What is the resistance between two resistors?

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Homework Help Overview

The discussion revolves around determining the resistance between two resistors, specifically inquiring about their configuration (series or parallel) and how to calculate the total resistance based on their arrangement. The subject area is electrical circuits and resistor combinations.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Assumption checking, Problem interpretation

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • Participants explore whether the resistors are in series or parallel, questioning the implications of each configuration. There are attempts to apply formulas for calculating total resistance and discussions about the voltage across the resistors.

Discussion Status

The discussion is ongoing, with participants offering hints and suggestions for visualizing the circuit. Some guidance has been provided regarding the rules for combining resistors, but there remains confusion about the arrangement and the calculations involved.

Contextual Notes

Participants express uncertainty about the number of resistors involved, with some mistakenly referring to three resistors instead of two. There is also mention of homework constraints and the need for clarity in the circuit's configuration.

  • #31
There are two problems that students frequently manifest dealing with these elementary (in this case very elementary) circuit problems. One is they cannot recognise a topology. No longer recognise the same circuit when it is redrawn in a slightly different looking way. What can I say? - if this were an underground railway system how many ways can you go from P to Q? What do you have to go through?

(Students are lucky they rarely meet nonplanar circuits!)

The other point is that they are too formulaic. They have been intimidated and made tense and rigid by formulae. Instead think physically! When you have things in parallel I recommend don't think of resistances, think of conductances. You have a voltage across two resistors, i.e. mediocre conductors, in parallel, in this case of equal conductance. If one for a given voltage across it will carry a certain current, how much current will the other with the same conductance and the same voltage across it carry?

After which what will be the total current?...

Not really a 30+ post problem.

Similar thinking applies in the cases of capacitance.
 
Last edited:

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