Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Electricity |
ElectricityNoun1. A physical phenomenon associated with stationary or moving electrons and protons. 2. Energy made available by the flow of electric charge through a conductor; "they built a car that runs on electricity". 3. Keen and shared excitement; "the stage crackled with electricity whenever she was on it". Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "electricity" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1747. (references) |
| Domain | Definition |
Satire | ELECTRICITY, n. The power that causes all natural phenomena not known to be caused by something else. It is the same thing as lightning, and its famous attempt to strike Dr. Franklin is one of the most picturesque incidents in that great and good man's career. The memory of Dr. Franklin is justly held in great reverence, particularly in France, where a waxen effigy of him was recently on exhibition, bearing the following touching account of his life and services to science: "Monsieur Franqulin, inventor of electricity. This illustrious savant, after having made several voyages around the world, died on the Sandwich Islands and was devoured by savages, of whom not a single fragment was ever recovered." Electricity seems destined to play a most important part in the arts and industries. The question of its economical application to some purposes is still unsettled, but experiment has already proved that it will propel a street car better than a gas jet and give more light than a horse. Source: Devil's Dictionary. |
Dream Interpretation | To dream of electricity, denotes there will be sudden changes about you, which will not afford you either advancement or pleasure. If you are shocked by it you will face a deplorable danger. To see live electrical wire, foretells that enemies will disturb your plans, which have given you much anxiety in forming. To dream that you can send a package or yourself out over a wire with the same rapidity that a message can be sent, denotes you will finally overcome obstacles and be able to use your enemies' plans to advance yourself. Source: Ten Thousand Dreams Interpreted .... |
Electrical Engineering | The manifestation of a form of energy associated with static or dynamic electric charges. Source: European Union. (references) |
| The property which an atom, molecule or other body is said to have when it has gained(negative charge)or lost(positive charge)electrons, so that it repels other bodies having the same charge, attracts those having the opposite charge, and is capable of being acted upon by forces when placed in an electric field. Source: European Union. (references) | |
| The special field of science and technology dealing with electric phenomena. Source: European Union. (references) | |
Energy | A property of the basic particles ofmatter. A form of energy having magnetic, radiant and chemical effects. Electriccurrent is created by a flow of charged particles (electrons). (references) |
Statistics | Data refer to the monthly output of ESB generating stations in giga watt hours. Source: European Union. (references) |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
In physics, the electromagnetic phenomenon of electricity (or electric charge) is a conserved property of matter that can be quantified. In this sense, the phrase "quantity of electricity" is used interchangeably with the phrases "charge of electricity" and "quantity of charge." There are two types of electricity or charge: we call one kind of charge positive and the other negative. Through experiment, we find that like-charged objects repel and opposite-charged objects attract one another. The magnitude of the force of attraction or repulsion is given by Coulomb's Law.
The SI unit of electrical charge is the coulomb.
History
According to Thales of Miletus, writing circa 600 BC, electricity was known to the Ancient Greeks, who found that rubbing fur on various substances, such as amber, would cause an electric charge imbalance. The Greeks noted that the charged amber buttons could attract light objects such as hair, and that if they rubbed the amber for long enough, they could even get a spark to jump.An object found in Iraq in 1938, dated to about 250 BC and called the Baghdad Battery, resembles an electrochemical cell and is believed by some to have been used for electroplating. There is no "firm" documentary evidence to indicate what the object was used for, though there are other anachronistic descriptions of electrical devices on Egyptian walls and in ancient writings.
In 1600 the English scientist William Gilbert returned to the subject in De Magnete, and coined the modern Latin word electricus from ηλεκτρον (elektron), the Greek word for amber, which soon gave rise to the English words electric and electricity. He was followed in 1660 by Otto von Guericke, who invented an early electrostatic generator. Other European pioneers were Robert Boyle, who stated in 1675 that electric attraction and repulsion can act across a vacuum; Stephen Gray, who in 1729 classified materials as conductors and insulators; and C. F. Du Fay, who first identified the two types of electric charge that would later be called positive and negative. The Leyden jar, a type of capacitor for storing electric charge in large quantities, was invented at Leyden University by Pieter van Musschenbroek in 1745. William Watson, experimenting with the Leyden jar, discovered in 1747 that a discharge of static electricity was equivalent to an electric current.
