Hypothetical (Alternate/Quasi Historical) Post-Modern Dark Age Warfare

[Wohendum-Bluu]

Imagine a situation where, due to some unknown reason, technology as we know it, suddenly failed. I mean this as in electricity....just stopped being electrical. No power. No lights. No working cars. No modern transportation. No internet. Imagine a modern world just as it is now, but suddenly everything goes dark, and remains that way forever. Now, imagine the chaos that follows. The chaos that follows however is irrelevant to my question, but is still something to keep in mind.

Now, the United States as we know it, as well as most current modern day countries would instantaneously change in the way they function. Not overnight sure, but as years passed by, decades, and then a century or two, or more, today's political world would be nothing like what it would become. Of course, every-day life would change too. With no electricity, quite a few things that are normal now, would be non-existent then. Certains foods, drinks, toys, weapons, just a few mentionable things, would vanish because they either can't be made without the electricity to run the factories, or the necessary transportation to bring them here wouldn't exist any longer.

Some of this would be replaced by other means, whether that be human-powered caravans or whether we would go back to horse-drawn carriages and carts. Idk. I imagine river and ocean/coastal trade would become much more important than it is today since nothing would arrive by planes any longer.

Anyway, now imagine the world.....200-300 years after it all went dark.

What kinds of countries, cultures, and such would be around? I for one expect that a lot of small petty-kings leading minor kingdoms would form after 50-60 years had passed. I think a mixture of Republics and Monarchies would form simultaneously, side-by-side, though few would be larger than a handful of counties until the inevitable periods of war, conquest, and consolidation began. As for the culture, idk.

Without electricity, there would be no guns, or what remained of them, ammo would soon enough dry out and something else long-range would have to replace it, though I suspect melee combat would make a comeback, though I'm not creative enough to imagine what form it would take. I'm positive cavalry would become a thing, though it would probably take some time before acceptable levels of horsebreeding spread, so I'd give that half a century up to a full century before that became a thing again. I doubt we would ever have another industrial revolution, simply because a lot of the materials and resources used to fuel the first one no longer exist in the necessary quantities any longer. So, I don't imagine warfare progressing beyond perhaps Pike & Shot level again.

However, lets consider that guns vanish as a weapon, and are never remade, since of course, as I mentioned, electricity never returns. What would warfare look like then? Honestly, I guess my real question is, what kind of warfare would be fought in this new post-modern dark age? It may not be relevant to the question but if it is, but imagine a mixture of Republics and Monarchies forming at once, (though for every Republic, there are 2 or 3 Monarchies)

So, what do you guys think? What would warfare be like in this post-modern dark age?

 

[AdLeto]

We would return to steam engines and mechanical energy

 

[Wohendum-Bluu]

We would return to steam engines and mechanical energy

I don't think so. That would require similar resources as what fueled the Industrial Revolution....most of which were consumed and we no longer possess in amounts to be able to keep us at the needed technological level for more than half a century at most. I'm thinking a literal dark age since coal is the main component needed for what you're thinking of, and I deny that we have the amount needed to lift us back to the Industrial Age again.

Didn't answer the most important part of the question though, since I'm mostly interested in what you think the warfare would be like? Specifically, the infantry, the mounted/mobile arm, and the navy (if applicable to powers next to bodies of water)


Maybe @Jemini has something to add? You always seem pretty smart so I'm hoping you might have some views on this. Specifically what you think the warfare would be like, but feel free to add something else.

 

[DarkGodEM]

I don't think so. That would require similar resources as what fueled the Industrial Revolution....most of which were consumed and we no longer possess in amounts to be able to keep us at the needed technological level for more than half a century at most. I'm thinking a literal dark age since coal is the main component needed for what you're thinking of, and I deny that we have the amount needed to lift us back to the Industrial Age again.

