self-inductance

The chapter explores the narrator's surreal experience of perceiving electromagnetic phenomena beyond normal human senses, including seeing infrared and ultraviolet light and visualizing magnetic fields around electric currents. It explains electromagnetic induction, both mutual and self-inductance, using vivid metaphors such as fans inducing motion in each other and Greenies surfing magnetic waves, highlighting how changing magnetic fields induce currents. The chapter further introduces capacitance as the ability to store electrical charge, illustrated through the metaphor of a parking lot for electrons, and discusses how these phenomena relate to energy storage, current behavior, and natural electrical effects like lightning.

The chapter uses a humorous analogy of a Norwegian family's mile race obstructed by a chain-link fence to explain capacitance, illustrating how the dielectric blocks direct current but allows alternating current depending on frequency. It then explores how capacitors combine in parallel and series, introduces coils and their self-inductance properties that oppose current changes, and discusses reactance and impedance in AC circuits. The chapter also includes a personal narrative about a mysterious message and uses metaphorical stories to clarify complex electrical behaviors, concluding with explanations of inductance measurement and electronic terminology.