Electricity and the natural world

Physiological effects

Exposure to an electric potential in the human body causes an electric current to flow through the tissues. Although the relationship between voltage and current is nonlinear, the higher the voltage, the greater the current. The beginning of sensory perception of this matter varies according to the frequency of the source and the path of the current. But it ranges from 0.1 mA to 1 mA for mains frequency electricity. However, an electric current as low as a microamp can be detected as the effect of electrical vibrations under certain conditions. If the current is high enough, it causes muscle spasms, heart tremors, and tissue burns.

The absence of any visible sign that a conductor is electrically charged makes electricity extremely dangerous. The pain caused by electric shock can be severe, which sometimes leads to electricity becoming a method of torture. Death resulting from an electric shock is called electrocution. In addition, electric shock is a means of implementing judicial rulings in some countries, although it has rarely been used recently.

Electrical phenomena in nature

Electricity is not an invention of man. The evidence for this is the possibility of observing it in multiple forms in nature, and the most prominent of these evidences is lightning. Many familiar and simple interactions, such as touch, friction, or chemical bonding, occur as a result of interactions between electric fields on the atomic scale. Some believe that the Earth’s magnetic field is caused by rotating currents in the center of the Earth, which are a natural electrical generator. Some crystals, such as quartz or even sugar, generate a potential difference at their surfaces when subjected to external pressure. This phenomenon is known as piezoelectricity, which comes from the Greek word “πιέζειν” meaning “to squeeze”. This phenomenon was discovered by Pierre Curie and Jacques Curie in 1880. This effect is mutual; When a piezoelectric material is exposed to an electric field, a small change in its physical dimensions occurs.

While some other organisms have what is called the ability to “electrostatic discharge” – that is, they generate electrical potentials themselves as a means of preying on other organisms or as a defensive weapon for them. The thunder eel is the most famous example of this, as it can detect or stun its prey by discharging high electrical voltages generated from modified muscle cells called electrocytes. All animals transmit information along cell membranes with electrically charged pulses called action potentials, which are the wave formed by an electrical discharge that moves from one area to another adjacent to it along the cell membrane of any living cell. The function of these efforts includes communication between nerve cells and muscles through the nervous system. An electric shock stimulates this system, causing muscle contraction.

Action potentials are also responsible for coordinating activities in a certain group of plants and mammals.