Didn't answer the most important part of the question though, since I'm mostly interested in what you think the warfare would be like? Specifically, the infantry, the mounted/mobile arm, and the navy (if applicable to powers next to bodies of water)


Maybe @Jemini has something to add? You always seem pretty smart so I'm hoping you might have some views on this. Specifically what you think the warfare would be like, but feel free to add something else.

we would just use wood gas burners and FINALLY understand that charcoal and wood are renewable fuels.
That would take turning around 30 to 40% of current unused/unproductive land into forestry, effectively reducing the carbon footprint by a large chunk since (gasp) Forestry is the only industry that actually consumes CO2 (Forests are nearly carbon Neutral. Plants only Produce more O2 than CO2 while growing)

 

[Vaxel00]

There will be guns, they existed before and can be forged quite easily.

 

[DarkGodEM]

^this.

We would basically revert to WW1
current ammo can be produced with steam mechanical power only if needed and technically, we could turn our energy cables into conduits, vacuum them to make them stiffer, and stick a turning rod inside to transport the mechanical power through momentum. Those would be as effective as long distance power poles, and Transformers would turn into clutches effectively...

It's a feasible solution for high density industrial zones.

extremely high rotation shafts clutched to very high ratio gearboxes to output low rotation with as much torque as possible without damaging the delicate conducting rods.
However, if all electricity stops working, the principle that generates it should be gone too.
With that, I guess the world would just collapse.
No the world as humanity. The very existance of the earth as a planet would shatter... Since there would no longer exist atoms.

 

[PhillisCreziles]

I remember reading a book that had a similar scenario like this in my school library. Forgot what it was called though. :C

 

[High-in-the-skys]

However, if all electricity stops working, the principle that generates it should be gone too.
With that, I guess the world would just collapse.
No the world as humanity. The very existance of the earth as a planet would shatter... Since there would no longer exist atoms.

I think it's possible with a long-lasting solar flare...

Well, I would want to see walking automatons when that happens...
Also books and knowledges would be fought over including ancient advance tech (something like carbon fiber) that could only produced with electricity. Airships will be rediscovered and will be used and people would create a computers that don't rely on electricity...

 

[Kenjona]

This issue has been talked about ad nauseum in variation on the internet. So it is relatively well known what will happen for various events.
Example: https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20191023-what-would-happen-in-an-apocalyptic-blackout

Effectively 40-60% of the US population will die in the first year and to a lesser and greater extent the same in other countries that depend on electricity will be in the same boat. We may or may not fall as a country but it will be difficult during those times. We have a HUGE asset that many people overlook in their calculations and that is our Military, especially the national guard are spread out and are based in key areas where they can be of help to each locality. Most guns do not need electricity and just sheer manpower can be of help.

Oh and FYI the self same US military and the US Government has plans in place for such an event, usually used as a training method to get their officers/officials to think outside the box, mind you they do not have specific assets for such an event, just plans for it; they are right alongside the Zombie apocalypse one https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CONOP_8888 and the alien invasion ones.

 

[Deleted member 45782]

Sounds like something heard once before..

Revolution (TV series) - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

Thu kinda humans always have ways of adapting and finding different ways to get energy to fuel the technology and stuff they need. Even if electricity suddenly is out, people will eventually find a way to go back up again with another energy source...

 

[Jemini]

Maybe @Jemini has something to add? You always seem pretty smart so I'm hoping you might have some views on this. Specifically what you think the warfare would be like, but feel free to add something else.

Ok, first off, I need to correct a few incorrect assumptions.

1. Guns existed well before the invention of electricity. Like, a couple hundred years before. The Aquebus was invented in China in the eleven hundreds. The European musket in the 1600s. And, America invented the concept of rifelling and what we now consider "bullet shaped" bullets (as opposed to round balls) in the 1700s. All of these preceded electricity. The only thing that would be lost in terms of gun making technology is the tooling of some of the parts, which would make it so production rates would drop. However, a skilled gunsmith could come up with ways that don't involve electricity to make modern fire-arms. All they would need is the gunpowder, which can be made entirely from renewable organic materials.

2. Steam engines can operate just fine on wood. Coal and peet moss work better, but they can still function on wood. It's just that it wouldn't be as powerful. So, some steam power can be used.

Now, on to the topic at hand. Something that would happen pretty fast would be a loss of access to resources, and this would cause a pretty ugly scene. Put it this way, I would not want to live in a city. I would say 90% of the population in every major city would die due to lack of food and the bloody mortal combat that would occur over the last few scraps of remaining food.

