NCERT Class 7 Science Electric Current and its Effects

14.Electric Current and its

 Effects

You might have tried the game ‘How steady is your hand?’ suggested in Chapter 12 of Class VI. If not, you may try it out now. Paheli and Boojho had also set up the game by connecting an electric circuit as suggested in Class VI. They had lots of fun trying it out with their families and friends. They enjoyed it so much that they decided to suggest it to a cousin of theirs who stayed in a different town. So, Paheli made a neat drawing showing how the various electric components were to be connected (Fig.14.1).

Can you draw this circuit conveniently? It made Boojho wonder if there was an easier way to represent these electric components.

14.1 SYMBOLS OF ELECTRIC COMPONENTS

Some common electric components can be represented by symbols. In Table 14.1, some electric components and their symbols are shown. You may come across different symbols for these components in different books. However, in this book, we shall be using the symbols shown here.

Look at the symbols carefully. In the symbol for the electric cell, notice that there is a longer line and a shorter but thicker parallel line. Do you recall that an electric cell has a positive terminal and a negative terminal? In the symbol of the electric cell, the longer line represents the positive terminal and the thicker, shorter line represents the negative terminal. For a switch the ‘ON’ position and the ‘OFF’ position are represented by the symbols as shown. The wires used to connect the various components in a circuit are represented by lines.

Exercises

1. Fill in the blanks:

(a) Longer line in the symbol for a cell represents its terminal.

(b) The combination of two or more cells is called a .

(c) When current is switched ‘on’ in a room heater, it .

(d) The safety device based on the heating effect of electric current is called a .

2. Mark ‘T’ if the statement is true and ‘F’ if it is false:

(a) To make a battery of two cells, the negative terminal of one cell is connected to the negative terminal of the other cell. (T/F)

(b) When the electric current through the fuse exceeds a certain limit, the fuse wire melts and breaks. (T/F)

(c) An electromagnet does not attract a piece of iron. (T/F)

(d) An electric bell has an electromagnet. (T/F)

3. Do you think an electromagnet can be used for separating plastic bags from a garbage heap? Explain.

4. An electrician is carrying out some repairs in your house. He wants to replace a fuse by a piece of wire. Would you agree? Give reasons for your response.

5. Zubeda made an electric circuit using a cell holder shown in Fig. 14.4, a switch and a bulb. When she put the switch in the ‘ON’ position, the bulb did not glow. Help Zubeda in identifying the possible defects in the circuit

Please refer to attached file for NCERT Class 7 Science Electric Current and its Effects