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Make: Electronics
Make: Electronics
Learning by Discovery

Charles Platt
with photographs and illustrations by the author

Beijing • Cambridge • Farnham • Köln • Sebastopol • Taipei • Tokyo

Make: Electronics
by Charles Platt

Copyright © Helpful Corporation. All rights reserved.

Printed in Canada.
Published by O’Reilly Media, Inc., 1005 Gravenstein Highway North, Sebastopol, CA 95472.
O’Reilly Media books may be purchased for educational, business, or sales promotional use. Online editions are also avail-
able for most titles (my.safaribooksonline.com). For more information, contact our corporate/institutional sales department:
800-998-9938 or [email protected].

Editors: Dale Dougherty and Brian Jepson

Development Editor: Gareth Branwyn
Production Editor: Rachel Monaghan
Technical Editor: Andrew “Bunnie” Huang
Copyeditor: Nancy Kotary
Proofreader: Nancy Reinhardt
Indexer: Julie Hawks
Cover Designer: Mark Paglietti
Interior Designer: Ron Bilodeau
Illustrator/Photographer: Charles Platt
Cover Photographer: Marc de Vinck

Print History:
December 2009: First Edition.

The O’Reilly logo is a registered trademark of O’Reilly Media, Inc. Many of the designations used by manufacturers and
sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks. Where those designations appear in this book, and O’Reilly
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While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the publisher and author assume no responsibility
for errors or omissions, or for damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein.

ISBN: 978-0-596-15374-8
[TI]
For my dearest Erico
 Contents

Preface.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ix

1. Experiencing Electricity.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Shopping List: Experiments 1 Through 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
Experiment 1: Taste the Power!.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Experiment 2: Let’s Abuse a Battery!.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Experiment 3: Your First Circuit. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Experiment 4: Varying the Voltage.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Experiment 5: Let’s Make a Battery.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

2. Switching Basics and More.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Shopping List: Experiments 6 Through 11.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
Experiment 6: Very Simple Switching.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43
Experiment 7: Relay-Driven LEDs.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
Experiment 8: A Relay Oscillator.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Experiment 9: Time and Capacitors.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Experiment 10: Transistor Switching.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Experiment 11: A Modular Project.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

3. Getting Somewhat More Serious.. . . . . . . . . 95

Shopping List: Experiments 12 Through 15.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Experiment 12: Joining Two Wires Together.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104
Experiment 13: Broil an LED.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 114
Experiment 14: A Pulsing Glow.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117
Experiment 15: Intrusion Alarm Revisited.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

vii


4. Chips, Ahoy!.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147

Shopping List: Experiments 16 Through 24.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
Experiment 16: Emitting a Pulse.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153
Experiment 17: Set Your Tone.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162
Experiment 18: Reaction Timer.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170
Experiment 19: Learning Logic. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 181
Experiment 20: A Powerful Combination.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
Experiment 21: Race to Place.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205
Experiment 22: Flipping and Bouncing.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 211
Experiment 23: Nice Dice.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 214
Experiment 24: Intrusion Alarm Completed.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 223

5. What Next?.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227

Shopping List: Experiments 25 Through 36.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
Customizing Your Work Area.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228
Reference Sources.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 233
Experiment 25: Magnetism.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236
Experiment 26: Tabletop Power Generation.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239
Experiment 27: Loudspeaker Destruction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242
Experiment 28: Making a Coil React.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246
Experiment 29: Filtering Frequencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
Experiment 30: Fuzz. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257
Experiment 31: One Radio, No Solder,
No Power.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262
Experiment 32: A Little Robot Cart.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 268
Experiment 33: Moving in Steps.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284
Experiment 34: Hardware Meets Software.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293
Experiment 35: Checking the Real World.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 306
Experiment 36: The Lock, Revisited.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311
In Closing.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317

Appendix. Online Retail Sources and Manufac-

turers.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319

Index. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325

viii Contents
 Preface

How to Have Fun with This Book

Everyone uses electronic devices, but most of us don’t really know what goes
on inside them.
Of course, you may feel that you don’t need to know. If you can drive a car
without understanding the workings of an internal combustion engine, pre-
sumably you can use an iPod without knowing anything about integrated cir-
cuits. However, understanding some basics about electricity and electronics
can be worthwhile for three reasons:
• By learning how technology works, you become better able to control
your world instead of being controlled by it. When you run into problems,
you can solve them instead of feeling frustrated by them.
• Learning about electronics can be fun—so long as you approach the pro-
cess in the right way. The tools are relatively cheap, you can do all the work
on a tabletop, and it doesn’t consume a lot of time (unless you want it to).
• Knowledge of electronics can enhance your value as an employee or per-
haps even lead to a whole new career.

Learning by Discovery
Most introductory guides begin with definitions and facts, and gradually get
to the point where you can follow instructions to build a simple circuit.
This book works the other way around. I want you to start putting components
together right away. After you see what happens, you’ll figure out what’s go-
ing on. I believe this process of learning by discovery creates a more powerful
and lasting experience.

ix
How Hard Will It Be?

Learning by discovery occurs in serious research, when scientists notice an un-

usual phenomenon that cannot be explained by current theory, and they start
to investigate it in an effort to explain it. This may ultimately lead to a better
Stay Within the Limits! understanding of the world.
Although I believe that everything We’re going to be doing the same thing, although obviously on a much less
suggested in this book is safe, I’m as-
ambitious level.
suming that you will stay within the
limits that I suggest. Please always Along the way, you will make some mistakes. This is good. Mistakes are the
follow the instructions and pay best of all learning processes. I want you to burn things out and mess things
attention to the warnings, denoted
up, because this is how you learn the limits of components and materials.
by the icon you see here. If you go
beyond the limits, you will expose Since we’ll be using low voltages, there’ll be no chance of electrocution, and
yourself to unnecessary risks. so long as you limit the flow of current in the ways I’ll describe, there will be no
risk of burning your fingers or starting fires.

Figure P-1. Learning by discovery allows you to start building simple circuits right away,
using a handful of cheap components, a few batteries, and some alligator clips.

How Hard Will It Be?

I assume that you’re beginning with no prior knowledge of electronics. So,
the first few experiments will be ultra-simple, and you won’t even use solder
or prototyping boards to build a circuit. You’ll be holding wires together with
alligator clips.
Very quickly, though, you’ll be experimenting with transistors, and by the end
of Chapter 2, you will have a working circuit that has useful applications.
I don’t believe that hobby electronics has to be difficult to understand. Of
course, if you want to study electronics more formally and do your own circuit
design, this can be challenging. But in this book, the tools and supplies will be
inexpensive, the objectives will be clearly defined, and the only math you’ll
need will be addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, and the ability to
move decimal points from one position to another.

x Preface
 Fundamentals

Moving Through This Book

Basically there are two ways to present information in a book of this kind: in
tutorials and in reference sections. I’m going to use both of these methods.
You’ll find the tutorials in sections headed as follows:
• Shopping Lists
• Using Tools
• Experiments
You’ll find reference sections under the following headings:
• Fundamentals
• Theory
• Background
How you use the sections is up to you. You can skip many of the reference
sections and come back to them later. But if you skip many of the tutorials,
this book won’t be of much use to you. Learning by discovery means that you
absolutely, positively have to do some hands-on work, and this in turn means
that you have to buy some basic components and play with them. You will
gain very little by merely imagining that you are doing this.
It’s easy and inexpensive to buy what you need. In almost any urban or sub-
urban area in the United States, chances are you live near a store that sells
electronic components and some basic tools to work with them. I am referring,
of course, to RadioShack franchises. Some Shacks have more components than
others, but almost all of them have the basics that you’ll need.
You can also visit auto supply stores such as AutoZone and Pep Boys for basics
such as hookup wire, fuses, and switches, while stores such as Ace Hardware,
Home Depot, and Lowe’s will sell you tools.
If you prefer to buy via mail order, you can easily find everything you need by
searching online. In each section of the book, I’ll include the URLs of the most
popular supply sources, and you’ll find a complete list of URLs in the appendix.

Fundamentals
Mail-ordering components and tools
Here are the primary mail-order sources that I use myself online:
http://www.radioshack.com
RadioShack, a.k.a. The Shack. For tools and components. Not always the
cheapest, but the site is easy and convenient, and some of the tools are
exactly what you need.
http://www.mouser.com
Mouser Electronics.
http://www.digikey.com
Digi-Key Corporation.

Preface xi
Fundamentals

http://www.newark.com
Newark.
Mouser, Digi-Key, and Newark are all good sources for components, usually
requiring no minimum quantities.
http://www.allelectronics.com
All Electronics Corporation. A narrower range of components, but specifi-
cally aimed at the hobbyist, with kits available.
http://www.ebay.com
You can find surplus parts and bargains here, but you may have to try
several eBay Stores to get what you want. Those based in Hong Kong are
often very cheap, and I’ve found that they are reliable.
http://www.mcmaster.com
McMaster-Carr. Especially useful for high-quality tools.
Lowe’s and Home Depot also allow you to shop online.

Figure P-2. You’ll find no shortage of parts, tools, kits, and gadgets online.

xii Preface
 Safari® Books Online

Companion Kits
Maker Shed (www.makershed.com) offers a
number of Make: Electronics companion kits,
both toolkits and bundles of the various
components used in the book’s experi-
ments. This is a simple, convenient, and cost-­effective way of getting all the
tools and materials you need to do the projects in this book.

Comments and Questions

Please address comments and questions concerning this book to the publisher:
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Preface xiii
 Experiencing Electricity 1
I want you to get a taste for electricity—literally!—in the first experiment. This In this chapter
first chapter of the book will show you:
Shopping List: Experiments 1 Through 5
• How to understand and measure electricity and resistance Experiment 1: Taste the Power!
• How to handle and connect components without overloading, damaging, Experiment 2: Let’s Abuse a Battery!
or destroying them Experiment 3: Your First Circuit
Even if you have some prior knowledge of electronics, you should try these Experiment 4: Varying the Voltage
experiments before you venture on to the rest of the book. Experiment 5: Let’s Make a Battery

Shopping List: Experiments 1 Through 5

Maker Shed (www.makershed.com)
If you want to limit your number of shopping trips or online purchases, look has put together a series of Make:
ahead in the book for additional shopping lists, and combine them to make Electronics companion kits. These in-
one bulk purchase. clude all of the tools and components
used in book’s experiments. This is a
In this first chapter, I will give you part numbers and sources for every tool and quick, simple, and cost-effective way
component that we’ll be using. Subsequently, I won’t expect you to need such of getting everything you need to
specific information, because you will have gained experience searching for complete the projects in this book.
items on your own.

Tools
Small pliers
RadioShack Kronus 4.5-inch, part number 64-2953 or Xcelite 4-inch mini
long-nose pliers, model L4G.
Or similar. See Figures 1-1 through 1-3. Look for these tools in hardware
stores and the sources listed in the preface. The brand is unimportant.
After you use them for a while, you’ll develop your own preferences. In
particular, you have to decide whether you like spring-loaded handles. If
you decide you don’t, you’ll need a second pair of pliers to pull the springs
out of the first.

1
Shopping List: Experiments 1 Through 5

Wire cutters
RadioShack Kronus 4.5-inch, part number 64-2951, or Stanley 7-inch
model 84-108.
Or similar. Use them for cutting copper wire, not harder metals (Figure 1-4).

Figure 1-1. Generic long-nosed Figure 1-2. Longer-nosed pliers: Figure 1-3. Sharp-pointed pliers Figure 1-4. Wire cutters, some-
pliers are your most fundamen- these are useful for reaching into are designed for making jewelry, times known as side cutters, are
tal tool for gripping, bending, tiny spaces. but are also useful for grabbing essential.
and picking things up after you tiny components.
drop them.

Multimeter
Extech model EX410 or BK Precision model 2704-B or Amprobe model
5XP-A.
Or similar. Because electricity is invisible, we need a tool to visualize the
pressure and flow, and a meter is the only way. A cheap meter will be suf-
ficient for your initial experiments. If you buy online, try to check customer
reviews, because reliability may be a problem for cheap meters. You can
shop around for retailers offering the best price. Don’t forget to search on
eBay.
The meter must be digital—don’t get the old-fashioned analog kind with
a needle that moves across a set of printed scales. This book assumes that
you are looking at a digital display.
I suggest that you do not buy an autoranging meter. “Autoranging” sounds
useful—for example, when you want to check a 9-volt battery, the meter
figures out for itself that you are not trying to measure hundreds of volts,
nor fractions of a volt. The trouble is that this can trick you into making
errors. What if the battery is almost dead? Then you may be measuring
a fraction of a volt without realizing it. The only indication will be an eas-
ily overlooked “m” for “millivolts” beside the large numerals of the meter
display.

Download at WoweBook.com

2 Chapter 1
 Shopping List: Experiments 1 Through 5

On a manual-ranging meter, you select the range, and if the source that
you are measuring is outside of that range, the meter tells you that you
made an error. I prefer this. I also get impatient with the time it takes for
the autoranging feature to figure out the appropriate range each time I
make a measurement. But it’s a matter of personal preference. See Figures
1-5 through 1-7 for some examples of multimeters.

Figure 1-5. You can see by the wear and Figure 1-6. Mid-priced RadioShack meter, Figure 1-7. An autoranging meter from
tear that this is my own favorite meter. which has the basic features; however, Extech offers basic functions, plus a tem-
It has all the necessary basic features the dual purpose for each dial position, perature probe, which may be useful to
and can also measure capacitance (the selected with the SELECT button, may be check whether components such as power
F section, for Farads). It can also check confusing. This is an autoranging meter. supplies are running unduly hot.
transistors. You have to choose the ranges
manually.

Supplies
Batteries
9-volt battery. Quantity: 1.
AA batteries, 1.5 volts each. Quantity: 6.
The batteries should be disposable alkaline, the cheapest available, be-
cause we may destroy some of them. You should absolutely not use re-
chargeable batteries in Experiments 1 and 2.
Figure 1-8. Snap connector for a 9-volt
Battery holders and connectors battery.
Snap connector for 9-volt battery, with wires attached (Figure 1-8).
Quantity: 1. RadioShack part number 270-325 or similar. Any snap con-
nector that has wires attached will do.
Battery holder for single AA cell, with wires attached (Figure 1-9). Quan-
tity: 1. RadioShack part number 270-401 or Mouser.com catalog number
12BH410-GR, or similar; any single-battery holder that has thin wires at-
tached will do.
Figure 1-9. Single AA-sized battery carrier
with wires.

