from the postive end of the power source right back to the negative end of the power source with nothing in between to slow the electrons down. There needs to be a light, motor or some form of resistance along the path (switches don't count since it's no different than a regular wire when it's closed). A short circuit diagram may look as if it has various components but if you look carefully there should be a path there that goes from the positive terminal back to the negative terminal while by passing all of the components. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happycc Posted December 20, 2011 Author Share Posted December 20, 2011 (edited) yes i found that path... I get it now. Ok now can you explain series and parallel circuits. Trying to understand this Which of the following would all be connected in series? a) a lamp and a switch on the wall controlling it b)two lamps in a room controlled by the same c)two lamps in different rooms in a house d)the air conditioner and microwave oven in your home. which of the following would all be connecting in parallel? a)a lamp and a switch on the wall controlling it b) the streetlights in your neighborhood c)a string of inexpensive Christmas lights that all go out if one bulb is loose d)none of the above. For the one who asked where i got this: Rainbow Resource or you can order it directly from Elenco. However as you can tell I am still lost despite the teacher guide(teacher guide really only has tests/quizzes in them) and it is the student guide that has the explanations and they are not that great. By the way I actually bought the sc-750R for my kids for x-mas but making them learn about them before actually have them hands on. I cant wait to see their eyes when they open up presents on x-mas. Mean mom! Edited December 20, 2011 by happycc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BBarnes Posted December 20, 2011 Share Posted December 20, 2011 yes i found that path... I get it now. Ok now can you explain series and parallel circuits. Trying to understand this Which of the following would all be connected in series? a) a lamp and a switch on the wall controlling it b)two lamps in a room controlled by the same c)two lamps in different rooms in a house d)the air conditioner and microwave oven in your home. which of the following would all be connecting in parallel? a)a lamp and a switch on the wall controlling it b) the streetlights in your neighborhood c)a string of inexpensive Christmas lights that all go out if one bulb is loose d)none of the above. In series there is one component after another and all of the electrons pass through each and every component. The electrons get tired or weak so they don't have their full energy to give to each component. In parallel each component is on a seperate path and each electron only travels down one of the paths. So the components on each path gets the full energy of the electrons that go down its path. So your first question I believe the answer is A And the second question I think is D. Once you start doing the hands on part of building and seeing the different circuits in action it will be easier to understand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happycc Posted December 20, 2011 Author Share Posted December 20, 2011 (edited) huh? the streetlight one is considered the answer to a parallel... oh I would love to hand this over to hubbie...but he is hardly home and when he is ...he is usually cooking, sleeping or playing video games or watching TV. So it is up to me to decipher all this. My husband stopped helping the kids with school work when they were in 2nd grade. He couldn't figure out the homework problems. He is a smart person so I am not sure what it is and when he does help them they all end up in tears. Edited December 20, 2011 by happycc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T Baer Posted December 20, 2011 Share Posted December 20, 2011 By the way I actually bought the sc-750R for my kids for x-mas but making them learn about them before actually have them hands on. Mean mom! I bought the smaller set and added on to it for DS birthdays and Christmas. Recently, I found the Snap Circuit Green kits, which is now under the Christmas tree. I would love to buy the I know Radio Shack usually carries a few sets. Amazon seems to have the best price. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss Tick Posted December 20, 2011 Share Posted December 20, 2011 (edited) bjb - nice explanation of short circuit, thanks! HappyCC - It has been years since I learned this stuff, but let me give it a go. When things are connected in series, it is like a electric fence, each part is "holding hands" with the other parts next to them in the circuit, and the circuit has to be connected to the positive and negative ends of the battery. If an angry bull bursts through the fence, the electrons can no longer make the circuit, so NOTHING in the circuit gets power. In your example, if a mouse chewed through the wire between the switch and the outlet one of the lamps is plugged into, neither would work. The two outlets are like fence posts in my example, and the switch is controlling the power source. For a) the single lamp (really its outlet) is by itself, so it isn't in parallel or series (kind of like zero isn't really even or odd). For c) and d) if one of the outlets were damaged, you would expect no change in function in the other (lamp, microwave or air conditioner). This is because they are on separate "fences" or circuits. The circuit breaker in your house tells you which things are on which circuits. When things are in parallel, hmm, I guess it reminds me of a ladder (speaking simplistically). If one rung breaks, the other "rungs" could still get electricity (this example sounds like some kind of DIY project gone horribly wrong!) The lamp and switch thing we covered above - one thing in a circuit isn't really parallel or series (I think). The string of cheap Christmas lights in c) is a great example of a series circuit - one light goes out, they all go out. This is why the more expensive lights are more expensive - if one bulb (ladder rung) goes out, the rest still work. That is how the streetlights in b) work. If the garbage truck inadvertently knocks a light down, the rest will still work until the municipality finds the funds for repair. HTH! ETA: Here is a more professional explanation :D :http://courseweb.stthomas.edu/apthomas/SquishyCircuits/PDFs/Circuits.pdf Edited December 20, 2011 by SusanC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happycc Posted December 20, 2011 Author Share Posted December 20, 2011 (edited) my head is spinning. .;./ Ok this question isnt even discussed in the student book ---argh! Why do incandescent light bulbs have a glass bulb? a)to prevent the filament from reacting with oxygen and burning up. b)to protect people if the filament explodes. c)to protect the copper in the filament d) the glass looks nicer Some of the questions doesn't even seem like it was discussed in the book. Never mind I missed the last two pages of the chapter Edited December 21, 2011 by happycc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Milknhoney Posted December 20, 2011 Share Posted December 20, 2011 Eeeek! My head is spinning. We bought the 300 set for my almost-7-yo son for Christmas and you all have me freaked out now! Please tell me you don't have to be able to understand all that in order to use the set... or that once we have it in front of us, it will all make sense... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happycc Posted December 21, 2011 Author Share Posted December 21, 2011 What I am using is totally different than the actual sets you buy. You will have a manual that just tells you what you can build kind of like a lego manual. What I am using is an additional component that you buy separately from the kit and it teaches you electricity. Like an electricity textbook. Does that help? Here is a link:http://www.snapcircuits.net/downloads/scr_info.pdf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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