"Erik" wrote in message
...
Hi all,

A couple of neighbors were bickering about this.

Lets say there is a 100' extension cord (with metal copper
conductors)
energized by a live household 120V 60Hz outlet. Nothing is plugged
into
the cord, and it's one without any indicator lights or ground fault
gimmicks. Said cord is dry, other than the typical indoor humidity
of a
normal household garage.

How would one calculate the minuscule energy loss from such a static
conductor just sitting and radiating (and/or whatever).

I tend to agree with the one neighbor that there's bound 'some'
loss...
but probably on the order of, oh maybe a penny's worth every few
centuries; but haven't a clue as how one would calculate something
like
this, or even what loses would be involved.

Inquiring minds and all that... Thanks in advance!

Erik

Loss by antenna radiation
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radiation_resistance

Loss from dielectric heating would have to be measured. It's probably
insignificant at 60Hz, but it's how microwave ovens heat food.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loss_tangent
"Note that the ESR is not simply the resistance that would be measured
across a capacitor by an ohmmeter. The ESR is a derived quantity
representing the loss due to both the dielectric's conduction
electrons and the bound dipole relaxation phenomena mentioned above."

This type of instrument can measure the loss:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network...er_(electrical)
The losses can be very large at radio and microwave frequencies.

The cord is an open-circuited "stub".
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stub_(electronics)

jsw