Sunday 9 December 2018

batteries - Can a 12V battery give you a shock or not?


I am reading a book called "Make: Electronics" and, on page 9, it says:


"Anyone who has dropped an adjustable wrench across the bare terminals of a car battery will tell you that short circuits can be dramatic at a "mere" 12 volts, if the battery is big enough"



They also show this image to exemplify the point above:


enter image description here


I have also watched this video, in which the guy touches both positive and negative parts of a 12V battery with his hand to see if he gets a shock, but, as you can see, nothing happens.


Having said that, I have 2 questions:


1) What does the size of the battery have to do with anything? The first statement says that short circuits can be "dramatic (...) if the battery is big enough". Why? For me the only difference between a small 12V battery and a big 12V battery is how long it can give you a shock for, but both would give you the same shock (ie, both would make the same current pass through your body).


2) Why didn't the guy in the video get a shock? He claimed that it is because the resistance of his hand is too high, which makes sense, but then why does the book quote (and its picture) make it look like you will for sure get a shock?




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