I have a simple circuit running off a battery powering a lightbulb (bulb A). If I add another light (bulb B) parallel to bulb A I can expect that the voltage across bulb A will _________ and bulb A will shine___________.

Question

I have a simple circuit running off a battery powering a lightbulb (bulb A). If I add another light (bulb B)  parallel to bulb A I can expect that the voltage across bulb A will _________ and bulb A will shine___________.

BlackTom AI · Accepted Answer

To analyze the effect of adding a second light bulb (bulb B) in parallel to bulb A in a simple circuit powered by a battery, we consider how parallel circuits behave and how voltage and current relate to bulbs.
Option 1: 'decrease, dimmer' — In a true parallel configuration, the voltage across each branch remains the same as the source, so bulb A’s voltage does not decrease when bulb B is added in parallel. Therefore, this option misstates the voltage and the resulting brightness.
Option 2: 'stay the same, the same as before (but the battery will run out faster)' — In parallel, each branch across the same supply voltage experiences the full battery voltage, so bulb A’s voltage is unchanged. However, adding another bulb increases the total current drawn from the battery, which makes the battery deplete faster (assuming the battery has finite capacity). This description correctly captures both the unchanged voltage across bulb A and the increased overall power consumption leading to faster battery depletion, which indirectly affects run-time.
Option 3: 'all of them' — This would imply that adding bulb B changes both voltage and brightness of bulb A in some unspecified way, or that all potential outcomes occur simultaneously, which is not accurate for a standard parallel connection where bulb A’s voltage remains constant.
Option 4: 'increase, brighter' — The voltage across bulb A does not increase merely because a second identical bulb is added in parallel. In an ideal battery and wiring scenario, the voltage stays the same and brightness of bulb A remains determined by that constant voltage, so this option is incorrect.
In summary, the key physics idea is that a parallel addition keeps the voltage across each branch equal to the source, so bulb A’s voltage stays the same, while the total current from the battery increases, reducing overall battery life. The option that states 'stay the same, the same as before (but the battery will run out faster)' correctly reflects both aspects of the situation.

Physics Honors-Henrikson Unit 11 and part of 12 Test part 1

I have a simple circuit running off a battery powering a lightbulb (bulb A). If I add another light (bulb B) parallel to bulb A I can expect that the voltage across bulb A will _ and bulb A will shine___.

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