Re: Explaining things (was battery)

[James Mackey <jmackey@HARDING.EDU>]

Ludwik Kowalski wrote:

> COMMENTS ON WHAT JOHND WROTE (see below)
>
> 1) The term EMF can be found in most textbooks.
>      The authors make it clear that EMF is not a force.
The comment was
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For starters, the thing they seem to be calling "emf"
> has for the last jillion years or so been called the
> "open-circuit voltage" or "Thevenin equivalent voltage"
> or some combination of the two, such as "Thevenin
> open-circuit voltage".
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Thevenin equivalent voltage is not a common term used in Intro Physics textbooks.
It may be common in Intro circuits courses.  I don't think that students at the intro level are going to grasp Thevenin/Norton equivalents easier than the concept labeled EMF, which most books I've resd are careful to explain is an older term which is still used for historical reasons and then differentiate Electrostatic potential from emf based on its ability to maintain a PD while maintaining significant current or supplying continuous energy.
James Mackey