Actual Test Question

[Besoeker]

I inferred that their use of the word "continuous" meant a string of one load after the other - which would be a series circuit.

My thoughts too. And that's probably the answer expected.

 

[sameguy]

I had to pause on this one.

None of the choices seemed correct to me.

Which answer would you choose?

A circuit in which all the loads are connected together by one continuous source of electrical current is called a ____________ circuit.

A-AC
B-SERIES
C-PARALLEL
D-DC


JAP>

Body having jurisdiction! My go to when I don't know. I did think (D) or (B) .

 

[sameguy]

I went with series because of what they drilled into our heads during my apprenticeship.

"Current is the reference in a series circuit"

"Voltage is the reference in a parallel circuit"

Meaning in a series circuit, the current through each load, no matter what the impedance, will be the same.

Like they are spelled.
Series = e+e and i is the same.
Parallel = a+a and e is the same.

 

[sameguy]

I would say a DC circuit because AC current comes and goes.

JAP>

Complete

 

[ggunn]

And also remember you are trying to figure out the correct answer, which is not always the best or most accurate answer. It may not even be the right answer.

Actually, you are trying to figure out what the person who wrote the question thinks is the right answer. That's the only way you get credit for it.

In 9th grade our math teacher quit in the middle of the semester and they got a PE coach to fill in for the rest of the year. On his first exam he posed this question: How many feet are there in a square foot? I couldn't answer it, of course, but when I went to him later and asked him about it, he drew a square on a piece of paper and traced the perimeter counting as he went, "one... two... three... four. The answer is obviously four." Like I was the idiot, and he was serious.

 

[gadfly56]

parallel

that is the only answer where there is just one circuit

But it's not "one circuit". It's "one continuous source". For a parallel circuit, you have two continuous sources (conductors). I took "one continuous source" to mean a single conductor.

 

[K8MHZ]

AC and DC are not descriptions of circuits, they are descriptions of sources.

Only parallel and series describe circuits.

As I said before, a series circuit has the current for the reference.

The above is not in defense of a poorly worded question, it is my reasoning for my answer.

 

[LarryFine]

Like they are spelled.
Series = e+e and i is the same.
Parallel = a+a and e is the same.

a = i , right?

 

[jap]

Like they are spelled.
Series = e+e and i is the same.
Parallel = a+a and e is the same.

I have no idea what this means.

Jap>

 

[LarryFine]

Like they are spelled.
Series = e+e and i is the same.
Parallel = a+a and e is the same.

I have no idea what this means.

He's saying that the word "series" has two "e"s and one "i" in it, so that means that voltage (e) adds, while the current (i) is constant. Likewise, "parallel" contains two "a"s and one "e", so current (a this time) adds while the voltage (e again) remains the same. A remember tool.

 

[jap]

He's saying that the word "series" has two "e"s and one "i" in it, so that means that voltage (e) adds, while the current (i) is constant. Likewise, "parallel" contains two "a"s and one "e", so current (a this time) adds while the voltage (e again) remains the same. A remember tool.

It would take me longer to remember that riddle than it would the actual concept of a series and parallel circuit.

Thanks,
JAP>

 

[Strathead]

I went with series because of what they drilled into our heads during my apprenticeship.

"Current is the reference in a series circuit"

"Voltage is the reference in a parallel circuit"

Meaning in a series circuit, the current through each load, no matter what the impedance, will be the same.

but it doesn't say, "constant" it says continuous.

 

[Strathead]

AC and DC are not descriptions of circuits, they are descriptions of sources.

Only parallel and series describe circuits.

As I said before, a series circuit has the current for the reference.

The above is not in defense of a poorly worded question, it is my reasoning for my answer.

with all due respect, AC circuit or DC circuit would complete the sentence (with bad grammar) Since it has been established that the question is bad, true logic isn't applicable here.