A human being can be electrocuted if a current as small as 51.0 ma passes near the heart. an electrician working with sweaty hands makes good contact with the two conductors he is holding. if his resistance is 2050 ω, what might the fatal voltage be?

Respuesta :

AL2006

The fatal current is 51 mA = 0.051 Ampere.

The resistance is 2,050Ω .

Voltage = (current) x (resistance)

            =  (0.051 Ampere) x (2,050 Ω)  =  104.6 volts .

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This is what the arithmetic says IF the information in the question
is correct.

I don't know how true this is, and I certainly don't plan to test it,
but I have read that a current as small as  15 mA  through the
heart can be fatal, not  51 mA .

If 15 mA can do it, and the sweaty electrician's resistance is
really 2,050 Ω, then the fatal voltage could be as little as  31 volts !

The voltage at the wall-outlets in your house is  120 volts in the USA !
THAT's why you don't want to stick paper clips or a screwdriver into
outlets, and why you want to cover unused outlets with plastic plugs
if there are babies crawling around.