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complications07
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Homework Statement
A wire melts in the middle when the current running through it reaches I(critical) (unless there is a kink in the wire). Discuss why the middle of the wire gets hotter than the ends.
The Attempt at a Solution
Is it because the 2 pastic posts to which the ends of the wire are connected absorb most of the heat generated by the current passing through the wire? As a result, the hottest part of the wire is the middle section because it is the furthest away from the plastic posts and the wire, therefore, melts and snaps in the middle due to the heat of the current passing through it.
Or does the answer have something more to do with potential and kinetic energy of the molecules?
Thx!