Experiencing Electricity 3
Shopping List: Experiments 1 Through 5

Battery holder for four AA cells, with wires attached (Figure 1-10). Quan-
tity: 1. All Electronics catalog number BH-342 or RadioShack part 270-391
or similar.
Alligator clips
Vinyl-insulated. Quantity: at least 6. All Electronics catalog number ALG-28
or RadioShack part number 270-1545 or similar (Figure 1-11).

Components
Figure 1-10. Battery carrier for four AA
You may not know what some of these items are, or what they do. Just look
cells, to be installed in series, delivering 6 for the part numbers and descriptions, and match them with the photographs
volts. shown here. Very quickly, in the learning by discovery process, all will be revealed.
Fuses
Automotive-style, mini-blade type, 3 amps. Quantity: 3. RadioShack part
number 270-1089, or Bussmann part ATM-3, available from automotive
parts suppliers such as AutoZone (Figure 1-12).
Or similar. A blade-type fuse is easier to grip with alligator clips than a
round cartridge fuse.

Figure 1-11. Alligator clips inside vinyl Potentiometers

sheaths, which reduce the chance of ac- Panel-mount, single-turn, 2K linear, 0.1 watt minimum. Quantity: 2. Alpha
cidental short circuits. part RV170F-10-15R1-B23 or BI Technologies part P160KNPD-2QC25B2K,
from Mouser.com or other component suppliers (Figure 1-13).
Or similar. The “watt” rating tells you how much power this component
can handle. You don’t need more than 0.5 watts.
Resistors
Assortment 1/4-watt minimum, various values but must include 470 ohms,
1K, and 2K or 2.2K. Quantity: at least 100. RadioShack part number 271-312.
Or search eBay for “resistor assorted.”

Figure 1-12. A 3-amp fuse intended primar- Light-emitting diodes (LEDs)

ily for automotive use, shown here larger Any size or color (Figures 1-14 and 1-15). Quantity: 10. RadioShack part num-
than actual size. ber 276-1622 or All Spectrum Electronics part K/LED1 from Mouser.com.
Or similar. Just about any LEDs will do for these first experiments.

Figure 1-13. Potentiometers come in many Figure 1-14. Typical 5-mm diameter light- Figure 1-15. Jumbo-sized LED (1 cm
shapes and sizes, with different lengths of emitting diode (LED). diameter) is not necessarily brighter or
shafts intended for different types of knobs. more expensive. For most of the experi-
For our purposes, any style will do, but the ments in this book, buy whatever LEDs
larger-sized ones are easier to play with. you like the look of.

4 Chapter 1
 Experiment 1: Taste the Power!

Experiment 1: Taste the Power!

Can you taste electricity? Maybe not, but it feels as if you can.
No More Than 9 Volts
You will need:
A 9-volt battery won’t hurt you. But
• 9-volt battery do not try this experiment with a
higher-voltage battery or a larger
• Snap connector for battery terminals battery that can deliver more cur-
• Multimeter rent. Also, if you have metal braces
on your teeth, be very careful not to
touch them with the battery.
Procedure
Moisten your tongue and touch the tip of it to the metal terminals of a 9-volt
battery. The sudden sharp tingle that you feel is caused by electricity flowing
from one terminal of the battery (Figure 1-16), through the moisture on and
in your tongue, to the other terminal. Because the skin of your tongue is very
thin (it’s actually a mucus membrane) and the nerves are close to the surface,
you can feel the electricity very easily.
Now stick out your tongue, dry the tip of it very thoroughly with a tissue, and
repeat the experiment without allowing your tongue to become moist again.
You should feel less of a tingle.
What’s happening here? We’re going to need a meter to find out.

Tools
Setting up your meter
Check the instructions that came with the meter to find out whether you have
to install a battery in it, or whether a battery is preinstalled. Figure 1-16. Step 1 in the process of learn-
ing by discovery: the 9-volt tongue test.
Most meters have removable wires, known as leads (pronounced “leeds”).
Most meters also have three sockets on the front, the leftmost one usually be-
ing reserved to measure high electrical currents (flows of electricity). We can
ignore that one for now.
The leads will probably be black and red. The black wire plugs into a socket
labeled “COM” or “Common.” Plug the red one into the socket labeled “V” or
“volts.” See Figures 1-17 through 1-20.
The other ends of the leads terminate in metal spikes known as probes, which
you will be touching to components when you want to make electrical mea-
surements. The probes detect electricity; they don’t emit it in significant quan-
tities. Therefore, they cannot hurt you unless you poke yourself with their
sharp ends.
If your meter doesn’t do autoranging, each position on the dial will have a
number beside it. This number means “no higher than.” For instance if you
want to check a 6-volt battery, and one position on the voltage section of the Figure 1-17. The black lead plugs into
dial is numbered 2 and the next position is numbered 20, position 2 means the Common (COM) socket, and the
“no higher than 2 volts.” You have to go to the next position, which means “no red lead plugs into the red socket that’s
higher than 20 volts.” almost always on the righthand side of a
multimeter.

Experiencing Electricity 5
Experiment 1: Taste the Power!

If you make a mistake and try to measure something inappropriate, the meter
will show you an error message such as “E” or “L.” Turn the dial and try again.

Figure 1-18 Figure 1-19 Figure 1-20. To measure resistance and

voltage, plug the black lead into the Com-
mon socket and the red lead into the Volts
socket. Almost all meters have a separate
socket where you must plug the red lead
when you measure large currents in amps,
but we’ll be dealing with this later.

Fundamentals
Ohms
We measure distance in miles or kilometers, weight in pounds A material that has very high resistance to electricity is
or kilograms, temperature in Fahrenheit or Centigrade—and known as an insulator. Most plastics, including the colored
electrical resistance in ohms. The ohm is an international unit. sheaths around wires, are insulators.
The Greek omega symbol (Ω) is used to indicate ohms, as A material with very low resistance is a conductor. Metals
shown in Figures 1-21 and 1-22. Letter K (or alternatively, such as copper, aluminum, silver, and gold are excellent
KΩ) means a kilohm, which is 1,000 ohms. Letter M (or MΩ) conductors.
means a megohm, which is 1,000,000 ohms.

Number of Usually Abbreviated as

ohms expressed as
1,000 ohms 1 kilohm 1KΩ or 1K
10,000 ohms 10 kilohms 10KΩ or 10K
100,000 ohms 100 kilohms 100KΩ or 100K
1,000,000 ohms 1 megohm 1MΩ or 1M
Figure 1-21. The omega
10,000,000 ohms 10 megohms 10MΩ or 10M symbol is used inter- Figure 1-22. You’ll find it printed
nationally to indicate or written in a wide variety of
resistance on ohms. styles.

6 Chapter 1
 Experiment 1: Taste the Power!

Procedure
We’re going to use the meter to discover the electrical resistance of your
tongue. First, set your meter to measure resistance. If it has autoranging, look
to see whether it is displaying a K, meaning kilohms, or M, meaning megohms.
If you have to set the range manually, begin with no less than 100,000 ohms
(100K). See Figures 1-23 through 1-25.
Touch the probes to your tongue, about an inch apart. Note the reading,
which should be around 50K. Now put aside the probes, stick out your tongue,
and use a tissue to dry it very carefully and thoroughly. Without allowing your
tongue to become moist again, repeat the test, and the reading should be
higher. Finally, press the probes against the skin of your hand or arm: you may Figure 1-23
get no reading at all, until you moisten your skin.

When your skin is moist (for instance, if you perspire), its electrical resistance de-
creases. This principle is used in lie detectors, because someone who knowingly tells
a lie, under conditions of stress, tends to perspire.

A 9-volt battery contains chemicals that liberate electrons (particles of electric-

ity), which want to flow from one terminal to the other as a result of a chemical
reaction inside it. Think of the cells inside a battery as being like two water
tanks—one of them full, the other empty. If they are connected with a pipe,
water flows between them until their levels are equal. Figure 1-26 may help
you visualize this. Similarly, when you open up an electrical pathway between
the two sides of a battery, electrons flow between them, even if the pathway Figure 1-24
consists only of the moisture on your tongue.
Electrons flow more easily through some substances (such as a moist tongue)
than others (such as a dry tongue).

Figure 1-25. To measure ohms, turn the

dial to the ohm (omega) symbol. On an
autoranging meter, you can then press
the Range button repeatedly to display
different ranges of resistance, or simply
touch the probes to a resistance and wait
for the meter to choose a range auto-
matically. A manual meter requires you to
select the range with the dial (you should
set it to 100K or higher, to measure skin
Figure 1-26. Think of the cells in a battery as being like two cylinders: one full of water, the resistance). If you don’t get a meaningful
other empty. Open a connection between the cylinders, and the water will flow until the reading, try a different range.
levels are equal on both sides. The less resistance in the connection, the faster the flow
will be.

Experiencing Electricity 7
Experiment 1: Taste the Power!

Background
The man who discovered resistance
Georg Simon Ohm, pictured in Figure
1-27, was born in Bavaria in 1787 and
worked in obscurity for much of his
life, studying the nature of electricity
using metal wire that he had to make
for himself (you couldn’t truck on
down to Home Depot for a spool of
hookup wire back in the early 1800s).
Despite his limited resources and in-
adequate mathematical abilities, Ohm
was able to demonstrate in 1827 that
the electrical resistance of a conduc-
tor such as copper varied in propor-
tion with its area of cross-section,
and the current flowing through it is
proportional to the voltage applied to
it, as long as temperature is held con-
stant. Fourteen years later, the Royal Figure 1-27. Georg Simon Ohm, after
Society in London finally recognized being honored for his pioneering work,
the significance of his contribution most of which he pursued in relative
and awarded him the Copley Medal. obscurity.
Figure 1-28. Modifying the tongue test to
show that a shorter distance, with lower Today, his discovery is known as
resistance, allows greater flow of electric- Ohm’s Law.
ity, and a bigger zap.

Further Investigation
Attach the snap-on terminal cap (shown earlier in Figure 1-8) to the 9-volt bat-
tery. Take the two wires that are attached to the cap and hold them so that the
bare ends are just a few millimeters apart. Touch them to your tongue. Now
separate the ends of the wires by a couple of inches, and touch them to your
tongue again. (See Figure 1-28.) Notice any difference?
Use your meter to measure the electrical resistance of your tongue, this time
varying the distance between the two probes. When electricity travels through
a shorter distance, it encounters less total resistance. As a result, the current
(the flow of electricity per second) increases. You can try a similar experiment
on your arm, as shown in Figure 1-29.
Use your meter to test the electrical resistance of water. Dissolve some salt in
Figure 1-29. Moisten your skin before trying the water, and test it again. Now try measuring the resistance of distilled water
to measure its resistance. You should find (in a clean glass).
that the resistance goes up as you move
the meter probes farther apart. The resis- The world around you is full of materials that conduct electricity with varying
tance is proportional to the distance. amounts of resistance.

8 Chapter 1
 Experiment 2: Let’s Abuse a Battery!

Cleanup and Recycling

Your battery should not have been damaged or significantly discharged by
this experiment. You’ll be able to use it again.
Remember to switch off your meter before putting it away.

Experiment 2: Let’s Abuse a Battery!

To get a better feeling for electrical power, you’re going to do what most books
tell you not to do. You’re going to short out a battery. A short circuit is a direct
connection between the two sides of a power source.

Short Circuits
Short circuits can be dangerous. Do not short out a power outlet in your home:
there’ll be a loud bang, a bright flash, and the wire or tool that you use will be par- Figure 1-30. Anyone who has dropped an
tially melted, while flying particles of melted metal can burn you or blind you. adjustable wrench across the bare termi-
nals of a car battery will tell you that short
If you short out a car battery, the flow of current is so huge that the battery might circuits can be dramatic at a “mere” 12
even explode, drenching you in acid (Figure 1-30). volts, if the battery is big enough.
Lithium batteries are also dangerous. Never short-circuit a lithium battery: it can
catch fire and burn you (Figure 1-31).
Use only an alkaline battery in this experiment, and only a single AA cell (Figure
1-32). You should also wear safety glasses in case you happen to have a defective
battery.

You will need:

• 1.5-volt AA battery
Figure 1-31. The low internal resistance of
• Single-battery carrier
lithium batteries (which are often used in
• 3-amp fuse laptop computers) allows high currents to
flow, with unexpected results. Never fool
• Safety glasses (regular eyeglasses or sunglasses will do) around with lithium batteries!

Procedure
Use an alkaline battery. Do not use any kind of rechargeable battery.
Put the battery into a battery holder that’s designed for a single battery and
has two thin insulated wires emerging from it, as shown in Figure 1-32. Do not
use any other kind of battery holder.
Use an alligator clip to connect the bare ends of the wires, as shown in Figure
1-32. There will be no spark, because you are using only 1.5 volts. Wait one
minute, and you’ll find that the wires are getting hot. Wait another minute, and Figure 1-32. Shorting out an alkaline bat-
the battery, too, will be hot. tery can be safe if you follow the directions
precisely. Even so, the battery is liable to
become too hot to touch comfortably.
Don’t try this with any type of recharge-
able battery.

Experiencing Electricity 9
Experiment 2: Let’s Abuse a Battery!

The heat is caused by electricity flowing through the wires and through the
electrolyte (the conductive fluid) inside the battery. If you’ve ever used a hand
pump to force air into a bicycle tire, you know that the pump gets warm. Elec-
tricity behaves in much the same way. You can imagine the electricity being
composed of particles (electrons) that make the wire hot as they push through
it. This isn’t a perfect analogy, but it’s close enough for our purposes.
Water level Chemical reactions inside the battery create electrical pressure. The correct
name for this pressure is voltage, which is measured in volts and is named after
Alessandro Volta, an electrical pioneer.
Voltage Going back to the water analogy: the height of the water in a tank is propor-
(pressure) Amperage
(flow)
tionate to the pressure of the water, and comparable to voltage. Figure 1-33
may help you to visualize this.
But volts are only half of the story. When electrons flow through a wire, the
Resistance
flow is known as amperage, named after yet another electrical pioneer, André-
Marie Ampère. The flow is also generally known as current. It’s the current—
Figure 1-33. Think of voltage as pressure,
the amperage—that generates the heat.
and amperes as flow.