In June, 1752, Benjamin Franklin promoted his investigations of electricity and theories through the famous, though extremely dangerous, experiment of flying a kite during a thunderstorm. Following these experiments he invented a lightning rod and established the link between lightning and electricity. If Franklin did fly a kite in a storm, he did not do it the way it is often described (as it would have been dramatic but fatal). It was either Franklin (more frequently) or Ebenezer Kinnersley of Philadelphia (less frequently) who created the convention of positive and negative charge. Franklin's observations aided later scientists such as Michael Faraday, Luigi Galvani, Alessandro Volta, André-Marie Ampère, and Georg Simon Ohm whose work provided the basis for modern electrical technology. The work of Faraday, Volta, Ampere, and Ohm is honored by society, in that fundamental units of electrical measurement are named after them.
Volta worked with chemicals and discovered that chemical reactions could be used to create positively charged anodes and negatively charged cathodes. When a conductor was attached between these, the difference in the electrical potential (also known as voltage) drives a current between them through the conductor. The potential difference between two points is measured in units of volts in recognition of Volta's work.
The late 19th and early 20th century produced such giants of electrical engineering as Samuel Morse, inventor of the telegraph; Alexander Graham Bell, inventor of the telephone; Thomas Edison (inventor of the phonograph, motion pictures and a practical incandescent light bulb) ; George Westinghouse, inventor of the electric locomotive; Charles Steinmetz, inventor of alternating current; and Nikola Tesla, inventor of the induction motor and developer of polyphase systems.
Tesla performed experiments with very high voltages that are the stuff of legend, involving ball lightning and other effects (some have been duplicated or explained; and others which have not). He contribution to the world of electrodynamics the theory of polyphase alternating current electricity, which he used to build the first induction motor, invented in 1882. In May 1885, Westinghouse, then president of the Westinghouse Electric Company in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, bought the rights to Tesla's patents for polyphase alternating-current dynamos. This led to a contest in the so-called court of public opinion as to which system would be adopted as the standard for power transmission (known as the War of Currents), Edison's direct-current system or Westinghouse's alternating-current method.
Edison conducted a spirited public relations campaign which included his promotion of the electric chair as a method of execution. The electric chair ran on Westinghouse's AC; Edison wanted to prove that AC power was capable of killing, and should therefore be viewed by the public as inherently dangerous. This FUD campaign included the electrocution of Topsy the Elephant. AC power transmission was eventually adopted as the standard.
Electric power
Electric power, for most consumers, is generated centrally by utility companies using coal, oil, hydropower, or nuclear power. In 2000, U.S. electric utilities had 600 gigawatts of maximum summer generating capacity including 261 GW from coal, 41 GW from petroleum, 118 GW from natural gas, 92 GW from hydropower and 86 GW from nuclear fuels. Little generating capacity is presently based on renewable sources such as solar power and wind power. Some individuals and communities prefer renewable sources because there is less pollution, and because users of renewable energy sources can sometimes gain a measure of economic independence from the electrical utilities.
Things that are powered by electricity include lamps; computers and the internet; radio and television; refrigeration; air conditioning; traffic signals; electric guitars and other electronic musical instrumentss; the spark plugs in automobiles.
Today, for residents of most developed countries, 24-hour, on-demand, access to electrical power is taken for granted. People gripe about their electric bill and about electric power monopolies and utility pricing, but by any comparison with pre-industrial standards of living, electricity is still a bargain. Few would want to go back to life without it.
In electrical engineering, the energy in electromagnetic fields is harnessed to perform useful work - either as a method to transmit energy to the appropriate place and then convert it back into a different, useful form of energy (for instance, heat, light, or motion), or by using the presence or level of electricity to convey information.
Today's electrical engineers enjoy the ability to design circuits using pre-manufactured building blocks such as power supplies, resistors, capacitors, semiconductors such as transistors, and integrated circuits. An integrated circuit inside a computer, a microprocessor, performs millions of computations per second.
Electric current
A flow of electricity is known as an electric current. A direct current (DC) is a constant flow between two points having a different electrical potential. By convention, a positive current is defined as that which flows from a higher potential to a lesser one, driven by the potential difference.It is often important, particularly for safety reasons, that one side of a circuit be electrically bonded to an earth terminal. Such an earth terminal is usually connected to an electrode buried in the ground. The potential of earth (ground) is defined as zero by convention, and the electrical conductivity between similarly buried electrodes is considered to be low enough that all earth terminals are effectively at the same voltage.
Flows of electric charge can be produced within conductorss and cannot exist within insulators. Some electrical devices that use electrical physics are called electronic devices. See electrical conduction for more information about current flow in materials.