I believe there was a study before the industrial revolution in regards to the Earth's carrying capacity for human population. As in, how many humans could be sustained by the Earth. The number was around 1 billion at a very generous estimate. That was with the skills and common knowledge of the time with people knowing how to survive in those pre-industrial civilizations. So, I would say prediction #2 is that the human population would reduce from the current 7 billion down to somewhere around 200,000 due to people just not knowing how to take care of themselves in this new environment.

As for warfare 200-300 years later, well... you really don't have to imagine all that hard if you live in the United States. Just go to any Civil War reenactment. That's exactly what the warfare would look like. (Because, as I cleared up above, guns would still exist. There was a reason musketeers completely replaced armored knights, so as long as guns exist we will not be going back to swords and armor.)

 

[Kenjona]

Oh and a side note: the sea levels will guarantee to rise during the following decades due to the increase in fossil fuel usage.

 

[Deleted member 49654]

Imagine a situation where, due to some unknown reason, technology as we know it, suddenly failed. I mean this as in electricity....just stopped being electrical. No power. No lights. No working cars. No modern transportation. No internet. Imagine a modern world just as it is now, but suddenly everything goes dark, and remains that way forever. Now, imagine the chaos that follows. The chaos that follows however is irrelevant to my question, but is still something to keep in mind.

Now, the United States as we know it, as well as most current modern day countries would instantaneously change in the way they function. Not overnight sure, but as years passed by, decades, and then a century or two, or more, today's political world would be nothing like what it would become. Of course, every-day life would change too. With no electricity, quite a few things that are normal now, would be non-existent then. Certains foods, drinks, toys, weapons, just a few mentionable things, would vanish because they either can't be made without the electricity to run the factories, or the necessary transportation to bring them here wouldn't exist any longer.

Some of this would be replaced by other means, whether that be human-powered caravans or whether we would go back to horse-drawn carriages and carts. Idk. I imagine river and ocean/coastal trade would become much more important than it is today since nothing would arrive by planes any longer.

Anyway, now imagine the world.....200-300 years after it all went dark.

What kinds of countries, cultures, and such would be around? I for one expect that a lot of small petty-kings leading minor kingdoms would form after 50-60 years had passed. I think a mixture of Republics and Monarchies would form simultaneously, side-by-side, though few would be larger than a handful of counties until the inevitable periods of war, conquest, and consolidation began. As for the culture, idk.

Without electricity, there would be no guns, or what remained of them, ammo would soon enough dry out and something else long-range would have to replace it, though I suspect melee combat would make a comeback, though I'm not creative enough to imagine what form it would take. I'm positive cavalry would become a thing, though it would probably take some time before acceptable levels of horsebreeding spread, so I'd give that half a century up to a full century before that became a thing again. I doubt we would ever have another industrial revolution, simply because a lot of the materials and resources used to fuel the first one no longer exist in the necessary quantities any longer. So, I don't imagine warfare progressing beyond perhaps Pike & Shot level again.

However, lets consider that guns vanish as a weapon, and are never remade, since of course, as I mentioned, electricity never returns. What would warfare look like then? Honestly, I guess my real question is, what kind of warfare would be fought in this new post-modern dark age? It may not be relevant to the question but if it is, but imagine a mixture of Republics and Monarchies forming at once, (though for every Republic, there are 2 or 3 Monarchies)

So, what do you guys think? What would warfare be like in this post-modern dark age?

I can't imagine it. Electricity is not a source of energy that can just disappear unless you mean a change in the physical laws or something. And if that's what you mean, I guess humanity will have a bigger problem than slower transportation, no net, and the loss of certain goods and foods. If something happens to the fundamental existence of electric currents, then probably complex biological life will cease to exists as well.

And even if we hypothetically accept something like what you suggested, I don't understand why you are most concerned about guns and warfare...Are you American? (no offense)
If you want long-range weapons, why not consider the variety that already exists like: bows and arrows, slings, and even throwing javelins or using cannons?
Honestly, in this case, warfare will be a lot more localized and less destructive, which is a good thing. Of course, I doubt humanity will go in that direction. We, probably, will try to utilize other energy sources like radioactive decay, solar energy, etc.

