This deep dive covers Why Parallel Resistance Decreases within Series & Parallel Circuits for GCSE Physics. Revise Series & Parallel Circuits in Electricity for GCSE Physics with 20 exam-style questions and 30 flashcards. This topic appears less often, but it can still be a useful differentiator on mixed-topic papers. It is section 5 of 16 in this topic. Use this deep dive to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
🔬 Why Parallel Resistance Decreases
Imagine traffic flowing to a city. One road (series) creates a bottleneck — all cars must use the same route.
Add a second road (parallel) and traffic flows more easily — cars can choose either route. The "resistance" to traffic flow DECREASES even though you've added more road.
Electricity works the same way. More parallel paths = more routes for electrons = less overall resistance.
Practice questions for Series & Parallel Circuits
In a series circuit, what is true about the current at all points?
A student adds an extra lamp to a parallel circuit. Explain how this affects the total current from the supply and the brightness of the original lamps.