Background
Why didn’t your tongue get hot?
When you touched the 9-volt battery to your tongue, you felt a tingle, but no
perceptible heat. When you shorted out a battery, you generated a noticeable
amount of heat, even though you used a lower voltage. How can we explain
this?
The electrical resistance of your tongue is very high, which reduces the flow of
electrons. The resistance of a wire is very low, so if there’s only a wire connect-
ing the two terminals of the battery, more current will pass through it, creating
more heat. If all other factors remain constant:
• Lower resistance allows more current to flow (Figure 1-34).
• The heat generated by electricity is proportional to the amount of electric-
ity (the current) that flows.
Here are some other basic concepts:
• The flow of electricity per second is measured in amperes, or amps.
• The pressure of electricity causes the flow, measured in volts.
• The resistance to the flow is measured in ohms.
Figure 1-34. Larger resistance results in • A higher resistance restricts the current.
smaller flow—but if you increase the pres- • A higher voltage overcomes resistance and increases the current.
sure, it may overcome the resistance and
increase the flow.

If you’re wondering exactly how much current flows between the terminals
of a battery when you short it out, that’s a difficult question to answer. If you
try to use your multimeter to measure it, you’re liable to blow the fuse inside
the meter. Still, you can use your very own 3-amp fuse, which we can sacrifice
because it didn’t cost very much.

10 Chapter 1
 Experiment 2: Let’s Abuse a Battery!

First inspect the fuse very carefully, using a magnifying glass if you have one.
You should see a tiny S-shape in the transparent window at the center of the
fuse. That S is a thin section of metal that melts easily.
Remove the battery that you short-circuited. It is no longer useful for anything,
and should be recycled if possible. Put a fresh battery into the battery carrier,
connect the fuse as shown in Figure 1-35, and take another look. You should
see a break in the center of the S shape, where the metal melted almost in-
stantly. Figure 1-36 shows the fuse before you connected it, and Figure 1-37
depicts a blown fuse. This is how a fuse works: it melts to protect the rest of
the circuit. That tiny break inside the fuse stops any more current from flowing. Figure 1-35. When you attach both wires to
the fuse, the little S-shaped element inside
will melt almost instantly.
Fundamentals
Volt basics
Electrical pressure is measured in volts. The volt is an international unit. A millivolt
is 1/1,000 of a volt.

Number of volts Usually expressed as Abbreviated as

0.001 volts 1 millivolt 1 mV
0.01 volts 10 millivolts 10 mV
0.1 volts 100 millivolts 100 mV
1 volt 1,000 millivolts 1V Figure 1-36. A 3-amp fuse, before its
element was melted by a single 1.5-volt
battery.
Ampere basics
We measure electrical flow in amperes, or amps. The ampere is an international
unit, often referred to as an “amp.” A milliamp is 1/1,000 of an ampere.

Number of amperes Usually expressed as Abbreviated as

0.001 amps 1 milliamp 1 mA
0.01 amps 10 milliamps 10 mA
0.1 amps 100 milliamps 100 mA
1 amp 1,000 milliamps 1A

Figure 1-37. The same fuse after being

melted by electric current.

Experiencing Electricity 11
Experiment 2: Let’s Abuse a Battery!

Background Fundamentals
Inventor of the battery Direct and alternating current
Alessandro Volta (Figure 1-38) was The flow of current that you get from a battery is known as direct current, or DC.
born in Italy in 1745, long before Like the flow of water from a faucet, it is a steady stream, in one direction.
science was broken up into spe-
The flow of current that you get from the “hot” wire in a power outlet in your
cialties. After studying chemistry
home is very different. It changes from positive to negative 50 times each
(he discovered methane in 1776),
second (in Great Britain and some other nations, 60 times per second). This is
he became a professor of physics
known as alternating current, or AC, which is more like the pulsatile flow you get
and became interested in the so-
from a power washer.
called galvanic response, whereby
a frog’s leg will twitch in response Alternating current is essential for some purposes, such as cranking up voltage
to a jolt of static electricity. so that electricity can be distributed over long distances. AC is also useful in
motors and domestic appliances. The parts of an American power outlet are
Using a wine glass full of salt
shown in Figure 1-39. A few other nations, such as Japan, also use American-
water, Volta demonstrated that the
style outlets.
chemical reaction between two
electrodes, one made of copper, For most of this book I’m going to be talking about DC, for two reasons: first,
the other of zinc, will generate a most simple electronic circuits are powered with DC, and second, the way it
steady electric current. In 1800, he behaves is much easier to understand.
refined his apparatus by stacking
plates of copper and zinc, sepa- I won’t bother to mention repeatedly that I’m dealing with DC. Just assume that
rated by cardboard soaked in salt everything is DC unless otherwise noted.
and water. This “voltaic pile” was
the first electric battery. B

Figure 1-38. Alessandro Volta discov-

ered that chemical reactions can
create electricity.
A
C
Figure 1-39. This style of power outlet is found in North America, South America,
Japan, and some other nations. European outlets look different, but the principle
remains the same. Socket A is the “live” side of the outlet, supplying voltage that
alternates between positive and negative, relative to socket B, which is called the
“neutral” side. If an appliance develops a fault such as an internal loose wire, it
should protect you by sinking the voltage through socket C, the ground.

12 Chapter 1
 Experiment 3: Your First Circuit

Cleanup and Recycling Background

The first AA battery that you shorted out is probably damaged beyond repair.
You should dispose of it. Putting batteries in the trash is not a great idea, be- Father of
cause they contain heavy metals that should be kept out of the ecosystem. electromagnetism
Your state or town may include batteries in a local recycling scheme. (Califor-
nia requires that almost all batteries be recycled.) You’ll have to check your Born in 1775 in France, André-
local regulations for details. Marie Ampère (Figure 1-40) was
a mathematical prodigy who
The blown fuse is of no further use, and can be thrown away. became a science teacher, despite
being largely self-educated in his
The second battery, which was protected by the fuse, should still be OK. The father’s library. His best-known
battery holder also can be reused later. work was to derive a theory
of electromagnetism in 1820,
describing the way that an electric
Experiment 3: Your First Circuit current generates a magnetic field.
Now it’s time to make electricity do something that’s at least slightly useful. For He also built the first instrument
this purpose, you’ll use components known as resistors, and a light-emitting di- to measure the flow of electricity
(now known as a galvanometer),
ode, or LED.
and discovered the element
You will need: fluorine.

• 1.5-volt AA batteries. Quantity: 4.

• Four-battery holder. Quantity: 1.
• Resistors: 470Ω, 1K, and either 2K or 2.2K (the 2.2K value happens to be
more common than 2K, but either will do in this experiment). Quantity: 1
of each resistor.
• An LED, any type. Quantity: 1.
• Alligator clips. Quantity: 3.

Setup
It’s time to get acquainted with the most fundamental component we’ll be us-
ing in electronic circuits: the humble resistor. As its name implies, it resists the
Figure 1-40. Andre-Marie Ampere
flow of electricity. As you might expect, the value is measured in ohms. found that an electric current run-
ning through a wire creates a mag-
If you bought a bargain-basement assortment package of resistors, you netic field around it. He used this
may find nothing that tells you their values. That’s OK; we can find out easily principle to make the first reliable
enough. In fact, even if they are clearly labeled, I want you to check their values measurements of what came to be
yourself. You can do it in two ways: known as amperage.

• Use your multimeter. This is excellent practice in learning to interpret the

numbers that it displays.
• Learn the color codes that are printed on most resistors. See the following
section, “Fundamentals: Decoding resistors,” for instructions.
After you check them, it’s a good idea to sort them into labeled compartments
in a little plastic parts box. Personally, I like the boxes sold at the Michaels chain
of crafts stores, but you can find them from many sources.

Experiencing Electricity 13
Experiment 3: Your First Circuit

Fundamentals
Decoding resistors
Some resistors have their value clearly stated on them in microscopic print that
you can read with a magnifying glass. Most, however, are color-coded with
stripes. The code works like this: first, ignore the color of the body of the resis-
tor. Second, look for a silver or gold stripe. If you find it, turn the resistor so that
the stripe is on the righthand side. Silver means that the value of the resistor
is accurate within 10%, while gold means that the value is accurate within 5%.
If you don’t find a silver or gold stripe, turn the resistor so that the stripes are
clustered at the left end. You should now find yourself looking at three colored
stripes on the left. Some resistors have more stripes, but we’ll deal with those in
a moment. See Figures 1-41 and 1-42.

Figure 1-41. Some modern resistors have Figure 1-42. From top to bottom, these
their values printed on them, although resistor values are 56,000 ohms (56K),
you may need a magnifier to read them. 5,600 ohms (5.6K), and 560 ohms. The
This 15K resistor is less than half an size tells you how much power the resis-
inch long. tor can handle; it has nothing to do with
the resistance. The smaller components
are rated at 1/4 watt; the larger one in
the center can handle 1 watt of power.

Starting from the left, the first and The third stripe has a different mean-
second stripes are coded according to ing: It tells you how many zeros to
this table: add, like this:

Black 0 Black - No zeros

Brown 1 Brown 0 1 zero
Red 2 Red 00 2 zeros
Orange 3 Orange 000 3 zeros
Yellow 4 Yellow 0000 4 zeros
Green 5 Green 00000 5 zeros
Blue 6 Blue 000000 6 zeros
Violet 7 Violet 0000000 7 zeros
Gray 8 Gray 00000000 8 zeros
White 9 White 000000000 9 zeros

14 Chapter 1
 Experiment 3: Your First Circuit

Fundamentals
Decoding resistors (continued)
Note that the color-coding is consistent, so that green, for instance, means
either a value of 5 (for the first two stripes) or 5 zeros (for the third stripe). Also,
the sequence of colors is the same as their sequence in a rainbow.
So, a resistor colored brown-red-green would have a value of 1-2 and five zeros,
making 1,200,000 ohms, or 1.2MΩ. A resistor colored orange-orange-orange
would have a value of 3-3 and three zeros, making 33,000 ohms, or 33KΩ. A
resistor colored brown-black-red would have a value of 1-0 and two additional
zeros, or 1KΩ. Figure 1-43 shows some other examples.

Wider gap between bands

Gold or silver band

Figure 1-43. To read the value of a resistor, first turn it so that the silver or gold stripe
is on the right, or the other stripes are clustered on the left. From top to bottom:
The first resistor has a value of 1-2 and five zeros, or 1,200,000, which is 1.2MΩ. The
second is 5-6 and one zero, or 560Ω. The third is 4-7 and two zeros, or 4,700, which is
4.7KΩ. The last is 6-5-1 and two zeros, or 65,100Ω, which is 65.1KΩ.

If you run across a resistor with four stripes instead of three, the first three
stripes are digits and the fourth stripe is the number of zeros. The third numeric
stripe allows the resistor to be calibrated to a finer tolerance.
Confusing? Absolutely. That’s why it’s easier to use your meter to check the values.
Just be aware that the meter reading may be slightly different from the claimed
value of the resistor. This can happen because your meter isn’t absolutely accu-
rate, or because the resistor is not absolutely accurate, or both. As long as you’re
within 5% of the claimed value, it doesn’t matter for our purposes.

Experiencing Electricity 15
Experiment 3: Your First Circuit

Lighting an LED
Now take a look at one of your LEDs. An old-fashioned lightbulb wastes a lot
of power by converting it into heat. LEDs are much smarter: they convert al-
most all their power into light, and they last almost indefinitely—as long as
you treat them right!
An LED is quite fussy about the amount of power it gets, and the way it gets it.
Always follow these rules:
• The longer wire protruding from the LED must receive a more positive volt-
age than the shorter wire.
• The voltage difference between the long wire and the short wire must not
exceed the limit stated by the manufacturer.
• The current passing through the LED must not exceed the limit stated by
the manufacturer.
What happens if you break these rules? Well, we’re going to find out!
Make sure you are using fresh batteries. You can check by setting your multi-
meter to measure volts DC, and touching the probes to the terminals of each
battery. You should find that each of them generates a pressure of at least
1.5 volts. If they read slightly higher than this, it’s normal. A battery starts out
above its rated voltage, and delivers progressively less as you use it. Batteries
also lose some voltage while they are sitting on the shelf doing nothing.
Load your battery holder (taking care that the batteries are the right way
around, with the negative ends pressing against the springs in the carrier).
Use your meter to check the voltage on the wires coming out of the battery
carrier. You should have at least 6 volts.
Now select a 2KΩ resistor. Remember, “2KΩ” means “2,000 ohms.” If it has col-
ored stripes, they should be red-black-red, meaning 2-0 and two more zeros.
Because 2.2K resistors are more common than 2K resistors, you can substitute
one of them if necessary. It will be colored red-red-red.
Wire it into the circuit as shown in Figures 1-44 and 1-45, making the connec-
tions with alligator clips. You should see the LED glow very dimly.

16 Chapter 1
 Experiment 3: Your First Circuit

Now swap out your 2K resistor and substitute a 1K resistor, which will have
brown-black-red stripes, meaning 1-0 and two more zeros. The LED should
glow more brightly.
Swap out the 1K resistor and substitute a 470Ω resistor, which will have yel-
low-violet-brown stripes, meaning 4-7 and one more zero. The LED should be
brighter still.
This may seem very elementary, but it makes an important point. The resistor
blocks a percentage of the voltage in the circuit. Think of it as being like a kink
or constriction in a flexible hose. A higher-value resistor blocks more voltage,
leaving less for the LED. Figure 1-44. The setup for Experiment 3,
showing resistors of 470Ω, 1KΩ, and 2KΩ.
LED Apply alligator clips where shown, to make
a secure contact, and try each of the resis-
tors one at a time at the same point in the
circuit, while watching the LED.

Longer wire Shorter wire

CLIP
CL

On your battery
IP

pack, this wire

may be either
CLIP
blue or black.

6v Battery Pack

Figure 1-45. Here’s how it actually looks, using a large LED. If you start with the highest
value resistor, the LED will glow very dimly as you complete the circuit. The resistor drops
most of the voltage, leaving the LED with insufficient current to make it shine brightly.

Cleanup and Recycling

We’ll use the batteries and the LED in the next experiment. The resistors can
be reused in the future.

Experiencing Electricity 17
Experiment 4: Varying the Voltage

Experiment 4: Varying the Voltage

Potentiometers come in various shapes and sizes, but they all do the same
thing: they allow you to vary voltage and current by varying resistance. This
experiment will enable you to learn more about voltage, amperage, and the
relationship between them. You’ll also learn how to read a manufacturer’s data
sheet.
You will need the same batteries, battery carrier, alligator clips, and LED from
the last experiment, plus:
• Potentiometer, 2KΩ linear. Quantity: 2. (See Figure 1-46.) Full-sized poten-
tiometers that look like this are becoming less common, as miniature ver-
sions are taking their place. I’d like you to use a large one, though, because
it’s so much easier to work with.
• One extra LED.
• Multimeter.