Ohm's Law is an important relationship describing the behaviour of electric currents in conductors: voltage potential difference = current * resistance, or:
V = IR
Electrical phenomena in nature
- lightning
- bioelectricity - Many animals are sensitive to electric fields, some (e.g., sharks) more than others (e.g., people). A few, such as the electric eel, generate their own electric fields.
- matter - since atoms and molecules are held together by electric forces.
- the Earth's magnetic field - which is created by electric currents circulating in the planet's core.
Terminology Issues
In addition to its definition by physicists, the word electricity has several popular definitions which are contradictory. Rather than using the word electricity to refer to the quantity of electric charge, many sources instead say that electricity is the quantity of electromagnetic energy measured in joules or kilowatt-hours. Other sources call the flow of charges within a conductor by the name electricity and they measure the quantity of electricity in terms of amperes. Still others call a wide variety of electrical phenomena by the name electricity, e.g. bioelectricity, piezoelectricity, triboelectricity, etc. It is advisable to be extremely careful when interpreting texts which use the frequently misused term electricity in place of the more accurate terms electric charge, electric current, electrical energy, etc.
See also: electric power (for energy transfer using electricity), battery, green electricity.
External Links
- US Energy Department Statisitics
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Electricity."
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
Electricity generation is the first process in the delivery of electricity to electricity consumers. The other three processes are electric power transmission, electricity distribution and electricity retailing.
Dependable electricity generation, transmission and distribution became important when it became apparent that electricity was useful for providing heat light and power for human activities. Decentralised power generation became possible when it was recognised that alternating current electric power lines can transport electricity at low cost across great distances by taking advantage of the ability to transform the voltage using power transformers.
Electricity has been generated for the purpose of powering human technologies for at least 120 years from various sources of potential energy. The first power plants were run on wood, while today we rely mainly on oil, natural gas, coal, hydroelectric and nuclear power and a small amount from hydrogen, solar energy, tidal harnesses, and wind generators. The generation and distribution of electricity has mostly been in the hands of either privately owned or state owned public utilities. In recent years some governments have started to privatise or corporatise these utilities as part of a move to introduce market forces to monopolies. The New Zealand Electricity Market is a typical example.
The demand for electricity can be fed in two different ways. The primary method thus far has been for public utilities to construct large scale projects to generate and transmit the electricity required to fuel growing economies. Many of these projects have unpleasant environmental effects such as air or radiation pollution, vulnerability to terrorist attacks and the flooding of large areas of land.
Increasingly, distributed generation is seen as a new way to supply the electrical demand close to the users. Smaller, distributed projects can:
- Protect from blackouts caused by the closure of de-centralised power plants or transmission lines for maintenance, market manipulation or emergency shut downs
- Reduce pollution
- Allow smaller players to enter the energy markets
Methods of generating electricity
Rotating turbines attached to electrical generators produce most commercially available electricity.
Turbines are usually rotated using using steam, water, wind or other fluid as an intermediate energy carrier.
Steam turbines can be powered using steam produced from geothermal sources, solar energy, liquid, gaseous and solid fossil fuels.
Nuclear reactors use the energy created by the fission of radioactive plutonium or uranium to generate heat. They often use a primary and secondary steam circuit to add an additional layer of protection between the location of the nuclear fuel and the generator room.
Hydroelectric power plants use water flowing directly through the turbines to power the generators.
Tidal harnesses use the force of the moon on bodies of water to spin a turbine.
Wind generators use wind to turn turbines that are hooked up to a generator.
Pumped storage hydroelectricity is used to level demands on the power grid.
Co-generation plants combine the generation of electricity and heat using solar power, fossil fuels, syngas, biomass, or biogas as a fuel source. These plants can achieve efficiencies as high as 80%, but many of these plants being built today only expect to achieve stated maximum 55% efficiency. Heated steam turns a turbine, and then excess heat is distributed for space heating in buildings, industrial processes or green house heating. Whole communities can benefit form heat distributed through a district heating scheme
Fuel cells produce electricity using a variety of chemicals and are seen by some people to be the most likely source of power in the long term, especially if hydrogen can be used as the feedstock.
The ability to achieve tri-generation using fossil fuels or solar energy to generate heat, electricity and evaporative cooling exists. These combined power plants have the best energy conversion ratio after hydroelectric plants.
