A short circuit is when you provide a path for electricity to travel directly from A to B.
You can’t do this by touching the battery terminals because your dry skin won’t transmit the electicity. You’re just touching battery terminals.
If you hold a AA battery in between your finger and thumb, you’re also not short circuiting it. You’re just holding it by its terminals.
But if you hold an unfolded paperclip to both sides, you are shorting it. The electricity can travel through the paperclip.
If you hold a nine volt battery against your dry palm, it’s not a short circuit. But if you hold it against your tongue, it is a short circuit because the electricity can travel through your (wet) tongue. You can feel the difference.
As far as I know, there is not a large population using “short circuit” the way you were (just touching a battery terminals).
No, there is absolutely current flowing when you touch both terminals, it’s just an incredibly tiny amount. You can do the math yourself and see, it’s a basic application of Ohms law. The formula is (I=V/R). The reason you feel the tingles from a 9 volt you lick vs one you touch with your finger is that the resistance is much lower when licked, allowing more current to be produced - but the resistance is not infinite when you touch it with your finger, it’s just high enough that you do not notice the tingling from the small amount of current that results from a circuit with such high resistance (also it travels across the surface and on a much less sensitive part of your anatomy etc. etc.)
Sure, there is technically current flowing, but it is small enough to be considered an open circuit for engineering purposes. There is leakage current for every insulator, we don’t call it a short.
How do you mean?
A short circuit is when you provide a path for electricity to travel directly from A to B.
You can’t do this by touching the battery terminals because your dry skin won’t transmit the electicity. You’re just touching battery terminals.
If you hold a AA battery in between your finger and thumb, you’re also not short circuiting it. You’re just holding it by its terminals.
But if you hold an unfolded paperclip to both sides, you are shorting it. The electricity can travel through the paperclip.
If you hold a nine volt battery against your dry palm, it’s not a short circuit. But if you hold it against your tongue, it is a short circuit because the electricity can travel through your (wet) tongue. You can feel the difference.
As far as I know, there is not a large population using “short circuit” the way you were (just touching a battery terminals).
No, there is absolutely current flowing when you touch both terminals, it’s just an incredibly tiny amount. You can do the math yourself and see, it’s a basic application of Ohms law. The formula is (I=V/R). The reason you feel the tingles from a 9 volt you lick vs one you touch with your finger is that the resistance is much lower when licked, allowing more current to be produced - but the resistance is not infinite when you touch it with your finger, it’s just high enough that you do not notice the tingling from the small amount of current that results from a circuit with such high resistance (also it travels across the surface and on a much less sensitive part of your anatomy etc. etc.)
Shorts are unintended low impedance paths.
Indicates you are not describing a short.
Sure, there is technically current flowing, but it is small enough to be considered an open circuit for engineering purposes. There is leakage current for every insulator, we don’t call it a short.