Look Inside Your Potentiometer

The first thing I want you to do is find out how a potentiometer works. This
means you’ll have to open it, which is why your shopping list required you to
buy two of them, in case you can’t put the first one back together again.
Most potentiometers are held together with little metal tabs. You should be
able to grab hold of the tabs with your wire cutters or pliers, and bend them
up and outward. If you do this, the potentiometer should open up as shown in
Figures 1-47 and 1-48.

Figure 1-46 Figure 1-47 Figure 1-48. To open the potentiometer,

first pry up the four little metal tabs
around the edge (you can see one sticking
out at the left and another one sticking out
at the right in Figure 1-47). Inside is a coil
of wire around a flat plastic band, and a
pair of springy contacts (the wiper), which
conduct electricity to or from any point in
the coil when you turn the shaft.

Depending whether you have a really cheap potentiometer or a slightly more

high-class version, you may find a circular track of conductive plastic or a loop
of coiled wire. Either way, the principle is the same. The wire or the plastic

18 Chapter 1
 Experiment 4: Varying the Voltage

possesses some resistance (a total of 2K in this instance), and as you turn the
shaft of the potentiometer, a wiper rubs against the resistance, giving you a
shortcut to any point from the center terminal. Ohms
You can try to put it back together, but if it doesn’t work, use your backup
potentiometer instead.
To test your potentiometer, set your meter to measure resistance (ohms) and
touch the probes while turning the potentiometer shaft to and fro, as shown
in Figure 1-49.

Dimming Your LED

Begin with the potentiometer turned all the way counterclockwise, otherwise
you’ll burn out the LED before we even get started. (A very, very small num-
ber of potentiometers increase and decrease resistance in the opposite way
to which I’m describing here, but as long as your potentiometer looks like the
one in Figure 1-48 after you open it up, my description should be accurate.)
Now connect everything as shown in Figures 1-50 and 1-51, taking care that Figure 1-49. Measure the resistance be-
you don’t allow the metal parts of any of the alligator clips to touch each other. tween these two terminals of the potenti-
ometer while you turn its shaft to and fro.
Now turn up the potentiometer very slowly. You’ll notice the LED glowing
brighter, and brighter, and brighter—until, oops, it goes dark. You see how
easy it is to destroy modern electronics? Throw away that LED. It will never
glow again. Substitute a new LED, and we’ll be more careful this time.
LED

Longer wire Shorter wire

CLIP
CL

On your battery
IP

pack, this wire

may be either
CLIP
blue or black.

Begin with the potentiometer turned

all the way counter-clockwise,
and then rotate the shaft in
the direction of the arrow.

6v Battery Pack

Figure 1-50. The setup for Experiment 4. Rotating the shaft of the 2K potentiometer varies Figure 1-51. The LED in this photo is dark
its resistance from 0 to 2,000Ω. This resistance protects the LED from the full 6 volts of because I turned the potentiometer up
the battery. just a little bit too far.

Experiencing Electricity 19
Experiment 4: Varying the Voltage

While the batteries are connected to the circuit, set your meter to measure volts
DC as shown in Figures 1-52 through 1-54. Now touch the probes either side of
the LED. Try to hold the probes in place while you turn the potentiometer up
a little, and down a little. You should see the voltage pressure around the LED
changing accordingly. We call this the potential difference between the two
wires of the LED.
If you were using a miniature old-fashioned lightbulb instead of an LED, you’d
see the potential difference varying much more, because a lightbulb behaves
like a “pure” resistor, whereas an LED self-adjusts to some extent, modifying its
resistance as the voltage pressure changes.
Now touch the probes to the two terminals of the potentiometer that we’re
using, so that you can measure the potential difference between them. The
Figure 1-52 potentiometer and the LED share the total available voltage, so when the po-
tential difference (the voltage drop) around the potentiometer goes up, the
potential difference around the LED goes down, and vice versa. See Figures
1-55 through 1-57. A few things to keep in mind:
• If you add the voltage drops across the devices in the circuit, the total is
the same as the voltage supplied by the batteries.
• You measure voltage relatively, between two points in a circuit.
• Apply your meter like a stethoscope, without disturbing or breaking the
connections in the circuit.
Use your meter to
measure the voltage
between these two
points.
Figure 1-53

Then compare
the voltage between
Figure 1-54. Each meter has a different these two points.
way to measure volts DC. The manually
adjusted meter (top) requires you to move
a slider switch to “DC” and then choose
the highest voltage you want to measure:
In this case, the selected voltage is 20
(because 2 would be too low). Using the
6v Battery Pack
autoranging RadioShack meter, you set it
to “V” and the meter will figure out which
range to use. Figure 1-55. How to measure voltage in a simple circuit.

20 Chapter 1
 Experiment 4: Varying the Voltage

Volts Volts

6v Battery Pack 6v Battery Pack

Figure 1-56. The meter shows how much voltage the LED takes. Figure 1-57. The meter shows how much voltage the potentiometer
takes.

Checking the Flow

Now I want you to make a different measurement. I want you to measure the
flow, or current, in the circuit, using your meter set to mA (milliamps). Remem-
ber, to measure current:
• You can only measure current when it passes through the meter.
• You have to insert your meter into the circuit.
• Too much current will blow the fuse inside your meter.
Make sure you set your meter to measure mA, not volts, before you try this.
Some meters require you to move one of your leads to a different socket on
the meter, to measure mA. See Figures 1-58 through 1-61.

Experiencing Electricity 21
Experiment 4: Varying the Voltage

Figure 1-58. Any meter will blow its internal Figure 1-59 Figure 1-60
fuse if you try to make it measure too high
an amperage. In our circuit, this is not a
risk as long as you keep the potentiometer
in the middle of its range. Choose “mA” for
milliamps and remember that the meter
displays numbers that mean thousandths
of an amp.

Figure 1-61. A manual meter such as the one here may require you to shift the red lead to
a different socket, to measure milliamps. Most modern meters don’t require this until you
are measuring higher currents.

Insert your meter into the circuit, as shown in Figure 1-62. Don’t turn the po-
tentiometer more than halfway up. The resistance in the potentiometer will
protect your meter, as well as the LED. If the meter gets too much current,
you’ll find yourself replacing its internal fuse.
As you adjust the potentiometer up and down a little, you should find that the
varying resistance in the circuit changes the flow of current—the amperage.
This is why the LED burned out in the previous experiment: too much current
made it hot, and the heat melts it inside, just like the fuse in the previous ex-
periment. A higher resistance limits the flow of current, or amperage.
Now insert the meter in another part of the circuit, as shown in Figure 1-63. As
you turn the potentiometer up and down, you should get exactly the same re-
sults as with the configuration in Figure 1-64. This is because the current is the
same at all points in a similar circuit. It has to be, because the flow of electrons
has no place else to go.

22 Chapter 1
 Experiment 4: Varying the Voltage

It’s time now to nail this down with some numbers. Here’s one last thing to
try. Set aside the LED and substitute a 1KΩ resistor, as shown in Figure 1-64.
The total resistance in the circuit is now 1KΩ plus whatever the resistance the
potentiometer provides, depending how you set it. (The meter also has some
resistance, but it’s so low, we can ignore it.)

Amps

Amps

6v Battery Pack 6v Battery Pack

Figure 1-62. To measure amps, as illustrated here and in Figure Figure 1-63
1-63, the current has to pass through the meter. When you
increase the resistance, you restrict the current flow, and the
lower flow makes the LED glow less brightly.

Experiencing Electricity 23
Experiment 4: Varying the Voltage

Amps

6v Battery Pack

Figure 1-64. If you substitute a resistor instead of the LED, you can confirm that the cur-
rent flowing through the circuit varies with the total resistance in the circuit, if the voltage
stays the same.

Turn the potentiometer all the way counterclockwise, and you have a total of
3K resistance in the circuit. Your meter should show about 2 mA flowing. Now
turn the potentiometer halfway, and you have about 2K total resistance. You
should see about 3 mA flowing. Turn the potentiometer all the way clockwise,
so there’s a total of 1K, and you should see 6 mA flowing. You may notice that
if we multiply the resistance by the amperage, we get 6 each time—which just
happens to be the voltage being applied to the circuit. See the following table.

Total resistance Current Voltage

(KΩ) (mA) (Volts)
3 2 6
2 3 6
1 6 6

24 Chapter 1
 Experiment 4: Varying the Voltage

In fact, we could say:

voltage = kilohms × milliamps
But wait a minute: 1K is 1,000 ohms, and 1mA is 1/1,000 of an amp. Therefore,
our formula should really look like this:
voltage = (ohms × 1,000) × (amps/1,000)
The two factors of 1,000 cancel out, so we get this:
volts = ohms × amps
This is known as Ohm’s Law. See the section, “Fundamentals: Ohm’s Law,” on
the following page.

Fundamentals
Series and parallel
Before we go any further, you should know how resistance 3 volts
3 volts
in a circuit increases when you put resistors in series or in
parallel. Figures 1-65 through 1-67 illustrate this. Remember:
• Resistors in series are oriented so that one follows the 1,000 ohms
other. 6 volts 1,000 ohms

• Resistors in parallel are oriented side by side.

2,000 ohms
When you put two equal-valued resistors in series, you circuit resistance
double the total resistance, because electricity has to pass 3mA current
through two barriers in succession. Figure 1-66. When two resistors are in series, the electricity has
When you put two equal-valued resistors in parallel, you to pass through one to reach the other, and therefore each
of them takes half the voltage. Total resistance is now 2,000
divide the total resistance by two, because you’re giving the
ohms, and according to Ohm’s Law, the circuit draws v/R =
electricity two paths which it can take, instead of one. 6/2,000 = 0.003 amps = 3mA of current.
In reality we don’t normally need to put resistors in parallel,
6 volts
but we often put other types of components in parallel.
Lightbulbs in your house, for instance, are all wired that way. 1,000 ohms
So, it’s useful to understand that resistance in a circuit goes
down if you keep adding components in parallel.

6 volts 1,000 ohms

6 volts 1,000 ohms
6 volts
6 volts

500 ohms
1,000 ohms circuit resistance
circuit resistance
12mA current
6mA current
Figure 1-67. When two resistors are in parallel, each is exposed
Figure 1-65. One resistor takes the entire voltage, and according to the full voltage, so each of them takes 6 volts. The electric-
to Ohm’s Law, it draws v/R = 6/1,000 = 0.006 amps = 6mA of ity can now flow through both at once, so the total resistance
current. of the circuit is half as much as before. According to Ohm’s
Law, the circuit draws v/R = 6/500 = 0.012 amps = 12mA of
current.

Experiencing Electricity 25
Experiment 4: Varying the Voltage

Fundamentals Using Ohm’s Law

Ohm’s Law is extremely useful. For example, it helps us to figure out whether a
Ohm’s Law component can be used safely in a circuit. Instead of stressing the component
until we burn it out, we can predict whether it will work.
For reasons I’ll explain in a mo-
ment, amps are normally abbrevi- For instance, the first time you turned the potentiometer, you didn’t really
ated with the letter I. V stands for know how far you could go until the LED burned out. Wouldn’t it be useful
volts and R stands for resistance to know precisely what resistance to put in series with an LED, to protect it
in ohms (because the omega adequately while providing as much light as possible?
symbol, Ω, is not easily generated
from most keyboards). Using these
symbols, you can write Ohm’s Law How to Read a Data Sheet
in three different ways:
Like most information, the answer to this question is available online.
V=I×R
I = V/R Here’s how you find a manufacturer’s data sheet (Figure 1-68). First, find the
R = V/I component that you’re interested in from a mail-order source. Next, Google
Remember, V is a difference in the part number and manufacturer’s name. Usually the data sheet will pop up
voltage between two points in a as the first hit. A source such as Mouser.com makes it even easier by giving you
simple circuit, R is the resistance a direct link to manufacturers’ data sheets for many products.
in ohms between the same two
points, and I is the current in
amps flowing through the circuit VISHAY
TLHG / R / Y540.
between the two points. Vishay Semiconductors

Letter I is used because origi- High Efficiency LED in 5 mm Tinted Diffused Package
nally current was measured by its
inductance, meaning the ability to
induce magnetic effects. It would Description
The TLH.54.. series was developed for standard
be much less confusing to use A applications like general indicating and lighting pur-
for amps, but unfortunately it’s too poses.
It is housed in a 5 mm tinted diffused plastic package.
late for that to happen. The wide viewing angle of these devices provides a

Pb
high on-off contrast.
Several selection types with different luminous inten-
sities are offered. All LEDs are categorized in lumi-
19223
e2 Pb-free
nous intensity groups. The green and yellow LEDs
are categorized additionally in wavelength groups.

That allows users to assemble LEDs with uniform Applications

appearance. Status lights
OFF / ON indicator
Features Background illumination
• Choice of three bright colors Readout lights
Standard T-1� package Maintenance lights
Small mechanical tolerances Legend light
Suitable for DC and high peak current
Wide viewing angle
Luminous intensity categorized
Yellow and green color categorized
TLH.54.. with stand-offs
Lead-free device

Figure 1-68. The beginning of a typical data sheet, which includes all relevant specifica-
tions for the product, freely available online.

26 Chapter 1
 Experiment 4: Varying the Voltage

Background
How much voltage does a wire consume?
Normally, we can ignore the resistance in electric wires, such as the little leads
of wire that stick out of resistors, because it’s trivial. However, if you try to force
large amounts of current through long lengths of thin wire, the resistance of
the wire can become important.
How important? Once again, we can use Ohm’s Law to find out.
Suppose that a very long piece of wire has a resistance of 0.2Ω. And we want to
run 15 amps through it. How much voltage will the wire steal from the circuit,
because of its resistance?
Once again, you begin by writing down what you know:
R = 0.2
I = 15
We want to know V, the potential difference, for the wire, so we use the version
of Ohm’s Law that places V on the left side:
V=I×R
Now plug in the values:
V = 15 × 0.2 = 3 volts
Three volts is not a big deal if you have a high-voltage power supply, but if you
are using a 12-volt car battery, this length of wire will take one-quarter of the
available voltage.
Now you know why the wiring in automobiles is relatively thick—to reduce its
resistance well below 0.2Ω. See Figure 1-69.

Some kind of
electrical
device

Figure 1-69. When a 12-volt car battery runs some kind of electrical device through
a long piece of thin wire, the resistance of the wire steals some of the voltage and
dissipates it as heat.

