Diary of Alessandro Volta
Introduction
Alessandro Volta is an Italian scientist who made important discoveries about electricity in the late 1700s. He is best known for challenging Luigi Galvani’s idea of “animal electricity” and proving that electricity could be produced by using metals and liquids. Throughout his research and experiments, Volta discovered that electricity is not just produced with living things but can also be produced by combining different materials.
15th of September 1792
Dear Diary,
Today I found myself deeply pondering Luigi Galvani’s claim that animal movement is caused by electricity. The more I pondered it, the more I felt compelled to question it. After a bit of thought, I decided to challenge the claim and find the actual reason. I then propose the idea that it was just static electricity that had caused the movement in the frog’s legs. To support my claim, I recall my experiment from 1785 where I created the Electrophorus Machine that generates static electricity. By rubbing a metal plate against a cat’s fur, I was able to build up a charge strong enough to build up sparks. This certain event led me to believe that there is more to discover about this and I am determined to find a true explanation for this event.
23rd of November 1792
Dear Diary,
This evening, while attempting to recreate the same outcome that Luigi Galvani had, I made a fascinating discovery. If you use two different types of metals, in my case, copper and silver, placing a copper coin on one leg while placing a silver coin on the other will cause the frog’s legs to move. But when it comes to using copper and copper or silver and silver, it does not trigger a reaction at all and instead remains motionless. This led me to an important and successful conclusion that this so-called “animal electricity” isn’t a unique property of living beings but rather just simple electricity produced by the interaction of different metals. I call this event “Metallic Electricity.”
3rd of December 1792
Dear Diary,
Recently, I have been starting to investigate and explore further about metallic electricity by examining the effects of liquid on electrical conductivity between metals. During the investigation and research, I discovered that frog legs or any animal’ parts in general aren’t necessary to generate an electrical charge with metals; liquids such as saltwater can also trigger an electrical charge between metals. To find out, I replaced the legs with saltwater and achieved the same result. I then set up an experiment using five cups of diluted acid, connecting them with alternating strips of silver and zinc. When I placed my fingers in the end cups, I felt a mild electric shock. This confirmed my theory that connecting different metals through a conductive liquid can generate electricity effectively.
4th of January 1794
Dear Diary,
Today, I tested how different metals work with electricity. I found that when I use two metals that are very different from each other, they make more electricity. So, with the knowledge and information that I had discovered, I decided to make a list showing which metals produce and charge up the most electricity, starting with zinc and ending with manganese ore. This list will surely help me in future experiments.
Conclusion
This is my version of Alessandro Volta’s diary entry and if I were Alessandro Volta, this is how I would have worded my information that I discovered.
About the Author
Hello, I’m Lyza. I enjoy hanging out with my friends, collecting items/things I think look appealing and going out to places that I love. I also really enjoy talking and socialising with others. I always try my best to listen to others and be kind towards them too.