Small mobile generators are often driven by diesel engines, especially on ships, remote building sites or for emergency standby.
Small photovoltaic arrays, windmills and bicycles hooked up to a turbine can all be used to generate mobile electricity.
The world relies mainly on coal and natural gas for power. The high capital requirements of nuclear power and the fear of the dangers of nuclear power have prevented the ordering of any new nuclear power plants in North America since the 1970s.
Electricity reform around the world is de-coupling electricity generation from the regulated monopoly elements of transmission and electricity distribution, see electricity market.
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Electricity generation."
(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)
Electricity markets are being developed as a result of the deregulation of electricity utilities around the world. The process began in 1990 when the UK Government under Margaret Thatcher privatisedd the UK Electricity Supply Industry in England and Wales. The process followed by the British has been followed in other countries. The institutions and market designs may differ but the underlying concepts are the same. These are: separate the contestable functions of generation and retail from the natural monopoly functions of transmission and distribution; and establish a wholesale electricity market for electricity generation and a retail electricity market for electricity retailing.Wholesale electricity market
A wholesale electricity market exists when competing generators offer their electricity output to retailers.Electricity is by its nature difficult to store and has to be available on demand. Consequently, unlike for other products, it is not possible, under normal operating conditions, to keep it in stock, ration it or have customers queue for it. Demand and supply vary continuously. There is therefore a physical requirement for a controlling agency, the system operator, to coordinate the dispatch of generating units to meet the expected demand of the system across the transmission grid. If there is a mismatch between supply and demand the generators speed up or slow down causing the system frequency (either 50 or 60 Hertz) to increase or decrease. If the frequency falls outside a predetermined range the system operator will act to remove either generation or load.
In addition, the laws of physics determine how electricity flows through an electricity network. Hence the extent of electricity lost in transmission and the level of congestion on any particular branch of the network will influence the economic dispatch of the generation units.
For an economically efficient electricity wholesale market to flourish it is essential that a number of criteria are met. Professor William Hogan of Harvard University has identified these. Central to his criteria is a coordinated spot market that has "bid-based, security-constrained, economic dispatch with nodal prices". Other academics such as Professors Pablo Spiller and Shmuel Orem of the University of California, Berkeley have developed other criteria. Professor Hogan's model has largely been adopted in New Zealand and supported by the US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in its proposed Standard Market Design.
Bid-based, security-constrained, economic dispatch with nodal prices
The price of electricity at each node on the network is an aggregation of the marginal electricity generator's offer price and the marginal cost of losses and congestion on the network. This is known as "locational marginal pricing" (LMP) or "nodal pricing". Where congestion exists on a transmission network, there is a need for load to be shed or more expensive generation to be dispatched on the downstream side of the constraint. Prices on either side of the constraint separate giving rise to congestion pricing and constraint rentals.A constraint can be caused when a particular branch of a network reaches its thermal limit or when a potential overload will occur due to a contingent event on another part of the network. The latter is referred to as a security constraint. In essence, transmission systems are operated to allow for continuity of supply even if a contingent event, like the loss of a line, generator or transformer, were to occur. This is known as a security constrained system.
The marginal generator is determined by matching offers from generators to bids from retailers at each node to develop a classic supply and demand equilibrium price. This process is carried out for each 5-minute, half-hour or hour (depending on the market) interval at each input and exit node on the transmission grid. The prices take into account the losses and constraints in the system and generators are dispatched by the system operator, not only in ascending order of offers (or descending order of bids), but in accordance with the required security of the system. This results in a spot market with "bid-based, security-constrained, economic dispatch with nodal prices".
Risk management
A consequence of the complexity of a wholesale electricity market is the price volatility at times of peak demand and supply shortages. This is manifest by price "spikes" which are hard to predict and price "steps" when the underlying fuel or plant position changes for long periods .Electricity retailers, who buy from the wholesale market, and generators who sell to the wholesale market, are exposed the these price effects and to protect themselves from volatility, they will enter into "hedge contracts" with each other. These contracts are generally contracts for differences where the parties agree a strike price for defined time periods. If the actual wholesale price in any time period is higher than the "strike" price, the generator will refund the difference berween the "strike" price and the actual price for that period. Similarly a retailer will refund the difference to the generator when the actual price is less than the "strike price". The actual price is sometimes referred to as the "spot" or "pool" price, depending on the market.
Other hedging arrangements, such as Financial Transmission Rights, call options and put options are traded in sophisticated electricity markets.
