OPH ALTERNATOR ELECTRICITY S uit natura IN VESTIGATIONS KATIE MARSICO OPE Lerner Publications Minneapolis
INTRODUCTION HOW COULD SCIENTISTS LIGHT UP A CITY It's September 4 1882 You're strolling through New York City when you notice a huge crowd on Pearl Street Suddenly at three o clock in the afternoon you see a flash For the first time ever roughly four hundred electric lamps are shining on Pearl Street Modern people depend on electricity to operate everything from televisions to trains Electricity is a form of energy We also rely on electricity to heat and cool buildings and of course to provide light Yet this wasn't always the case It took scientists a long time and a lot of testing to bring electricity to Pearl Street and beyond At first people didn't know what electricity was Still they noticed its effects on the world around them They mainly observed how a strange force caused certain objects to be attracted to each other Scientists asked themselves questions about this force After they finally identified it as electricity they had even more questions They wondered how electricity reacted with
Thomas Edison shows off a replica of the type of lamp used to light Pearl Street in 1882 other forces such as magnetism They also wanted to know if and how electricity could be used to do work Like detectives scientists searched for clues to investigate such mysteries During their investigations they conducted many exciting experiments These tests helped them collect data or information After reviewing their data scientists formed conclusions or answers to their questions Finally they shared what they had discovered This is called scientific inquiry It's what allowed US inventor Thomas Edison to light up Pearl Street in 1882 Like many scientists before and after him Edison changed the world by investigating electricity 5
