a)suppose you walk across the carpet, touch a metal doorknob and get a shock. What charge do the particles causing charge have a negative or positive

Question

b)Use the structure of the atom to explain why these particles have the charge you identify in part a

Answer 1

a) The particles causing the shock have a negative charge.

b) Electrons have a negative charge and are located outside the nucleus of an atom in the electron cloud. When you walk across the carpet, your body may gain extra electrons from friction with the carpet. When you touch a metal doorknob, the excess electrons jump from your body to the doorknob, causing a brief flow of electricity and a shock. Therefore, the extra electrons that cause the shock have a negative charge.