Log out Go to App
Go to App

Learning Materials

Features

Discover

Chapter 21: Problem 14

Occasionally, people who gain static charge by shuffling their feet on the carpet will have their hair stand on end. Why does this happen?

Short Answer

Expert verified
Answer: A person's hair stands on end due to the repulsive forces between the negatively charged strands of hair, which is caused by the electrostatic interaction between charged particles. This occurs when a person shuffles their feet on the carpet, transferring electrons from the carpet to their body, making them negatively charged. The low conductivity of the materials involved maintains the imbalance of charges, causing the hair to repel each other and stand on end.

Step by step solution

01

Review of Static Electricity

Static electricity is the result of an imbalance of electric charges within or on the surface of a material. When two objects are rubbed together, electrons are transferred from one object to another, causing one object to become positively charged and the other to become negatively charged.
02

Generating Static Electricity through Shuffling

When a person shuffles their feet on the carpet, they are rubbing their shoes against the carpet fibers. This friction causes electrons to be transferred from the carpet to the person, making the person's body negatively charged.
03

Hair Standing on End

When the person's body gains a negative charge, the electrons in their hair are repelled by the excess electrons on their body. This repulsion causes the individual strands of hair to repel each other, making them move apart and stand on end.
04

Importance of Conductivity of Materials

The conductivity of the materials involved in the interaction is important. In this case, the carpet, shoes, and hair all have low conductivity, meaning they do not easily allow the flow of electric charges. Therefore, the negative charges remain confined to the person's body and hair, causing the repulsion effect and making the hair stand on end.
05

Conclusion

A person's hair stands on end when they gain static charge by shuffling their feet on the carpet because of the repulsive forces between the negatively charged strands of hair. This repulsion is due to the electrostatic interaction between charged particles, and the low conductivity of the materials involved in the interaction maintains the imbalance of charges.

Unlock Step-by-Step Solutions & Ace Your Exams!

  • Full Textbook Solutions

    Get detailed explanations and key concepts

  • Unlimited Al creation

    Al flashcards, explanations, exams and more...

  • Ads-free access

    To over 500 millions flashcards

  • Money-back guarantee

    We refund you if you fail your exam.

Start your free trial

Over 30 million students worldwide already upgrade their learning with Vaia!

One App. One Place for Learning.

All the tools & learning materials you need for study success - in one app.

Get started for free

Most popular questions from this chapter

In general, astronomical objects are not exactly electrically neutral. Suppose the Earth and the Moon each carry a charge of \(-1.00 \cdot 10^{6} \mathrm{C}\) (this is approximately correct; a more precise value is identified in Chapter 22 ). a) Compare the resulting electrostatic repulsion with the gravitational attraction between the Moon and the Earth. Look up any necessary data. b) What effects does this electrostatic force have on the size, shape, and stability of the Moon's orbit around the Earth?

Two equal magnitude negative charges \((-q\) and \(-q)\) are fixed at coordinates \((-d, 0)\) and \((d, 0) .\) A positive charge of the same magnitude, \(q\), and with mass \(m\) is placed at coordinate \((0,0),\) midway between the two negative charges. If the positive charge is moved a distance \(\delta \ll d\) in the positive \(y\) -direction and then released, the resulting motion will be that of a harmonic oscillator-the positive charge will oscillate between coordinates \((0, \delta)\) and \((0,-\delta)\). Find the net force acting on the positive charge when it moves to \((0, \delta)\) and use the binomial expansion \((1+x)^{n} \approx 1+n x,\) for \(x \ll 1,\) to find an expression for the frequency of the resulting oscillation.

A small ball with a mass of \(30.0 \mathrm{~g}\) and a charge of \(-0.200 \mu \mathrm{C}\) is suspended from the ceiling by a string. The ball hangs at a distance of \(5.00 \mathrm{~cm}\) above an insulating floor. If a second small ball with a mass of \(50.0 \mathrm{~g}\) and a charge of \(0.400 \mu \mathrm{C}\) is rolled directly beneath the first ball, will the second ball leave the floor? What is the tension in the string when the second ball is directly beneath the first ball?

In the Bohr model of the hydrogen atom, the electron moves around the one- proton nucleus on circular orbits of well-determined radii, given by \(r_{n}=n^{2} a_{\mathrm{B}}\), where \(n=1,2,3, \ldots\) is an integer that defines the orbit and \(a_{\mathrm{B}}=5.29 \cdot 10^{-11} \mathrm{~m}\) is the radius of the first (minimum) orbit, called the Bohr radius. Calculate the force of electrostatic interaction between the electron and the proton in the hydrogen atom for the first four orbits. Compare the strength of this interaction to the gravitational interaction between the proton and the electron.

A charge \(Q_{1}\) is positioned on the \(x\) -axis at \(x=a\). Where should a charge \(Q_{2}=-4 Q_{1}\) be placed to produce a net electrostatic force of zero on a third charge, \(Q_{3}=Q_{1}\), located at the origin? a) at the origin c) at \(x=-2 a\) b) at \(x=2 a\) d) at \(x=-a\)
See all solutions

Recommended explanations on Physics Textbooks

Work Energy and Power

Read Explanation

Waves Physics

Read Explanation

Radiation

Read Explanation

Oscillations

Read Explanation

Nuclear Physics

Read Explanation

Particle Model of Matter

Read Explanation
View all explanations

What do you think about this solution?

We value your feedback to improve our textbook solutions.

Study anywhere. Anytime. Across all devices.

Sign-up for free