electro-Physics: 17.3409 volts

[Fred Cisin]

On Fri, 10 Dec 2004, Jules Richardson wrote:
> Out of interest, why do we use 50Hz power in the UK and 60Hz in the US?
> (I don't mean why are they different, I mean why those numbers)

35 years ago, I was working for a British physicist, and I asked him:

"Why are US devices 60Hz, and UK devices 50Hz?"
"So that they will work with the local mains power."
"Well, why are the US outlets 60Hz, and the UK outlets are 50 Hz?"
"So that the devices plugged into them will work."