Experiencing Electricity 27
Experiment 4: Varying the Voltage

Here’s an example. Suppose I want a red LED, such as the Vishay part TLHR5400,
Background which has become such a common item that I can buy them individually for 9
cents apiece. I click the link to the data sheet maintained by the manufacturer,
The origins of wattage Vishay Semiconductor. Almost immediately I have a PDF page on my screen.
James Watt (Figure 1-70) is known This data sheet is for TLHR, TLHG, and TLHY types of LED, which are red, green,
as the inventor of the steam and yellow respectively, as suggested by the R, G, and Y in the product codes.
engine. Born in 1736 in Scotland, I scroll down and look at the “Optical and Electrical Characteristics” section.
he set up a small workshop in the It tells me that under conditions of drawing a current of 20 mA, the LED will
University of Glasgow, where he enjoy a “Typ,” meaning, typical, “forward voltage” of 2 volts. The “Max,” meaning
struggled to perfect an efficient maximum, is 3 volts.
design for using steam to move a
piston in a cylinder. Financial prob- Let’s look at one other data sheet, as not all of them are written the same way.
lems and the primitive state of I’ll choose a different LED, the Kingbright part WP7113SGC. Click on the link
the art of metal working delayed to the manufacturer’s site, and I find on the second page of the data sheet a
practical applications until 1776. typical forward voltage of 2.2, maximum 2.5, and a maximum forward current
Despite difficulties in obtaining of 25 mA. I also find some additional information: a maximum reverse voltage
patents (which could only be of 5 and maximum reverse current of 10 uA (that’s microamps, which are 1,000
granted by an act of parliament times smaller than milliamps). This tells us that you should avoid applying ex-
in those times), Watt and his cessive voltage to the LED the wrong way around. If you exceed the reverse
business partner eventually made voltage, you risk burning out the LED. Always observe polarity!
a lot of money from his innova-
tions. Although he predated the Kingbright also warns us how much heat the LED can stand: 260° C (500° F) for
pioneers in electricity, in 1889 (70 a few seconds. This is useful information, as we’ll be putting aside our alligator
years after his death), his name clips and using hot molten solder to connect electrical parts in the near future.
was assigned to the basic unit of Because we have already destroyed a battery, a fuse, and an LED in just four ex-
electric power that can be defined periments, maybe you won’t be surprised when I tell you that we will destroy
by multiplying amperes by volts. at least a couple more components as we test their limits with a soldering iron.
See the Fundamentals section,
“Watt Basics,” on page 31. Anyway, now we know what an LED wants, we can figure out how to supply
it. If you have any difficulties dealing with decimals, check the Fundamentals
section “Decimals,” on the next page, before continuing.

How Big a Resistor Does an LED Need?

Suppose that we’re use the Vishay LED. Remember its requirements from the
data sheet? Maximum of 3 volts, and a safe current of 20mA.
I’m going to limit it to 2.5 volts, to be on the safe side. We have 6 volts of bat-
tery power. Subtract 2.5 from 6 and we get 3.5. So we need a resistor that will
take 3.5 volts from the circuit, leaving 2.5 for the LED.
The current flow is the same at all places in a simple circuit. If we want a maxi-
mum of 20mA to flow through the LED, the same amount of current will be
flowing through the resistor.
Now we can write down what we know about the resistor in the circuit. Note
Figure 1-70. James Watt’s develop- that we have to convert all units to volts, amps, and ohms, so that 20mA should
ment of steam power enabled the
be written as 0.02 amps:
industrial revolution. After his death,
he was honored by having his name V = 3.5 (the potential drop across the resistor)
applied to the basic unit of power in I = 0.02 (the current flowing through the resistor)
electricity.

28 Chapter 1
 Experiment 4: Varying the Voltage

We want to know R, the resistance. So, we use the version of Ohm’s Law that
puts R on the left side:
R= V/I
Now plug in the values:
R = 3.5/0.02
Run this through your pocket calculator if you find decimals confusing. The
answer is:
R = 175Ω
It so happens that 175Ω isn’t a standard value. You may have to settle for 180
or 220Ω, but that’s close enough.
Evidently the 470Ω resistor that you used in Experiment 3 was a very conserva-
tive choice. I suggested it because I said originally that you could use any LED
at all. I figured that no matter which one you picked, it should be safe with
470Ω to protect it.

Cleanup and Recycling

The dead LED can be thrown away. Everything else is reusable.

Fundamentals
Decimals
Legendary British politician Sir Winston Churchill is famous for complain-
ing about “those damned dots.” He was referring to decimal points. Because
Churchill was Chancellor of the Exchequer at the time, and thus in charge of all
government expenditures, his difficulty with decimals was a bit of a problem.
Still, he muddled through in time-honored British fashion, and so can you.
You can also use a pocket calculator—or follow two basic rules.

Doing multiplication: combine the zeros

Suppose you need to multiply 0.04 by 0.005:
1. Count the total number of zeros following both of the decimal points. In
this case, three zeros.
2. Multiply the numbers which follow the zeros. In this case, 4 × 5 = 20.
3. Write down the result as 0 followed by a decimal point, followed by the
number of zeros, followed by the multiplication result. Like this: 0.00020,
which is the same as 0.0002.

Doing division: cancel the zeros

Suppose you need to divide 0.006 by 0.0002:
1. Shift the decimal points to the right, in both the numbers, by the same
number of steps, until both the numbers are greater than 1. In this case,
shift the point four steps in each number, so you get 60 divided by 2.
2. Do the division. The result in this case is 30.

Experiencing Electricity 29
Experiment 4: Varying the Voltage

Theory
Doing the math on your tongue
I’m going to go back to the question I asked in the previous That’s 100,000 times the current that may have passed
experiment: why didn’t your tongue get hot? through your tongue, which would have generated much
more heat, even though the voltage was lower.
Now that you know Ohm’s Law, you can figure out the
answer in numbers. Let’s suppose the battery delivered Could that tiny little battery really pump out 15 amps?
its rated 9 volts, and your tongue had a resistance of 50K, Remember that the battery got hot, as well as the wire. This
which is 50,000 ohms. Write down what you know: tells us that the electrons may have met some resistance
V=9 inside the battery, as well as in the wire. (Otherwise, where
else did the heat come from?) Normally we can forget about
R = 50,000
the internal resistance of a battery, because it’s so low. But at
We want to know the current, I, so we use the version of high currents, it becomes a factor.
Ohm’s Law that puts this on the left:
I was reluctant to short-circuit the battery through a meter,
I = V/R to try to measure the current. My meter will fry if the current
Plug in the numbers: is greater than 10A. However I did try putting other fuses
into the circuit, to see whether they would blow. When I
I = 9/50,000 = 0.00018 amps
tried a 10A fuse, it did not melt. Therefore, for the brand of
Move the decimal point three places to convert to milliamps: battery I used, I’m fairly sure that the current in the short
I = 0.18 mA circuit was under 10A, but I know it was over 3A, because
the 3A fuse blew right away.
That’s a tiny current that will not produce much heat at 9
volts. The internal resistance of the 1.5-volt battery prevented
the current in the short circuit from getting too high. This
What about when you shorted out the battery? How much
is why I cautioned against using a larger battery (especially
current made the wires get hot? Well, suppose the wires had
a car battery). Larger batteries have a much lower internal
a resistance of 0.1 ohms (probably it’s less, but I’ll start with
resistance, allowing dangerously high currents which gener-
0.1 as a guess). Write down what we know:
ate explosive amounts of heat. A car battery is designed to
V = 1.5 deliver literally hundreds of amps when it turns a starter
R = 0.1 motor. That’s quite enough current to melt wires and cause
nasty burns. In fact, you can weld metal using a car battery.
Once again we’re trying to find I, the current, so we use:
I = V/R Lithium batteries also have low internal resistance, making
them very dangerous when they’re shorted out. High cur-
Plug in the numbers: rent can be just as dangerous as high voltage.
I = 1.5/0.1 = 15 amps

30 Chapter 1
Exploring the Variety of Random
Documents with Different Content
away or Consumption; immoderate Hæmorrhagies, whether
happening by Superiour or Inferiour Parts; hard Labour; too much
Fat, or too much Leanness: As the same may also happen from an
Obstruction or Suppression of the M e n s t r u o u s C o u r s e; or
from its vicious or impure Quality; and, in fine, from any severe
Symptom or Disease whatsoever.
T H U S having discover’d the genuine and precise Causes of
S t e r i l i t y, the Cure is as good as half perfected; but that it may
be altogether and effectually perform’d, the next thing requisite in
this place, would be to treat of every Cause and its respective Cure
particularly;[229] but as these do chiefly belong to the Diseases of the
P u d e n d u m, V a g i n a, and W o m b; which I have already declin’d
entring upon at this time, for the Reasons mentioned in Sect. VI.
Chap. VI. I shall here only add in general Terms, that tho’ the barren
W o m b is justly compar’d to an insipid, ungrateful, or unfruitful
F i e l d, because neither the one nor the other produces any thing
Good of it self: Yet as we see the barren Lands emproved and
become fruitful by the Industry of the Husband-Man; and even wild
Roots and barren Trees in time produce plentifully by the Care and
Diligence of the Gardener; So the Heavenly A r t of Physick exerts it
self strenuously in improving the barren W o m b, miraculously
supplying the Defects, and regularly correcting the Defaults of
N a t u r e; restoring or replenishing it with a desirable and grateful
Fœcundity: I say, as convenient D u n g comforts the sterile Field, so
does proper Physick the barren W o m b; It elevates the low and
renovates the exhal’d Spirits; It vanquishes the Imbecility, and
corroborates the Nerves; It reduces the languid Heat, and all the
Intemperatures of the genital Parts, to their respective, due and
natural Temperaments; removing naturally all Obstructions, and
wonderfully curing all the Causes hindering or withstanding the
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A N D, in fine, because proper D i e t is of great Service to alter the
elementary Qualities, and to convert the Bad into a Good Habit or
Body; such Women are to be carefully directed to such a Judicious
Regimen of D i e t and otherways, as is most efficacious and
convenient for their Purpose, either of Health or Generation. Now
having so far prosecuted my Design, with respect to the Barren, as
well as the Fruitful W o m a n; I, at present, take Leave of Both, and
come, in the next place, to address my self to the W i d o w.
 S E C T . VIII.

C H A P . I.
Of the Symptoms incident to the State of
W I D O W - H O O D.

S the W i d o w has in her former Days, tasted both of

the Sweets and the Sours of the M a i d e n, as well as of
the marry’d State; so she is now also subject to all the
Affections of the One, as well as to some of the Other.
Whatever she may judge of her self, and however she
may, in some measure, be liberated from the Solicitudes of the
F i r s t, and freed from the Anxieties of the other; yet she is still so
far from being exempted from the Morbifick Consequences of the
Natural Imbecillity of her tender S e x; that she now, tho’ in different
Respects and various Cases, participates of the Indispositions of
B o t h.
H O W E V E R yet, notwithstanding this Variety of Afflictions, to
which the W i d o w is actually expos’d; I confess, that, I know not so
much as one Disease or Symptom, which is singularly peculiar to
Her self, that is, but what either the M a i d e n or the W i f e may be
lyable to, as well as the W i d o w: Tho’, in the mean time, I must also
acknowledge, that, Those which I am now about to touch upon, may
however, be justly esteem’d to be more familiar to Her, than to either
of These, as will by and by more evidently appear.
U P O N which Consideration, I hope the following Heads may
here pertinently take place; not but that the others, I mean the
M a i d and the W i f e, may also sometimes, and perhaps frequently
too, find their Case included in the T h e m e of this Section, as well
as the W i d o w Her self, according to the Diversity of their
Circumstances.
F O R these Reasons, I shall begin with That, from which none of
the Three, that is, neither the M a i d, nor the W i f e, nor the
W i d o w, can altogether plead Exemption, which notwithstanding,
according to my best Judgment, is more immediately the particular
Root and Source of the most, if not of all, the W i d o w’s Distempers,
which however, that I may not too much over-run my Design of
Brevity, I shall briefly comprehend under One or Two Heads, viz.
——
 C H A P . II.
Of the H y s t e r i c k P a s s i o n.

