electricity learning #2

Today we observed a machine that would make things float above it, and if you touched it it would shock you. It was called a Van De Graff, it had a big metal ball at the top, and a rubber track that rubbed some metal at the top and bottom that transferred electrons. Threw this activity I learned that electrons will push off on each other, and that electrons are like tinny magnets in a way and can be very useful. When we blew bubbles at the machine the baubles avoided it, as if they had the same charge. Next we each held hands with two people touching the Van De Graff. Then we turned it on. No one was shocked, but the electricity traveled through us as if we were a wire. If someone who wasn't a part of the chain tuched on of us they would be shocked because of a discharge of our electricity would go to them. Next we put one napkin on top of the machine and it made the napkin flote off. Then we put many napkins on it and it stayed still but was clicking and making noizes. Then we taped strips of paper to the machine and they were pulled upwards. Then we put cheerios on top and they flou off aswell. most of the experiments we did had there effects because the electrons were pushing away from eachother, or they were charging something, and not the other.

I was wondering if it is possible to get any substance to push off its self when charged with electrons, even liquids.

Electricity learning #1

There were three stations in the class activity. One of them we used a balloon to pick up peaces of paper using static electricity. It was just like picking something up with a magnet, but the balloon lost its charge over time. The next we had two strands of tape and we hung them next to each other, when we did they pushed each other away, because they had like charges. We did not have to do anything to the tape it just worked. The last station we were suppose to do something with tape which I nor my team understood. I know from my experience with the other stations that the tape was going to pull on each other or repel each other.

Since i learned that electricity is made up of electrons i began to wander how a electric engine works. At first i thought that maybe the engine absorbed the electrons some how and that's what made it go. But it didn't seem like a sufficient answer. So I thought about it, and i came to the conclusion that the electrons gathered on the metal coils inside the engine and pushed off of each other which spins the engine.