This homework assignment is a realistic problem based on electrical circuits.  A young man receives an electric shock while changing a household fuse.  Students must determine what caused the fuse to blow and the strength of the current that passed through the man. Topics covered include Ohm's Law, resistivity, capacitance, alternating current, and circuits.

This item is part of a larger collection of alternative homework assignments designed for introductory physics students.  Each assignment poses a series of questions about a single context.  To successfully complete assignments, students must think critically about how the physical situation could be represented by mathematics.