W E L L might the excellent Democritus write to his Scholar, the

far more excelling Hippocrates, that the W o m b is the Source
of Six Hundred Griefs, and the Spring of innumerable Sorrows to
the W o m a n: Because of the manifest Sympathy or Affinity, which
the W o m b has with almost all the other Parts of the Body. And as
we may reasonably conclude from such an Affinity, that these
Symptoms must needs be both Numerous and Different in Kind; so I
think, for the same Reason, they may be All pertinently
comprehended under the General Title of Hysterick Maladies.
B U T before we enter upon the Particulars of these Uterine
Affections, it may be first requisite to make out the Reality of this
Affinity or Consent; which will be no difficult Matter, when we
consider F i r s t, the three Principles, in which the same consists,
viz. in a Similitude of Parts; in a Vicinity of Parts; and in a
Connexion of Vessels. S e c o n d l y, how by these, as the W o m b is a
Membranous Substance, it has a Substantial Affinity with the
M e m b r a n e s: And by its Vicinity, with the B l a d d e r,
R e c t u m, and I n t e s t i n e s; As by its Veins, Arteries, and
Nerves, it has with almost all the other Parts of the Body; such as
with the B r a i n, by Veins and Arteries, as well as by the N e r v e s
and Spinal M e m b r a n e s; with the H e a r t, by Arteries; with the
L i v e r, by Veins; with the S t o m a c h, by certain Anastomoses,
betwixt the Veins of the W o m b, and those of the Mesentery, as well
as by Arteries; with the S p l e e n by Arteries; with the B r e a s t s,
partly by Veins,[230] and partly by Nerves, &c.
 H E N C E it is that I can scarce find any Part of the Body, which
may not be affected by the Indispositions of the W o m b; the Heart,
the Diaphragm, the Head, the Brain, and consequently all the
Organs of Sense and Motion, the Liver, the Spleen, the Ventricle, the
Mesentery, the Belly, the Bladder, the Rectum, the Back, the Loins,
the Thighs, the Legs, the Arms, &c. All which Parts are from thence
subject to innumerable various Symptoms, which commonly come
and go by Periods, after the manner of Convulsive, or Epileptick
F i t s, to which the H y s t e r i c a l have also a very near Relation; in
that the Circulation and Recourse of all the Three, and some more
such, Distempers agree exactly, sometimes with the Course of the
M o o n, and S u n, and sometimes with the very Motion of the S e a;
and as these vary, so the F i t s of either Affection come on quicker or
slower[231].
T H E S E Things are also most Judiciously made out by the
excellent Dr. Mead, saying, that, the New and Full-Moon being of
equal Power, this sort of Distempers sometimes reign in the one,
and sometimes in the other, as the Body happens to be more or less
fitted and adapted to receive the I n f l u e n c e; and as the
abounding H u m o u r s are more fitted for this, than that period of
the P l a n e t[232]. And the same Author of great Experience, gives us
an Account of a certain B o y of a Year old, who every Flood-Tide,
was taken with Convulsive F i t s, and every Ebb came to himself
again[233]. Which Influence of the S e a, no doubt depends upon the
M o o n’s approaching our Vertical Point, or that directly opposite, as
the Flood encreases and comes to its Height, Moreover again,——
C O N S I D E R I N G the W o m b, not only as the Center, in which
the vitious Humours are accumulated from all the other Parts, but
also as the P u m p of the Body, we may readily conclude that as long
as it regularly ejects the Menstruous Blood, it does at the same time
duly evacuate together with it, all those Humours of whatsoever sort
they be: Whereas we may easily conceive that whatever obstructs or
impedes the W o m b in any of its natural Functions, may occasion
various Symptoms to the Woman: However the most of these, as
well as the most dangerous, take their Origin from the Retention of
the S e e d and the suppression of the M e n s t r u a.
T H E Menstruous Blood flowing in a natural Course to the Uterine
Veins, when its Passage is so obstructed, that it cannot break forth;
whether in V i r g i n s, because of the Astriction of the O r i f i c e s;
or in W i d o w s, because of the Thickness of the B l o o d, or of any
other gross viscid Humour; in these Cases, it must of course regorge
thro’ the Branches of the V e n a C a v a and the great A r t e r y, to
the Head, Heart, Liver, and Veins of the Midriff; whence of
Consequence proceed various Symptoms in all these and their
dependent Parts: Which notwithstanding, I take the too long retain’d
S E E D to occasion the more dangerous and severe Symptoms to the
W o m a n.
B U T in Case of either of These, namely, either the Seminal, or the
Menstruous Matter, beginning to corrupt, and consequently to
acquire malignant Qualities, then they produce divers most severe
and dreadfull Symptoms; and that not only in different P a t i e n t s,
but also sometimes in one and the same Woman; and not only at
different Times, but also sometimes at one and the same Time:
However these Things always happen, according to the different
Quantity and Quality of the corrupted H u m o u r s, as well as
according to the Constitution of the W o m b, in which the Corruption
succeeds. Again more particularly——
I F the Malignant Vapours arising hence, penetrate to the Heart,
(the principal Organ of L i f e, as well as of the Circulation of the
B l o o d) I would observe, that, they occasion vellicating
Palpitations, as also a Dejection of Spirits, and Anxiety of Mind,
attended with frequent L y p o t h y m i e s and S y n c o p e s: If to the
Diaphragm and Lungs, a Difficulty of B r e a t h i n g, attended (as it
were) with Suffocations or Strangulations.
I F the M a t t e r ascends to the H e a d, and diffuse it self thro’ the
external Parts, diverse grievous P a i n s assail the Woman, and that
very differently; insomuch, that, sometimes the whole H e a d is (as it
were) tortured, and sometimes but in Part; sometimes on the right,
and sometimes on the left Side; sometimes in the hind Part of the
H e a d, or C r o w n, and sometimes in the Fore-Head or about the
Eyes: Whereas if it tend to the B r a i n, and distribute it self among
the O r g a n s of Sense and Motion, both the internal and external
Senses must needs suffer accordingly; upon which the poor
P a t i e n t is not only taken with an A p h o n i a for Want of Speech,
but also with a Helpless or Senseless Stupidity; and moreover, not
only seiz’d with a Resolution or Debility of H a n d s and F e e t, but
also with Trembling and Convulsive Fits.
I F the same ascends to the L i v e r, the whole Habit or
Constitution of the B o d y is perverted: For as the vitious Humours
are easily communicated from the W o m b by the Veins to the
L i v e r, so the affected L i v e r again readily diffuses its Infection by
the Veins to the whole B o d y. If to the S p l e e n and
M e s e n t e r y, Murmurings, Pains and Torments arise in the
B e l l y; which are commonly attended with a Pain in the left S i d e
and left B r e a s t, extending it self to the J u g u l u m, or fore-part
of the N e c k, Difficulty of Breathing, frequent Belchings, a siccid
bound Belly, and all the other Symptoms which usually are the
Concomitants of the Hypocondriack Affection.
I F to the V e n t r i c l e, thence proceed Fastidy, Pica, Vomitings,
Pains and Gnawings of the S t o m a c h, Sobbings, Yawnings,
Belchings, &c. But, and if the said M a t t e r distributes it self thro’
the whole Circuit of the B o d y, then the P a t i e n t is frequently
seiz’d, sometimes with a sudden red, and sometimes with a pale
Colour; as also sometimes with a sudden Heat, and Ardour in her
F a c e, which she commonly perceives or feels to vanish and go off as
suddenly: Again she is sometimes also taken with sudden Cold, and
sometimes with as sudden hot Fits.
F R O M all which, it evidently appears, how justly Galen says[234],
that the Hysterick Passion (under one Appellation) comprehends
innumerable various S y m p t o m s: Even so many, that at least (I
think) they cannot be possibly comprehended in this Volume, which
extorts another Apology from me in this Place; namely and plainly,
that as I have no Ambition to be accounted any extraordinary
P e r s o n of great Learning or Reading; so I far less desire to set up
or give my self out for O n e of Universal Practice or Experience:
And as at the Beginning, I only design’d this B o o k for the
immediate Service of M i d w i v e s, and the common Good of
W O M E N and their C H I L D R E N, the Poor, I mean in general, as
well as the Rich; So I am yet resolv’d, rather, to stifle or restrain my
Inclinations for the present time, and suppress what might be
otherways pertinently added on these Subjects, than to put it out of
the reach of the Purchase of either of T H O S E. I say, for these
reasons, I shall not undertake at this time to enter upon every
particular Head or Branch of the H Y S T E R I C K S; only that I may
not be censur’d as Churlish or Peevish to the more delicate
L A D I E S, and tenderly constituted Women, who always labour and
suffer most under these Distempers, I shall however yet endeavour
to discuss particularly the most dangerous, as well as the most
common Case, belonging to this general T o p i c k; and not only so,
but, according to my Ability, I shall also endeavour in it, if possible
in a few words, to include and comprehend all the rest of these
Female Indispositions: And that to the Purpose, and under the Title,
following, viz.——
 C H A P . III.
Of the Strangulation of the W o m b.