Retail Electricity Market
A retail electricity market exists when end-use customers can chose their supplier from competing electricity retailers.Generally, electricity retail reform follows from electricity wholesale reform. However, it is possible to have a single electricity generation company and still have retail competition. If a wholesale price can be established at a node on the transmission grid and the electricity quantities at that node can be reconciled, competition for retail customers within the distribution system beyond the node is possible.
Although market structures vary, there are some common functions that an electricity retailer has to be able to perform, or enter into a contract for, in order to compete effectively. Failure or incompetence in the execution of one or more of the following has led to some dramatic financial disasters:
The two main areas of weakness have been risk management and billing. In the USA in 2001, California's flawed regulation of retail competition led to the California electricity crisis and left incumbent retailers subject to high spot prices but without the ability to hedge against these (see Manifesto on The Californian Electricity Crisis). In the UK a retailer, Independent Energy, with a large customer base went bust when it could not collect the money due from customers.
- Meter Reading
- Meter Rental
- Billing
- Credit control
- Customer management via an efficient call centre
- Distribution Use of System Contract
- Reconciliation Agreement
- "Pool" or "Spot Market" Purchase Agreement
- Hedge Contracts - contracts for differences to manage "spot price" risk
Electricity market experience
In the main, experience in the introduction of retail competition has been mixed. The UK, Australia and New Zealand have achieved some success. Among the countries in the world that have developed successful wholesale electricity markets are:
- Australia - see NEMMCO the Australian Market Administrator
- Canada
- Chile
- New Zealand - see New Zealand Electricity Market
- Denmark, Finland, Sweden and Norway - see Nordpool, the Nordic Power Exhange
- England and Wales see the Balancing and Settlement arrangements at Elexon
- USA - see PJM Marketand New York Market
See also
- distributed generation
- CEGB
- National Grid
Further reading
- An EU report on progress with market reform in Europe The internal market for Electricity in Europe
- A paper by Prof William Hogan of Harvard University setting out the principles for efficient wholesale electricity markets, with examples of efficient markets as well as an analysis of why the California market failed A Market Framework
- US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission paper on wholesale market design Wholesale Market Design
Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Electricity market."
| The following table is compiled from various sources, across various languages. When English abbreviations or acronyms come from a non-English source, this is noted. | |||
| Entry | Source | Expression | Field |
| ELEC | English | Electricity Council | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |||
Synonym: ElectricitySynonym: electrical energy (n). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Instantaneity | Adjective: instantaneous, momentary, sudden, immediate, instant, abrupt, discontinuous, precipitous, precipitant, precipitate; subitaneous, hasty;quick as thought, quick as lightning, quick as a flash; rapid as electricity. |
Power | Pressure; conductivity; elasticity; gravity, electricity, magnetism, galvanism, voltaic electricity, voltaism, electromagnetism; atomic power, nuclear power, thermonuclear power; fuel cell; hydraulic power, water power, hydroelectric power; solar power, solar energy, solar panels; tidal power; wind power; attraction; vis inertiae, vis mortua, vis viva; potential energy, dynamic energy; dynamic friction, dynamic suction; live circuit, live rail, live wire. |
Recession | Electrical attraction, electricity, static electricity, static, static cling; magnetism, magnetic attraction; gravity, attraction of gravitation. |
Velocity | Lightning, greased lightning, light, electricity, wind; cannon ball, rocket, arrow, dart, hydrargyrum, quicksilver; telegraph, express train; torrent. |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Electricity |
| English words defined with "electricity": Animal electricity ♦ Franklinic electricity ♦ negative electricity ♦ Organic electricity ♦ Positive electricity ♦ static electricity, Statical electricity ♦ vitreous electricity, Voltaic electricity. (references) |
| Specialty definitions using "electricity": electricity generated, electricity only, electricity supplied ♦ Peak Electricity Demand. (references) |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | Doesn't it give you a shudder of electricity through you to be in the same room with me (Superman; writing credit: Jerry Siegel; Joe Shuster) I paid the electricity bill and I don't get a present (Mission Hill; writing credit: Aaron Ehasz; Andrew Kreisberg) He was a fascinating man who discovered electricity, and used it to torture children and green mountain men. And that key he tied to a kite - it opened the gates to Hell (The Simpsons; writing credit: Artur Brauner; Paul Hengge) Sorry about the electricity. The glee of the night has blown it away (Dad's Army; writing credit: David Croft; Jimmy Perry) It wastes water and electricity and because we all expect you to be doing it there in any case (The Ice Storm; writing credit: Rick Moody; James Schamus) | |
