Electricity History of Electricity In 1660 Otto von Guericke invented a machine for producing static electricity. It was a ball of sulfur that was rotated by a crank with one hand and rubbed with the other hand. The Van de Graaf generator is a highly developed descendant of that and other machines. It is sometimes used as a particle accelerator. Robert Boyle found out that attraction and repulsion were jointed and that electric force was sent …
showed first 75 words of 1120 total

showed last 75 words of 1120 total
…example, if a positively charged object is brought near a neutral object, the electrons in the neutral object are attracted to the positive object. Some of these electrons flow to the side of the neutral object that is nearest to the positive object. This side of the neutral object collects electrons and becomes negatively charged. Because electrons leave the far side of the neutral object while its protons remain stationary, that side becomes positively charged.