While you are working on electric circuits, there is often the possibility of receiving an electric shock by touching the “live” conductors when the power is on. The shock is a sudden involuntary contraction of the muscles, with a feeling of pain, caused by current through the body. If severe enough, the shock can be fatal. Safety first, therefore, should always be the rule.
The greatest shock hazard is from high voltage circuits that can supply appreciable amounts of power. The resistance of the human body is also an important factor. If you hold a conducting wire in each hand, the resistance of the body across the conductors is about 10,000 to 50,000 ohms. Holding the conductors tighter lowers the resistance. If you hold only one conductor, your resistance is much higher. It follows that the higher the body resistance, the smaller the current that can flow through you.
A safety rule, therefore, is to work with only one hand if the power is on. Also, keep yourself insulated from earth ground when working on power-line circuits, since one side of the line is usually connected to earth. In addition, the metal chassis of radio and television receivers is often connected to the power line ground. The final and best safety rule is to work on the circuits with the power disconnected if at all possible, and make resistance tests.