Lyrics | There's no electricity (Ice Machine In The Desert; performing artist: Brave Combo) Electricity, eye to eye (What Would Happen; performing artist: Meredith Brooks) Giving you shots of electricity every morning at 7 am (Lunatic To Love; performing artist: The Residents) It felt like electricity (You Shouldn't Kiss Me Like This; performing artist: Toby Keith) | |
Clever | Alabama: Yes, We Have Electricity (references; author: unknown) All power corrupts, but we need the electricity. (references; author: unknown) I just want to turn on the light and have it work. I don't want to know where the electricity comes from. (references; author: unknown) I don't understand Christianity, nor do I understand electricity, but I don't intend to sit in the dark until I do! (references; author: unknown) | |
Movie/TV Titles | I'm No Fool with Electricity (1970) Electricity in the Service of Man (1956) As Applied to Electronic Control Systems Basic Electricity (1943) Love and Electricity (1914) Invigorating Electricity (1910) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title |
References |
|
Books | |
Periodicals | |
Theater & Movies | |
Music |
|
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
 | Title page of: "Experiments and observations on electricity ...." by Benjamin Franklin, 1706-1790. This book was published in 1769. Library call number QC516 .F85 1769. Credit: Treasures of the Library. |  | Figure 28. Model of a machine for generating electricity based on differences of temperature between the sea surface and great depth. This "thermal machine" was devised by the physicist Georges Claude and the engineer Paul Boucherot in 1926. It was an application of Carnot's theorem and was a forerunner of the modern ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC) project. Credit: Sailing for Science - the NOAA Fleet Then and Now. |
 | Water rushes through a spillway of a large dam in Missouri. The dam generates electricity and helps control flooding. The man-made reservoir also provides water-related recreation. Credit: Norm Klopfenstein. |  | Wind generators in northwest Iowa generate electricity from the blowing wind. Credit: Lynn Betts. |
 | Southwest elevation. Measured drawing delineated by Ken Breuer, 1974. (Reproduction Number: HABS SC-377, sheet 7/14 of 15; negative number LC-USZA1-1334). Begun in 1738 for John Drayton, a prominent official and businessman in colonial South Carolina, Drayton Hall is one of the finest and best-preserved Georgian Palladian houses in the nation. Known for its symmetrical design, two-story portico (porch), and exquisite interior decorative wood and plasterwork, the house was the only plantation house on the west bank of the Ashley River not to be burned during the Civil War. Still without running water, central heat, or electricity, Drayton Hall is now a National Trust historic site. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Caption: "The Genius of Electricity," purchased by Edison at the Paris Exposition of 1889; Unknown Date; {10.387/5} (jpg). |
 | Diagrams of various electrical phenomena and title page of Experiments and observations of electricity. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Legs of dissected frogs, and various metallic apparatus used to measure what was thought to be electricity flowing in animals. Credit: Library of Congress. |
 | Scene in an auto trailer camp near Dania, Florida, where 200 cars are encamped. This is one of Florida's higher class trailer camps, the rates being $5.00 weekly including electricity. Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Some of the 200 trailers encamped at an auto-trailer camp near Dania, Florida. This is one of the better trailer camps in Florida, the rates being $5.00 weekly including electricity. Credit: Library of Congress. |
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
 |  |
| "Electricity" by Nadine Toussaint Commentary: "No description." | "Electricity in the air" by Harald Wittmaack Commentary: "...bringing you light... ;)." |
Source: photographs selected by the editor, with permission from the photographers. | |
| Play | Caption | Play | Caption |
 | Electricity; voltage; volts; power; AC; DC; current; electromagneticism; electron; galvanism; heat; hot stuff; ignition; juice; light; magneticism; neutron; positron; proton; radioactivity; service; spark; tension; utilities; energy; kilowatts. | | Volt; voltage; electricity; spark; atom; beam; fire; flare; flicker; gleam; glint; glitter; glow; hint; jot; nucleus; ray; scintilla; scintillation; scrap; sparkle; spit; trace; vestige; dangerous; glitter; glint; sparkle; sparkling. |
| Electricity; voltage; volts; power; AC; DC; current; electromagneticism; electron; galvanism; heat; hot stuff; ignition; juice; light; magneticism; neutron; positron; proton; radioactivity; service; spark; tension; utilities; energy; kilowatts. | | Electricity; voltage; volts; power; AC; DC; current; electromagneticism; electron; galvanism; heat; hot stuff; ignition; juice; light; magneticism; neutron; positron; proton; radioactivity; service; spark; tension; utilities; energy; kilowatts. |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Title | Author | Quote |
