Series & parallel circuit - voltage & resistance - explanation?

Question

1. Why is the total voltage in a series circuit the sum of the voltage of each component?

2. Why is the total voltage in a parallel circuit equal in each component?

3. Why is the the reciprocal of the combined resistance is equal to the sum of the reciprocal of the individual resistances?

An in-depth answer is not necessary, but if it would better my understanding, then please keep it not too confusing and technical. I'm not too good with electronics and physics (not in my syllabus till next year). And I know that I needn't know the reasons behind these things, but it would make it easier for me to remember if I understood them.

Also, does resistance only effect current or current AND voltage? Because that would make slightly more sense with my questions. But in one of my revision books, they showed this experiment where the voltage didn't change, but the current increased as the resistance decreased. So doesn't that show that resistance only effects current but not voltage?

Answer 1

Physics is a list of observations of how things work, it seldom explains why they work the way they do.

For example:

voltage = resistance X current ( V = I * R )

current = voltage divided by resistance  ( I = V / R )

resistance = voltage divided by current ( R = V / I )

Charge tends to move from a higher level to a lower level until all the charge is distributed equally.

(Just as water flows from higher to lower levels.)

Charge flows from the high side of a voltage source to the lower side by whatever path is available.

1.  In a series circuit, current only has one path, it flows through resistors one at a time.

2.  In a parallel circuit, there are multiple paths, so current flows through each path until, it flows through all resistors at the same time.

3.  resistance is defined as voltage divided by current ( R = V / I ).  So saying resistance only effects current, not voltage is the same as saying green is only made of yellow, not yellow and blue.

In a circuit, a battery may maintain a voltage until enough charge has been drained from it, making it appear there is no voltage drop.

Answer 2

Why?

No one knows why. That's the way the world is! Why do we have gravity? Why is there matter at all? No one knows.

All we can do is describe the physical world in ways that make sense and that allow us to predict other parts of the physical world.

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