T H E preceding Chapter contains a general Account of the sundry

various Hysterick Passions, together with their respective
S y m p t o m s, as they affect the chief and Principal Parts of the
B o d y; whence I might descend to a great Variety of particulars;
but as neither my present Time nor Design will permit my entring
upon These in this place, I shall content my self with treating of This
O N E; which as it is the chief and most dangerous of all the Uterine
Affections, so ’tis the most Universal and Common.
I T comprehends, in short, many various severe, and even
wonderful S y m p t o m s in it self; whence I conclude, that, he who
sufficiently understands the present Case or Condition, may easily
comprehend all the other Circumstances, belonging to the foregoing
general Head; Since with whatever difference of Symptoms, or
Diagnostick Signs, they may appear, the Causes and Effects are
originally of the same Nature: For This is the very Affection which
Galen[235] call’d the ωνὶξ ὑσεικὴ, that is, the Hysterick Passion, and
he might as well have said the grand Hysterick Passion: The Latins
call it Strangulatio, or Suffocatio, or Præfocatio Uterina; because in
the F i t, the Woman seems to be Suffocated or Strangled by the
W o m b. But to the Purpose,——
H O W E V E R variously and copiously the Ancients have defin’d
this E v i l, I think the few following Words, may properly explain it,
viz. This Suffocation is a Distemper of all the Natural, Vital, and
Animal Actions, proceeding many different ways, from an ill or
disaffected W o m b.
 I say many different ways, according to the many different Sorts
of the A F F E C T I O N; because One is, when the S y m p t o m s of
the læs’d Natural Faculty only appear; in which the P A T I E N T
labours under Inflations, and frequent Rumblings of the B E L L Y,
Murmurings, Belchings, Pains of the S t o m a c h, Anxiety,
Uneasiness, and sometimes Vomitings. Another different
A F F E C T I O N is, when the vital Faculty is læs’d or indisposed, in
which the P A T I E N T is not only taken with Heart-Beatings, but
also with Faintings and Swooning-Fits, with a small, frequent, and
unequal P U L S E. A Third is when the Animal Faculty is læs’d or
disaffected, which may happen many ways; and in this Condition the
W o m a n is depriv’d of Motion and all external Sense, however she
retains the principal Functions, together with her P U L S E and
B R E A T H.
A G A I N, farther yet, there is another Sort of this Hysterick
A F F E C T I O N, in which the Motion is deprav’d, turning to various
C o n v u l s i o n s of the Legs, Arms, Teeth, Lips, Eyes, and so of the
whole Body. As also moreover, there is still O N E, or a Fifth different
Sort of this S u f f o c a t i o n, in which all the Faculties of Life are
seemingly abolished; so far, that (according to common Sense and
Apprehension) the P A T I E N T differs in Nothing from a dead
Person. Hence it has often happen’d, that such Women (upon a
mistake) have been imprudently buried (for D E A D,) and
sometimes had the good Fortune to return from their Graves to their
Houses again; whereof many learned Authors give us remarkable
Instances[236].
B U T if it should be ask’d, in short, how it is possible for the
W o m a n to live, after she has lost both her P U L S E and her
B R E A T H? I can only refer the Curious to Galen, who has fully
answer’d that Question[237] (according also to the Sentiment of
Heraclydes) viz.——That tho’ the Refrigeration of the whole Body,
and its principal Parts, is so great as to intercept both the Pulse and
the Breath; Yet the Woman, no less than other Animals, such as
Snails and others of that kind, which live in strict obscurity, may
have Transpiration sufficient, thro’ the whole Circuit of the Body, to
defend L I F E[238].
I F so, then, that there are so many different Sorts of U T E R I N E
S T R A N G U L A T I O N S, there must also (of Consequence) be as
many peculiar Causes: Which, tho’ all take Origin from the W o m b,
yet do not arise to this Pitch, unless two other Causes concur with it.
Viz. O N E from the Part affected; A N O T H E R from the Passages,
thro’ which the W o m b communicates this A F F E C T I O N to it. But
in short, the principal immediate Causes are T H R E E[239] viz.
retain’d Menstruous Blood, vitiated Seed, and putrid Humours, or
corrupted Matter, contain’d in any part of the W o m b; which
immediate, and concurring Causes, I come now to Speak to, viz.——
A S to the F i r s t then, I think the retain’d B L O O D, is not
sufficient of it self to induce this A F F E C T I O N, because we know,
many to be free from it, who yet labour under the suppress’d
M E N S T R U A; wherefore the Imbecillity of the Principal Parts
admitting the H u m o u r s, must concur with the Latitude of the
Passages, thro’ which the B l o o d is communicated to them: Which
Three conspiring together, the S u f f o c a t i o n of course succeeds
with Aggravation.
I F this B l o o d flows thro’ the Veins and Arteries, into the
H E A R T, it occasions a S Y N C O P E, which is a most severe
Affection.
I F it ascends into the B r a i n, it occasions various Symptoms
according to the Quality of the B l o o d, viz.——If it is Pituitous, it
induces a S u f f o c a t i o n with S L E E P, resembling a
L E T H A R G Y: If it be Bilious, the A F F E C T I O N is most furious,
and the P A T I E N T is (as it were) almost Mad, tearing her self,
pulling her Hair, renting her Cloaths, &c. If the B l o o d be sweet,
she only fancies A m o u r s, and meditates upon pleasing
C h i m e r a s: As, in fine, if Melancholick, it seizes her with a
Sadness of H e a r t, and Dejection of M i n d.
B U T as to the S e c o n d Cause, the retain’d S e e d induces not
only These, but more grievous Symptoms, since as soon as it is
corrupted and refrigerated, it becomes the worst of P o y s o n[240]:
And as it reaches the principal debilitated Parts, it draws on the most
dangerous sort of S u f f o c a t i o n s; in which the P a t i e n t lies
for Dead, the whole B o d y being extremely refrigerated, or
benumb’d by this venenated Matter. Which Accident however may
happen promiscuously to all Women, abounding with such
morbifick Contents in the W o m b, as sometimes falls out to M a i d s,
but more commonly to W i d o w s, whose Bodies as well as W o m b s
abound with pituitous H u m o u r s; as also sometimes to Pregnant
Women of Cacochymical Habits, and to Puerperial Women not
cleansing sufficiently.
I know by the way, that some modern Writers define the Case
otherways, and will have M e n to be also lyable to the same
Distemper, which they alledge proceeds chiefly from the Blood and
Spirits: But the Reason why I think they are exempted from it, at
least from its Severities, is because, what they lose in Nocturnal
Pollutions or otherways, is always ejected or thrown without Doors;
whereas what the other S e x so emitts, may be still retain’d within;
and consequently by a long Detention there, may be converted into
V e n o m, or a Poysonous Humour.
H O W E V E R, this happens more readily and frequently to
W i d o w s, than to V i r g i n s, because in the one, the Passages are
not only dilated, but also Nature is accustomed to such Emissions, as
the other is yet wholly a Stranger to. Moreover——
A G A I N, this A f f e c t i o n may also proceed from too great an
abundance of S E E D in those, call’d the Seminal Vessels; tho’ not to
such a dangerous Degree: In which Case, if the S E E D be
Acrimonious, a Convulsion may happen; if otherways, the
P a t i e n t seems only to faint and fall away, with a sort of a grateful
Indulgence, without any great Change of Countenance, or Alteration
of P u l s e; tho’ she often continues with her Eyes shut, Starting and
Wakening (as it were) frequently: And as upon returning to herself,
she falls a-sighing, so a little after, the S y m p t o m recurs again.
F I N A L L Y, as to the third Cause, Supposing this A f f e c t i o n
to seize Women, who not only Purge regularly, but are also satiated
with Virile Conversation; or, as it sometimes happens, to take Old
Women: In these Cases, the Cause is undoubtedly very different
from those mentioned, and proceeds either from Winds, Vapours, or
putrid and corrupted Humours, contain’d in the W o m b, and
communicated by various Passages, to the H e a r t and B r a i n:
And this Corruption may readily succeed in the W o m b, because, as
it is a part very different from any other of the B o d y, endued with
peculiar Faculties, so if it be not well disposed, the vitious Humours
may also corrupt in it, after a peculiar manner; if not in its own
Cavity, in the Uterine Vessels, as most frequently happens.
 U P O N which, I observe that, if these Winds or Vapours are
communicated to the H e a r t, thro’ the Veins and Arteries, the
S u f f o c a t i o n happens with Palpitation: If to the B r a i n, with a
Vertigo, a Tingling of the Ears, and a Suffusion from the Phantasms
of the Eyes: Whereas, if the deprav’d Humours or Vapours, ascend
there, thro’ the Nerves, various Convulsions happen; especially if the
B r a i n abounds also with frigid Humours. And these, in short,
according to the foresaid Authorities, are all the Proximous and
immediate Causes of the H y s t e r i c k P a s s i o n.
H E N C E I come now to touch upon the mediate Causes of the
same Distemper, which may be easily conceiv’d by any who
understands those of the suppressed M e n s t r u a,
G o n o r r h æ a, &c. which Cases I can by no means enter upon at
this Time, for the reasons mentioned in the last preceding Chapter.
B U T from what is said (I hope) this Uterine S t r a n g u l a t i o n,
together with all its Differences, may be easily distinguished by the
ingenious Reader. However yet, because all its different Sorts have
some degree of Affinity, with other diverse Symptoms, which no
ways proceed from the W o m b; I come now to propose some
S i g n s of Distinction, first in general, and next in particular, viz.
——
T H E general S i g n s then are Three, by which I think, the
H y s t e r i c k may be readily distinguished from all other
Affections, namely,——
I. I T is a Muliebrian Disease, and that only familiar to some of the
more delicate Women: When therefore we know, from the
P a t i e n t herself, or from those about her, that she is obnoxious to
this Affection; the H y s t e r i c Symptoms also appearing, we need
not suspect any other Distemper. II. Hysterical Women complain
frequently of their W o m b s being ill-disposed, and out of order. As,
III. They are most commonly helped and freed from the
P a r o x y s m, by holding Fœtids to the N o s e, and Suaveolents to
the P u d e n d u m; which holds good in no other Affection. But more
particularly——
T H I S Distemper differs from a S y n c o p e, in that, a S y n c o p e
is precipitant, and seizes the P a t i e n t all at once, tho’ ’tis but of
short Duration; Whereas in this, some evident S i g n s of an
approaching Paroxysm always precede, and the Evil continues
sometimes for several Hours and perhaps Days: In that, the P u l s e
is quickly abolish’d, or at least seemingly ceases; in this, it remains,
however small, except in the aforementioned extreme F i t: In that of
a S y n c o p e, cold Sweats appear, and the Countenance changes
pale; and when the H e a r t is severely affected, it may be probably
conjoin’d with the H y s t e r i c k Affection.
N O W This Distemper differs also from an E p i l e p s y: For in
That the Convulsive Motions are not always join’d with it, or if they
be, they are not so universal, affecting only one or other Member: In
E p i l e p t i c k s, the P u l s e is greater than ordinary; but in
H y s t e r i c k s, it is the Reverse: In that the P a t i e n t foams at
the Mouth, and loses the principal Functions of Life, especially the
Memory; in this they foam not, neither commonly lose any internal
Sense; but only awake like those who have been asleep.
T H I S Affection differs again from the A p o p l e x y, in that the
P a r t s are not so much affected, nor their feeling so much
abolished; in that there is no continual Snoaring, and the P u l s e is
only diminished and depraved, which in A p o p l e c t i c s most
commonly remains entire: In short, the one is preceded, as well as
accompany’d with diverse Symptoms; whereas the other assails the
P a t i e n t suddenly, without any previous Notice or Signification.
A G A I N the H y s t e r i c k s differ from a L e t h a r g y; in that
This is attended with a F e v e r; That not at all: In This the P u l s e
is raised higher and is stronger; in That it falls always lower, and is
weaker.
M O R E O V E R, there are diverse Experiments, mentioned by
Authors, to distinguish a P a t i e n t in the extreme F i t of this
Passion, from a Person actually D e a d: Such as Lint, Feathers, or
burnt Paper being held to the M o u t h; if moved, the P a t i e n t
breathes. A Glass of Water being set upon the B r e a s t; if stirred,
there is some Motion and Dilatation still in the B r e a s t. Or, in fine,
a Looking-Glass well wiped, being held to their M o u t h s, if
infected, the P a t i e n t is still and certainly alive.
H O W E V E R, all These Things, I look upon to be merely trifling
and uncertain in this Case; because, supposing the W o m a n not to
breathe, as has been hinted; How then can she expire so much from
her L u n g s, as to move a Feather, or infect a Glass? Or, how can
her B r e a s t have any such a Motion, as to move Water in a Glass?
Considering well, what has been already said, that it is only by
internal Transpiration, that she draws the Breath of Life; which is
neither effected by the Motion of the B r e a s t, nor the L u n g s; but
rather by a certain obscure and latent Motion of the H e a r t, and the
internal Arteries: In such manner, as some Animals, living in Cells of
Obscurity, seem to be refrigerated, or benumb’d and D e a d the
whole Winter-Season.
B U T in this Case, the more certain Method is, to try the
P a t i e n t with proper Sternutatories, such as are otherways useful
in all such P a r o x y s m s, for if alive, she will be quickly mov’d by
Sternutation: As when the Body begins to send forth a Cadaverous
Smell, it is a certain S i g n that the innate Heat is extinct with the
L i f e, and that the Body is no more supported by the S o u l.
Wherefore the safest and surest way is, not to bury such P e r s o n s,
before the Expiration of 72 Hours, reckoning from the beginning of
the F i t: Because, if in this Time, which is the C r i s i s, or Term of
the Circuit of all the H u m o u r s in the Body, they do not revive,
there is no more Room left for Hopes.
I N the next place, I come to mark the D i a g n o s t i c k s, whereby
it may be best distinguished, which of the before-mentioned
immediate Causes, gives Rise to the H Y S T E R I C K P A S S I O N
in any Woman labouring under the same Malady. And, I. I F it
proceeds from the Menstruous Blood, in this Condition, the Natural
Course must needs be suppress’d, either in whole or in part: And the
Difference of the Quality of this B L O O D, is evident from the
foregoing Symptoms.
II. I F from too long retain’d S E E D; the P a t i e n t is to be
suppos’d regular in her natural Flux, as she is Calid and Sanguine,
either from high Living, or want of Exercise: In this the
S y m p t o m s are all more severe and dangerous, than in the other
Case, and upon the declension of the P a r o x y s m, or the Fits going
off, a certain H u m o u r flows from the P u d e n d u m, occasion’d by
the Constriction made in the W o m b.
III. I F from corrupted Humours, the P a t i e n t not only Purges
regularly, but also enjoys her H u s b a n d: Hence in this Case, I
would conclude that she either labours, or has labour’d under some
Uterine Distemper, such as a Satyriasis, Pruritus, Furor,
Gonorrhæa, Fluor Muliebris, Ulcers, Impostumes, a former
Suppression, or Irregularity of the M e n s t r u a, or the like: As also
many Learned Men agree that a Præternatural Situation[241],
namely, the W o m b ’ s ascending to the superior Parts, compressing
the L i v e r and D i a p h r a g m a, and consequently the Lungs,
H e a r t, or S t o m a c h, may induce various S u f f o c a t i o n s;
Which, I think, is also confirm’d by Reason and Experience. For——
W H O knows not that the Ligaments of the W o m b, may be so
relaxed and extended, that it may fall down to the very K n e e s, as I
have seen it? And who may not thence conceive that in the same
Laxity of the Ligaments, the W o m b may be as well driven upwards
by Winds, Vapours, or too much gross B l o o d in the Ligaments; or
by ungrateful Odours approaching the W o m b, as it may also be
attracted by pleasant and grateful Smells at the Nose? Not that I
mean here, by the by, that the W o m b is capable of Smelling, and
therefore shuns disagreeable Fœtors; but only that its Spirits and
Heat, especially in Those, who abound with deprav’d Humours, are
attracted either way by agreeable Odours, or fragrant Smells.
N O W in this Case, the W o m b may be plainly found by the Touch,
ascended in the Form of a round Ball; Which however may be easily
brought down, and replaced in its natural Posture, by any skilful
experienced Hand, previously well anointed with the O i l of Spike,
Spikenard, White Lillies, or the like. Again farther, to prevent its
Return, some nauseous Smells, may be apply’d to the Nose, or the
Reverse to the P u d e n d u m; as also the superiour Parts of the
Body may be tyed strait with proper Bands or Ligaments.
B U T more particularly, as to the proper Diagnosticks of the
imminent P a r o x y s m, or approaching F i t of Suffocation, these
are, Grumblings in the A b d o m e n, a Distention and Pulsation in
the B a c k and Hypochondriacks, a Weariness of the whole Body, an
Imbecillity of the L e g s, Belching, Nauseating, Gaping, a pale Face,
and a sad Countenance; attended at last with the aforesaid Sense of
Strangulation, as if the P a t i e n t was a-swallowing a Ball, &c. As
also I have known some Women to have been taken with a long F i t
of Laughter upon this occasion, others with that of Crying; as
probably some may confusely act both at once.
H O W E V E R, It is to be observ’d in this place, that, as the
Distemper is not equally violent in All, nor always attended by the
same, or the same number of Symptoms; so neither are the F i t s
equally long or frequent, but invade and seize the P a t i e n t
according to the quick or slow gathering of the Morbifick Humours,
which are also sooner or later discussed: Which Humorous Particles
in our Bodies, like as in intermitting Fevers, have their due Times of
Digestion, Accumulation, and Exaltation; which Height as soon as
they have arrived to, they suddenly, and as it were in a Moment,
break out into Action: Or else These Humours may lye dormant in
the Body, until by some Procatarctick, or External Cause, they are
exagitated, and set at Work.
N O W this Agitation of H u m o u r s depends not only upon the
Course of the S u n and M o o n, but also sometimes more
particularly upon the Change of the A i r, and the Motion of the S e a.
As to the Solar and Lunar Influences upon the Animal Machine,
they are already abundantly set forth[242], wherefore I shall resume
Nothing of them in this place: And as to the Efficiency of the A i r, I
would observe it to be always most considerable about the Two
Equinoxes; as at these Seasons the most impetuous Winds and
violent Storms happen; and that continually the most severe at Noon
and Midnight; that is to say, when the S u n is in our Zenith, or in the
Nadir, viz. in the vertical Point over our Heads, or the quite opposite
under[243] our Feet. These Changes however come a little before the
Vernal Equinox, but follow the Autumnal; because of the various
Distances of the M o o n in its Perigæum and Apogæum.
M O R E O V E R, at these Seasons, and indeed at all Times, the
A i r swells or rises highest, at New and Full M o o n, from the
conjunct Power of both the Planets: Hence the diligent Mariners and
Husbandmen always observe the Weather to change, and Winds to
rise upon these Occasions; and, not only so, but also, a constant and
certain R e c o u r s e of Winds and Weather to happen at certain
Seasons of the Year; and that from some certain necessary Natural
Cause, which always acts in the same manner.
As to the Motion of the S e a, its Efficacy upon the Animal Fabrick,
may be easily comprehended, considering only what is said; together
with this Truth, that, at all Seasons, the A i r is highest, and the
Winds strongest, when the T i d e of the Flood is at its highest Ascent.
For as the S e a swells, so the Ambient A i r in 25 Hours, is twice
raised to a considerable great Height, from the Attraction of the
M o o n approaching the Meridian: And the same swelling of the
A i r must necessarily follow, as often as the S u n comes to the
Meridian of any place, either above or below the H o r i z o n; tho’
(as aforesaid) it is always highest at New and Full M o o n: And
lowest of all, when the M o o n is but half Full; the Planets then
drawing each a contrary way: As it is middling, during the Time
between the dimidiated Orbs of the M o o n, and the New and Full
M o o n[244].
C O N S I D E R I N G then that the Ambient A i r and the
surrounding S e a are both fluid Bodies, and that the Changes of the
O n e agree so exactly with the Tide of the O t h e r, we may
rationally conclude, that they are both (in a great measure) subject to
the same L a w s of Motion[245]. Hence it is, that, the great
Physician[246] says, that the Fluxes and Refluxes of both these
E l e m e n t s are so ordain’d, by the Wise Councell of the Almighty
C r e a t o r, to keep them from Stagnations and Corruptions, which
would be noxious to all Creatures, that by these means are preferred
in a better Condition. Which is also confirm’d by Experience, from
that, in clear and open places such Valetudinarians as are ready to
Die, recover their Health, and the Soundest Constitution in moist
close places, grows S i c k.
F R O M the whole, it is evident, that the Motions of the A i r at the
flowing of the S e a, upon the New and Full M o o n, and in the
Æquinoxes, change the Fabrick of the Animal Bodies: But these
Changes are always most remarkable in those of weak and sickly
Constitutions; whereas those of Strong and Healthy Bodies more
readily repel or evade their Influences. Hence it is that our Bodies so
much Sympathize, and so manifestly correspond with the
Cœlestials, as the Experience of a great many Ingenious Authors
testify[247]: And hence again it is that the H y s t e r i c k, no less than
any other P a t i e n t, keeps Time strictly with these Superiour
Bodies, as the Register of a vast many Examples, and even daily
Experience it self teaches for Truth. Now having thus far prosecuted
the Diagnosticks, as well with respect to the Times and Seasons of
the P a r o x y s m s, as to the Signs and Symptoms of the Distemper,
I come at length to——
T H E Prognosticks of this Uterine S u f f o c a t i o N, which I shall
but briefly hint upon; and F i r s t, observe, that where the
H u m o u r s overcharge the Body, and are implicated among
themselves; in this Case the F i t s do not always keep their
Legitimate Times, nor their proper Insults, but are sometimes more
frequent, more sharp, and more diuturnal; in like manner, as a
Concourse of W i n d s excites the most violent S t o r m s, according
to the Poet[248],
“Unà Eurusque Notusque ruunt, creberque procellis
“Africus, & vastos volvunt ad Littora Fluctus:

So a Concourse and Confluxion of H u m o u r s, must needs

aggravate the Distemper; but more especially, when the afflicted
P A T I E N T is taken with a Complication of Distempers, such as
when the H Y S T E R I C K F I T is join’d with a Syncope, or severe
Convulsions, &c. then the Case is most dangerous.[249]
—— —— —— “Nam corpore in Uno
“Frigida cum Calidis Pugnant, Humentia Siccis,
“Mollia cum duris, Sine pondere habentia pondus.