So Long, and Thanks For All the Fish | Douglas Adams | Since the Electricity Board cut him off without fail every time he paid his bill, it seemed only reasonable that they should leave him connected when he didn't |
Les Miserables | Hugo, Victor | Of an electricity gradually evolved, of a flame suddenly leaping forth, of a wandering force, of a passing wind |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Health | Fulguration involves burning Hunner's ulcers with electricity or a laser. (references) | |
The abnormal tissue found in a brain tumor can disrupt the normal flow of electricity through which brain cells communicate. (references) | ||
During a seizure, the normal, orderly pattern of electrical activity in the brain is disrupted by uncontrolled bursts of electricity. (references) | ||
Business | Nuclear electricity generation will remain state owned. (references) | |
NGC produces 6% of New Zealand's total electricity output. (references) | ||
Korean consumers are thus accustomed to low electricity bills. (references) | ||
Children | Georgia | Children received inadequate food, clothing, education, and medical care; facilities lacked heat, water, and electricity. (references) |
Paraguay | The physical facilities of the hospital lack running water, electricity, or even roofs, and the hospital is severely understaffed. (references) | |
Civil Liberties | Liberia | Television is limited to those who can purchase sets, the generators, and fuel to provide electricity. (references) |
Economic History | Netherlands | This is more than the total Dutch need of electricity. (references) |
Cote D'ivoire | It already sells electricity to Ghana, Togo and Benin. (references) | |
Georgia | Shortages of electricity have resulted in public unrest. (references) | |
Human Rights | South Africa | The villages have no running water or electricity. (references) |
Korea | The report went on to describe the camps as having no electricity or heating facilities. (references) | |
Georgia | Regional penitentiaries and pretrial detention facilities were without electricity for months. (references) | |
Indigenous People | Costa Rica | Most live in traditional communities on 22 reserves which, because of their remote location, often lack access to schools, health care, electricity, and potable water. (references) |
Minorities | Greece | Most Romani camps have no running water, electricity, garbage disposal, or sewage treatment. (references) |
Israel and the occupied territories | In 1998 the High Court of Justice ordered the Ministry of Education to provide electricity to schools in several unrecognized villages in the Negev. (references) | |
Political Economy | Bhutan | Cement and electricity are the other important exports. (references) |
IRELAND | Suppliers of electricity have fared better than those in the gas sector. (references) | |
Georgia | The public mood improved with the coming of spring and the increase in electricity supply. (references) | |
Trade | Ghana | Ghana uses 220V, 50 cycles for electricity and the metric system of measurement. (references) |
Cote D'ivoire | Côte d'Ivoire uses 220 v 50 mhz cycles for electricity and the metric system of measurement. (references) | |
Cape Verde | Standards: Cape Verde uses 220 v 50 cycles for electricity and the metric system of measurement. (references) | |
Travel | Barbados | Other: Electricity is 110 volts/50 cycles. (references) |
Kenya | Ongoing electricity outages and water rationing may elicit further demonstrations. (references) | |
Ghana | The average electricity bill for an Embassy house is approximately USD 500 per month. (references) | |
Worker Rights | Belize | Company-provided housing often lacks electricity and water. (references) |
Pakistan | Each facility also has its own water system, waste disposal system, generator for electricity, and transportation system. (references) | |
Nepal | The law permits strikes, except by employees in essential services such as water supply, electricity, and telecommunications. (references) | |
Lexicography | Devil's Dictionary | HANGMAN, n. An officer of the law charged with duties of the highest dignity and utmost gravity, and held in hereditary disesteem by a populace having a criminal ancestry. In some of the American States his functions are now performed by an electrician, as in New Jersey, where executions by electricity have recently been ordered -- the first instance known to this lexicographer of anybody questioning the expediency of hanging Jerseymen. |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| "Electricity" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 98.61% of the time. "Electricity" is used about 3,807 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 98.61% | 3,754 | 2,589 |
| Noun (proper) | 1.39% | 53 | 46,657 |
| Total | 100.00% | 3,807 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
| Country | Name | Country | Name |
| India | Surat Electricity Company Ltd. | Thailand | Electricity Generating Public Company Limited |
| United Kingdom | The Jersey Electricity Company Limited | USA | Commonwealth Electricity Company |
| (more examples...) |
Source: compiled by the editor from Icon Group International, Inc.
