5 Electrifying

Chapter 5 Electrifying When streets and houses are set up with an electricity supply, it's known as electrification. In 1879, George H. Roe formed the first electricity company in San Francisco, USA. We'll supply your electricity for just $10 a week!

当街道和房屋都有了电力供应时，这被称为电气化。 1879年，乔治·h·罗伊在美国旧金山成立了第一家电力公司。 我们将为你提供每星期100美元的电力！

Thomas Edison opened his own electrical power stations in London and New York. Wires from his power stations carried electricity for thousands of light bulbs. Ooooh! Aaah! Whole cities could now be lit by electricity- indoors and out. On December 20, 1880, the first electric streetlights in New York were switched on, along Broadway.

托马斯·爱迪生在伦敦和纽约开设了自己的发电站。 他的发电站的电线为成千上万的灯泡输送电力。 哇哦!啊!现在整个城市都可以用电照明——室内和室外都可以。 1880年12月20日，纽约百老汇大街上的第一盏电灯点亮了。

But Edison's wires couldn't carry electricity very far. He was using "Direct Current" or DC electricity, which always flows in the same direction around a circuit. The wires heated up as they carried the electricity, wasting energy and losing power. The longer the wires, the more power is wasted.

但是爱迪生的电线不能传输很远的电。 他使用的是“直流电”或直流电，它在电路中总是以相同的方向流动。 电线在传输电力时受热，造成能量浪费和电力损失。 电线越长，浪费的电力就越多。

So, in the 1880s, an inventor named Nikola Tesla found a way to make another kind of electricity, "Alternating Current" or AC. The current switches direction 50 or 60 times a second, and can carry electricity over long distances without losing too much power.

因此，在19世纪80年代，一位名叫尼古拉·特斯拉的发明家找到了制造另一种电的方法，即“交流电”或AC。 电流每秒转换方向50或60次，并且可以在不损失太多电力的情况下长距离传输电力。

Before long, a businessman named George Westinghouse was building AC power stations. Edison was furious. AC electricity is dangerous! In 1890, AC electricity was used to electrocute William Kemmler, the first person to be executed by electric chair.

不久，一个名叫乔治·威斯汀豪斯的商人开始建造交流发电站。 爱迪生勃然大怒。交流电很危险！1890年，交流电被用于电刑威廉·凯姆勒，他是第一个被电椅处决的人。

Despite Edison's worries, AC worked so well for supplying houses that it soon replaced DC. Today, most of our electricity is AC. It comes from power stations that convert energy from coal or gas, water, wind or nuclear power, into electrical energy. Steam Water Turbine Generator A generator turns the spinning movement into electricity. This power station burns coal to heat water and make steam. The steam makes a huge motor called a turbine spin around. Transformer

尽管爱迪生忧心忡忡，但交流电在住宅供电方面的效果非常好，很快就取代了直流电。 今天，我们用的大部分电都是交流电。 它来自将煤、天然气、水、风能或核能转化为电能的发电站。 蒸汽水轮发电机发电机将旋转运动转化为电能。 这个发电站燃烧煤来加热水并产生蒸汽。 蒸汽使一个叫做涡轮机的巨大马达旋转起来。 变压器