These Things, consisting in the Corruption and Inflammation, or in

the Quantity and Quality of the peccant H U M O U R S, concur with
the other Causes, above defin’d, that the Circulations of the
Distemper are either shorter or longer, more frequent or more rare,
or more safe or more dangerous in the Event.
S E C O N D L Y, I observe in this place, that, if the Distemper does
not carry off the P A T I E N T, as often happens in the foregoing
Condition, it commonly degenerates at last into an Apoplexy, or
Palsy, Stupidity, or deep Melancholy, &c. Wherefore I come now
finally to treat of the Method of its Cure; which is twofold, One in the
Access or F I T, and another in the Interval. Then as to the First——
I N the F I T, Revulsive and Repressing Remedies are most
apposite, together with Corroboratives for the H E A R T and
V E N T R I C L E, as well as for the W o m b it self. But because
Revulsives are of many and different kinds, they are to be discreetly
us’d, according to the Nature of the Cause from whence the Evil
proceeds: For if suppressed B l o o d be the Cause, in that Case,
Galen agrees with Hippocrates that an Inferiour Vene-Section is
convenient, and that even tho’ a Syncope join the
S U F F O C A T I O N, because the One is but the Effect of the
Other[250]: Remembring always that such Bleedings must be done
with great Prudence and Caution, because of the present Prostration
of the Strength and Spirits, and Refrigeration of the P A T I E N T’s
whole Body.
W H E R E A S if the P A R O X Y S M proceeds from venenated
S E E D, or depraved Humours, no V E I N is to be open’d; but
instead of That, I would lay the Woman supine in her B E D, for
breathing the freer, and loose all her Laces, Garters, &c. Then if
Strong Sternutatories, Fœtid Smells, Vellication of her Ears,
Nostrils, Pilorumve Pudendi, did not help her Condition; I would use
dolorifick Ligatures, and Frictions of T H I G H S, L E G S, and
F E E T; or apply Cupping Glasses without Scarification to the
T H I G H S and G R O I N it self: As also proper Liniments, Clysters,
Suppositories, Pessaries, &c. are convenient Means: And sometimes
Suffumigations of G A L B A N U M, A S S A F O E T I D A, Old
Leather, Cloth, Sulphur, Partridge Feathers, Horse-Tetters or
Warts, &c. Or (which is reckon’d Best of all) a few of the
P A T I E N T’s Hairs of her Head, burnt, and held to her N O S E. Or,
while I should often tickle the N O S T R I L S with a Feather, or my
Finger dipp’d in the sharpest Vinegar, Oleum Succini, or the like, I
would anoint the P A L L E T with Triacle, Mithridate, or such other
Things dissolv’d in pleasant W I N E.
H O W E V E R, in such Cases, as well as in all others, à mitioribus
adhibitis, progrediendum est ad valentiora; I say, we are to begin
with the more gentle, and proceed gradually to the more strong and
powerful R E M E D I E S; using all proper Means with the utmost
Prudence and Discretion, and that only according to the absolute
Necessity and imminent Danger of the incident Case. Now moreover,
I would add for such as lose both P U L S E and B R E A T H, that
some of the above R E M E D I E S are not only requisite; but also,
according to the excellent Horatius Augenius, a little generous
W I N E with Nutmeg, Cinnamon and Cloves, adding five Grains of
M U S K, is altogether proper for this P A T I E N T[251]: Tho’ for
others, who have not quite lost all Sense and Motion, nothing is
perhaps more pernicious than the U S E of such Odoriferous
Matters, since I have known several Women to have been
immediately suffocated, even by the very Smell of M U S K, C I V E T,
A M B E R, &c. But when the Sick P A T I E N T lies (as above) for
dead, if such Odours can excite the W O M B, they can likewise move
the Arteries, and give Hopes of Recovery; upon which occasion also,
I would apply hot Sear-Cloths to the Regions of the H E A R T and
W O M B: Or, if I suspected the H E A D to abound with frigid
Humours, I would moreover apply Vesicatories behind the E A R S,
or an Issue, or drawing Plaister to the N A P E of the Neck, always
cherishing the S T O M A C H with proper Fomentations: As also
according to some, the Hoof of an E L K, is a present R E M E D Y in
all such Suffocations or F I T S of the Mother[252].
B Y the above-mentioned, which are all the most prevalent Means
in the A C C E S S, we will now suppose the P A T I E N T to be
recover’d; in which Case, the next step needful, is to guard against,
and prevent the Return of the F I T, and consequently to Cure the
D I S E A S E; which can only be effected by removing the Cause,
whatever it may be: And This, in my Opinion, may be most
effectually perform’d in manner following, viz.——
I F the Distemper proceeds from the suppressed B L O O D or
M E N S T R U A, This is by proper Means to be reduced to its
Natural Course and Condition. If from a retain’d Seminal Matter in
the Uterine Vessels, the Cure depends chiefly upon a proper
Regimen of Diet and Exercise; frequent gentle Purges, and repeated
inferiour Venæ-Sections: Whereas if already collected and venenated
in the W O M B, and the Body consequently refrigerated, no V E I N
may properly be touch’d or open’d; but in this Case, as if the Evil
proceeded from vitious putrid H U M O U R S, it is to be evacuated in
the same manner, as in other Conditions of the humid
Intemperature of the W O M B; always corroborating and fortifying
the more affected or debilitated Parts.
N O W this Method of Cure, in short, being taken from the wisest
of the Ancients[253], I shall farther add one singular and essential Step
towards the perfecting of it; namely, if it be so, that the most severe
and dangerous Symptoms of this D I S T E M P E R proceed from the
Retention of the vitiated S E E D; then of Course and without
Controversy, the HYSTERICK PASSION must needs be most familiar
to WIDOWS and marriageable V I R G I N S; to whom I must finally
say, Let them Marry.
 Si tales etenim pruriginosas, Connubio destinari contingat, ac
Semen subdito virili Pessulo elici, in usumq, procreandæ Sobolis
depromi, protinus illas efflorescere videas, ac faciem roseo, nitidóq;
colore perfundi, blandas denique atque Amabiles, minúsq; tetricas
ac morosas. Quod etiam docet G A L E N U S, Exemplo viduæ
cujusdam, quæ multo Semine effuso, à Symptomatibus integrè est
liberata[254]. Itaq; dico, tales dissuetæ maturæve viro sunt
tempestive elocandæ. In fine, M A R R I A G E will very much help
such indisposed Persons, according to the Wise Judgment, Advice
and Direction of the best Antient W R I T E R S.
 CONCLUSION.

B E F O R E I close this finishing Chapter, I must entreat the

R E A D E R’s Patience, and finally observe (by way of
Recapitulation upon it, which will also serve to Answer the same End
upon divers places interspers’d throughout this whole B o o k) that I
am very Sensible before hand, that some considerate R e a d e r s,
even among the Learned themselves, will be ready to stop or cavil at
some of my Sentiments, and say, Quo te Mœri Pedes? Et quæ te
Dementia cepit?
I know that they deny, with the Peripatetick Aristotle[255], the
Existence of the Muliebrian S E E D. Nay, I farther know, that, this is
not all, which they will object against; for the Four Galenick
H U M O U R S will be as hard to digest. But as I leave all Men to
think and judge for themselves, without differing with any for
dissenting from me in Opinion, so I know that Men of Probity and
Ingenuity will allow me the same Privilege and act in a suitable
Manner: Whereas I doubt not but some Momus, or Zoilus, or some
Member of the Body of the Sophistical S c i o l i s t s will rise up, and
pronounce me either altogether Ignorant, or an unjust Vilifier of the
reigning Modern Opinions, by laying down some Authentick
Positions of the A n t i e n t s,
T H I S cannot more certainly befall me, than I expect it;
wherefore, I am not only in some measure upon my Guard; but also
otherways resolved to hear, and even bear such Controversial
Wranglings with Patience: Which I need think the less of doing, or
suffering with Pleasure, considering the many Glorious Examples
already set before my Eyes of Those who have deserved the greatest
Applause, and the Best of Mankind in all Ages. To pass by some
living M O N U M E N T S of Detraction, who are at this Day
universally acknowledged to be Eminent and Excellent Men; have
not some of the best Authors that ever wrote been unjustly scourged
by the black Tongues, and even scandaliz’d by the Satyrick Pens, of
their C o t e m p o r a r i e s? And are not the same S u f f e r e r s, I
mean their Names and Memories immortaliz’d at this Time, through
all Nations? Besides, in short, will they not continue to be so through
out all succeeding Generations for their essential Helps and
ingenious Discoveries in the Noble and Heavenly Art of P h y s i c k?
Moreover, have we not too many Instances of T h i s, to go no
farther, in England, even too well known to require a Repetition?
H O W vain then would it be in me to hope to escape the Common
Fate of all W r i t e r s in general? No, before ever I put Pen to Paper,
I plainly foresaw, that, in this degenerate Age, no honest Man could
safely subscribe to the genuine truth of Things, without suffering by
publick Malice, under the Character of being reckon’d either an
Ignorant or an obsolete S i n g u l a r i s t.
H O W E V E R, yet, as I would willingly avoid being ranked among
litigious Disputants, so I have taken Care (if it be possible) to
mitigate the Censure, by not insisting too stiffly upon any T o p i c k,
which may be suppos’d to tend more to curious Speculation, than to
real Practice in our A r t: Neither have I set off any Hypothesis with
recommendatory Glosses, nor other fine Embellishments, serving
more for Ornament than Use.
B U T that I may not seem at last altogether to give up, what I have
been advancing, however in modest Terms and upon authentick
Authorities, I ingenuously answer and confess, that, I have in diverse
respects and in sundry places in this B o o k, spoke my Mind freely,
and impartially, however without Prejudice, and that sometimes also
contrary to the Opinions of many famous W r i t e r s in Vogue, as
well Ancient as Modern; by which means, I may perhaps have
disgusted some, otherways, most Judicious R e a d e r s: However,
considering the different Grounds upon which Men commonly form
their Judgment of A u t h o r s, if I have but the Happiness to please
in some Things, I have all that I am ambitious of.
W H E R E F O R E, as it was neither for Applause nor Reputation-
sake, but merely for the Common Good of Mankind, that I undertook
to write modestly, so I resolved at the Beginning, that, neither
Malice nor Envy should deter me from publishing what is True, and,
to my certain Knowledge, confirmed by Experience. I have carefully
perus’d other Men’s W o r k s, Moderns as well as Ancients, to gain
the Knowledge and discover the Truth of Things, and I gratefully
acknowledge what Benefit soever I have reaped from them, whose
N a m e s I am not asham’d to affix to this B o o k, by the Help of their
elaborate and ingenious W r i t i n g s: Desiring thereby to convince
the R e v o l v e r, that I neither reject the hard Labours of the
Ancients, nor despise the laudable Endeavours of the Moderns,
much less would I be thought to decry or find Fault with any
particular Performance; especially considering that I meet with none
so empty, but that I get something by, which I emprove to my own
Advantage.
B U T as far as I have found them mistaken, since Mortal Eyes
cannot see beyond their H o r i z o n, nor the best of Men exceed the
natural Limits of human Frailty, I have thought it my Duty to
forewarn P o s t e r i t y of their Mistakes, not only according to the
laudable C u s t o m of the Ancients, but also according to my plain
Notion of the genuine Nature or true C h a r i t y; which I think
consists not in contemning, detracting and calumniating one
another, but rather in cleansing S c i e n c e s from the Dross of
Errors, that so the Right Way may be pav’d to our Successors by a
continued Series of Time, which may be effectually done by Many,
that cannot possibly be accomplished by One; because of the Brevity
of L i f e.
U P O N the whole, it is most certain that T r u t h is known but of
a few; whereas false Opinions go current in the Stream with the rest
of the World: Nay, T r u t h scarce yet ever carried it by Vote in any
respect, insomuch, that the most evident Testimonies of Sense, too
often yield place to imbib’d Opinions, and Men blindly reject the
manifest Evidence of their own Faculties, by which Truth in many
Cases is only to be discover’d: And indeed I know how hard it is
otherways to enquire exactly into the common Truth of Things, so as
to give a Satisfactory Demonstration, or a general Satisfaction to
All: Which notwithstanding, I verily believe that the Sons of A r t,
who know the Principles and Power of N a t u r e, and understand
her various Operations upon all B o d i e s, by the means of her
inferiour Agents, the four E L E M E N T S; and such as have attain’d
any competent Knowledge in the S P A G Y R I C K A N A T O M Y of
Things, especially of Fluids, Water, Wine, &c. will be at no great Loss
to conceive the Probability of both the one and the other above-
mentioned H y p o t h e s i s.
A C C E P T then, in fine, Benevolent R e a d e r, This short and
plain Performance of P h y s i c k and M i d w i f e r y; which, if it
should not happily answer to your Expectation, I would fain have
you believe, that it will far less correspond with my W i s h. If then
any Thing be found useful or acceptable in it, you are to ascribe that
to G o d, the Author of all Wisdom; you may impute what is
otherways perform’d, to Man’s Understanding and Practice blessed
by G o d: Therefore being every where mindful of Humanity, read,
revolve, enjoy, and correct; reflecting in the Interim, not so much
upon the little that I have done, as upon that which others have not
hitherto perform’d concerning the same Subject.
I could with Pleasure have continued The Performance, and,
according to my Design at the Beginning, have added two
S E C T I O N S more, viz. One upon the Symptoms and Diseases of
the W o m b and the Passages; the other upon the various Symptoms
or Accidents, relating to the M E N S T R U O U S and other Uterine
Fluxes: But as the W o r k has already by far exceeded the Limits,
which I design’d it at first, I shall here for the present Time fix my
P e n.
I Pray G o d, in short, the Fountain of Life, and Source of all
Science, that H e may enable others to conceive what has been said,
better than I have been capable to explain; and grant that the Fruit
of my L a b o u r may conduce to the Health and Preservation of all
good W o m e n and their C h i l d r e n: All finally, upon the whole
Work, redounding to the eternal G l o r y of his own most Holy
Name.

FINIS.
 Authors Names quoted in this Work,
disposed Alphabetically.

A.
Ægineta
Aetius
Agrippa Corn.
Albertus Magnus
Alcinous
Alexandrinus Jul.
Anaxagoras
Antony St.
Apollonius
Apuleius
Aquinas Thom.
Areteus
Aristotle
Arnoldus de villa Nova
Augenius
Augustin St.
Aurelianus Cæl.
Averroes
Avicenna

B.
Baglivius
Bartholinus
Bellini
Benedictus Alex.
Blancard
Boerhaave
Boetius
Bonaciolus
Bottonus
Brassavolus
Burnet Thom.

C.
Cardanus
Cato
Catullus
Celsus
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