Expressions using "electricity": Animal electricity ♦ atmospheric electricity ♦ bring electricity to ♦ Common electricity ♦ conducting electricity ♦ conservation of electricity ♦ current electricity ♦ dynamic electricity ♦ Dynamical electricity ♦ electricity bill ♦ electricity company ♦ electricity consumption ♦ electricity generated ♦ electricity generator ♦ electricity meter ♦ electricity only ♦ electricity rate ♦ electricity rationing ♦ electricity supplied ♦ electricity supply ♦ electricity supply system ♦ exported electricity ♦ Franklinic electricity ♦ Frictional electricity ♦ generate electricity ♦ imported electricity ♦ Magnetic electricity ♦ negative electricity ♦ organic electricity ♦ positive electricity ♦ rapid as electricity ♦ resinous electricity ♦ static electricity ♦ statical electricity ♦ switch off the electricity ♦ switch on the electricity ♦ turn off the electricity ♦ turn on the electricity ♦ vitreous electricity ♦ voltaic electricity. Additional references. | |
| Hyphenated Usage | |
Beginning with "electricity": electricity-based, electricity-board, electricity-from-biomass, electricity-generating, electricity-generation, electricity-guzzling, electricity-intensive, electricity-propelled, electricity-saving, electricity-supply. | |
Ending with "electricity": hydro-electricity. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Language | Translations for "electricity"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | |
Afrikaans | elektrisiteit. (various references) | |
Albanian | elektricitet. (various references) | |
Arabic | كهرباء (electro), قطع الكهرباء (switch), تيار كهربائي (electric current), توصيل الكهرباء, علم الكهرباء. (various references) | |
Bulgarian | напрежение (effort, exertion, intension, intensity, press, pressure, push, strain, stress, stretch, suspense, tension, tensity), електричество, електрически ток (juice). (various references) | |
Catalan | electricitat. (various references) | |
Chinese | 電力 (electrical power), 電 (electric, electrical), 电 (Electric). (various references) | |
Czech | elektřina. (various references) | |
Danish | elektricitet. (various references) | |
Dutch | elektriciteit. (various references) | |
Esperanto | elektro. (various references) | |
Faeroese | ravmagn. (various references) | |
Farsi | نیروی کهرباءی , برق (Brilliance, Flash, Glaze, Glint, Scintillation, Sheen, Sparkle). (various references) | |
Finnish | sähkö (charge, electric charge). (various references) | |
French | électricité. (various references) | |
Frisian | elektrisiteit. (various references) | |
German | elektrizität. (various references) | |
Greek | Ηλεκτρισμός, φορτίο (burden, cargo, freight, jag, lading, load, onus, shipment), ηλεκτρισμόσ (juice). (various references) | |
Hebrew | חשמל. (various references) | |
Hungarian | villanyáram (juice), villamosság (juice). (various references) | |
Indonesian | listrik. (various references) | |
Italian | elettricità (power). (various references) | |
Japanese Kanji | 電気 (electric light), 電気 (light), エルピー盤 (aerogram, angel, elbow, Electone, Electra complex, electric, electric guitar, electroluminescence, electron, electronic, electronic banking, electronic cooking, electronic cottage, electronic file, electronic mail, electronic money, electronic music, electronic office, electronic sound, electronics, elegance, elegant, elegy, element, elementary, elevation, elevator, elf, elm, elocution, elven, encapsulation, enclosure, encode, encoder, encoding, encounter, encyclopedia, engage, engagement, engagement ring, engine, engine brake, engineer, engineering, engineering plastics, enjoy, erect, erection, erogenous zone, Eroica, Eros, erotic, erotic and grotesque, erotic and grotesque nonsense, erotic production, erotica, eroticism, erotism, erotomania, Herman, Hermes, ignition key, long-playing record, LP). (various references) | |
Japanese Katakana | でんき (appliances, biography, electric, electrical machinery, life story, light, romance), エレキテル . (various references) | |
Korean | 전기 (Biographic, Biographical, Biographies, Biography, Electric, Electrical). (various references) | |
Malay | listrik. (various references) | |
Manx | lectraght, electraght. (various references) | |
Norwegian | elektrisitet. (various references) | |
Papiamen | elektrisidat. (various references) | |
