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For centuries electricity has been a challenge to scientists. They have long
known that it exists, and have discovered how to generate it on a large scale,
but find it difficult to explain exactly what electricity is.
Where did it all begin?
Around 600 BC Greeks found that by rubbing an 'electron' (a hard Fossilised
resin that today is known as Amber) against a fur cloth, it would attract
particles of straw. This strange effect remained a mystery for over 2000 years,
until, around AD 1600, Dr William Gilbert investigated the reactions of amber
and magnets and first recorded the word 'Electric' in a report on the theory of
magnetism.
Benjamin Franklin
Franklin was an American writer, publisher, scientist and diplomat, who helped
to draw up the famous Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution. In
1752 Franklin proved that lightning and the spark from amber were one and the
same thing. The story of this famous milestone is a familiar one, in which
Franklin fastened an iron spike to a silken kite, which he flew during a
thunderstorm, while holding the end of the kite string by an iron key. When
lightening flashed, a tiny spark jumped from the key to his wrist. The
experiment proved Franklin's theory, but was extremely dangerous - He could
easily have been killed.

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Electricity completely surrounds us -- For most of us, modern
life would be impossible without it. Here are just a few
examples:
Throughout your house, you probably find electrical outlets
where you can plug in all sorts of electrical appliances.
Most portable devices contain batteries, which produce
varying amounts of electricity depending on their size.
During a thunderstorm, there are huge bolts of electricity
called lightning that shoot down from the sky.
On a much smaller scale, you can get a shock from
static electricity on dry winter days.
It is easy to create electricity from sunlight using a solar cell;
or you can create electricity from the chemical energy in
hydrogen and oxygen using a fuel cell.
So what is this mysterious stuff that we call electricity? Where
does it come from, and why is it able to do so many different
things?
.

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The electricity that we get from power outlets and batteries can
power all different kinds of devices. The fact is that electricity can
be used in a thousand different ways. For example:
Electric motors turn electricity into motion.
Light bulbs, fluorescent lamps and LEDs turn electricity into light.
Computers turn electricity into information.
Telephones turn electricity into communication.
TVs turn electricity into moving pictures.
Speakers turn electricity into sound waves.
Stun guns turn electricity into pain.
Toasters, hair dryers and space heaters turn electricity into heat.
Radios turn electricity into electromagnetic waves that can travel
millions of miles.
X-ray machines turn electricity into X-rays.
It is hard to imagine modern people living without electricity. In
electricity's absence, we end up reverting back to fireplaces for
heat, wood-fired stoves for cooking, candles for light and the
slide rules for computation. To talk over long distances we are
left with smoke signals and postcards

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 Electricity Basics
electrons. If you have read How Atoms Work, you
Electricity starts with
know that every atom contains one or more electrons. You also
know that electrons have a negative charge.

In many materials, the electrons are tightly bound to the atoms. Wood,
glass, plastic, ceramic, air, cotton ... These are all examples of materials
in which electrons stick with their atoms. Because the electrons don't
move, these materials cannot conduct electricity very well, if at all. These
materials are electrical insulators.
But most metals have electrons that can detach from their atoms and
move around. These are called free electrons. Gold, silver, copper,
aluminum, iron, etc., all have free electrons. The loose electrons make it
easy for electricity to flow through these materials, so they are known as
electrical conductors. They conduct electricity. The moving electrons
transmit electrical energy from one point to another.
Electricity needs a conductor in order to move. There also has to be
something to make the electricity flow from one point to another through
the conductor. One way to get electricity flowing is to use a generator.

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Electrical Circuits
Whether you are using a battery, a fuel cell or a solar cell to produce
electricity, there are three things that are always the same:

The source of electricity will have two terminals: a positive terminal and a
negative terminal.
The source of electricity (whether it is a generator, battery, etc.) will want to
push electrons out of its negative terminal at a certain voltage. For example,
a AA battery typically wants to push electrons out at 1.5 volts.
The electrons will need to flow from the negative terminal to the positive
terminal through a copper wire or some other conductor. When there is a path
that goes from the negative to the positive terminal, you have a circuit, and
electrons can flow through the wire.
You can attach a load of any type (a light bulb, a motor, a TV, etc.) in the
middle of the circuit. The source of electricity will power the load, and the load
will do its thing (create light, spin a shaft, generate moving pictures, etc.).

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First there is a power plant near your home and it gathers a whole lot
of coal to heat up water in big silos. They boil the water to make
water vapor <Not steam> . This water vapor goes into a big tube that
travels to a turbine that spins a magnet inside the generator  to make
an electrical force that is caught and sent into a high voltage
power line. Here it is turned into a direct current and sent to your
home. After the water vapor is used there are pipes of really cold
water that run through it and turns it back into reusable water again.

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...By Hydro Dams
    Electricity can also be produced by water flowing through dams. It
does this by pulling water in from a river or lake and throwing it
through a type of water turbine. A dam can have many tunnels or a
few tunnels for water to go in. If more tunnels are open the more
electricity the plant can make. Hydroelectricity is a type of direct
electricity when it is sent into power lines. Hydroelectric plants can
help by producing pollution free electricity but it can hurt the
environment in the rivers or lakes very badly, it can hurt a lot of the
fish that swim back up the river for spawning.
...By Static Electricity
 
    Static electricity isn't like all these other types of electricity because
it is a kind of altering current. It doesn't go one direction. It goes in all
directions to find a way to travel to the ground even if it means
traveling through you. Static electricity is made by two things rubbing
together to create friction. By this there are protons and electrons that
are taken away and given to different materials so the material is
lacking protons or electrons. So, if you stuck your hand near one of
these materials your protons or electrons would jump towards the
materials and give them the protons or electrons

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