 

[Jemini]

I can't imagine it. Electricity is not a source of energy that can just disappear unless you mean a change in the physical laws or something. And if that's what you mean, I guess humanity will have a bigger problem than slower transportation, no net, and the loss of certain goods and foods. If something happens to the fundamental existence of electric currents, then probably complex biological life will cease to exists as well.

And even if we hypothetically accept something like what you suggested, I don't understand why you are most concerned about guns and warfare...Are you American? (no offense)
If you want long-range weapons, why not consider the variety that already exists like: bows and arrows, slings, and even throwing javelins or using cannons?
Honestly, in this case, warfare will be a lot more localized and less destructive, which is a good thing. Of course, I doubt humanity will go in that direction. We, probably, will try to utilize other energy sources like radioactive decay, solar energy, etc.

Not really. All you would need is a change in electromagnetism to enough of a degree that the coils in an electrical generator no longer get the resistance they need to generate electricity. That's how you generate electricity BTW. I don't know enough about the subject to speak on authority or give detail, but it is related somehow to spinning a magnetic coil and creating some kind of magnetic resistance. And, I don't know how, but that generates electricity. I like to imagine it as static electricity times hundreds of degrees of magnitude greater.

It might change the Earth's magnetic poles, which would definitely create some problems with the magnetosphere and subject us to more solar radiation and maybe throw off the ability of migratory birds to navigate, but it shouldn't be causing biological life to simply cease to function.

So, yeah, that one change would disrupt the creation of electricity at it's source. Thus, no more electricity.

 

[TunTun]

Not really. All you would need is a change in electromagnetism to enough of a degree that the coils in an electrical generator no longer get the resistance they need to generate electricity. That's how you generate electricity BTW. I don't know enough about the subject to speak on authority or give detail, but it is related somehow to spinning a magnetic coil and creating some kind of magnetic resistance. And, I don't know how, but that generates electricity. I like to imagine it as static electricity times hundreds of degrees of magnitude greater.

It might change the Earth's magnetic poles, which would definitely create some problems with the magnetosphere and subject us to more solar radiation and maybe throw off the ability of migratory birds to navigate, but it shouldn't be causing biological life to simply cease to function.

So, yeah, that one change would disrupt the creation of electricity at it's source. Thus, no more electricity.

Magnets should be still able to generate electricity even if the earth had no magnetic poles.... the magnets are small poles themselves. I concur with what @Hyperwebster said, in the sense that if the fundamental laws of physics were to change, then humanity would have way worse problems than no electricity.

Imagine a situation where, due to some unknown reason, technology as we know it, suddenly failed. I mean this as in electricity....just stopped being electrical. No power. No lights. No working cars. No modern transportation. No internet. Imagine a modern world just as it is now, but suddenly everything goes dark, and remains that way forever. Now, imagine the chaos that follows. The chaos that follows however is irrelevant to my question, but is still something to keep in mind.

Now, the United States as we know it, as well as most current modern day countries would instantaneously change in the way they function. Not overnight sure, but as years passed by, decades, and then a century or two, or more, today's political world would be nothing like what it would become. Of course, every-day life would change too. With no electricity, quite a few things that are normal now, would be non-existent then. Certains foods, drinks, toys, weapons, just a few mentionable things, would vanish because they either can't be made without the electricity to run the factories, or the necessary transportation to bring them here wouldn't exist any longer.

Some of this would be replaced by other means, whether that be human-powered caravans or whether we would go back to horse-drawn carriages and carts. Idk. I imagine river and ocean/coastal trade would become much more important than it is today since nothing would arrive by planes any longer.

Anyway, now imagine the world.....200-300 years after it all went dark.

What kinds of countries, cultures, and such would be around? I for one expect that a lot of small petty-kings leading minor kingdoms would form after 50-60 years had passed. I think a mixture of Republics and Monarchies would form simultaneously, side-by-side, though few would be larger than a handful of counties until the inevitable periods of war, conquest, and consolidation began. As for the culture, idk.

Without electricity, there would be no guns, or what remained of them, ammo would soon enough dry out and something else long-range would have to replace it, though I suspect melee combat would make a comeback, though I'm not creative enough to imagine what form it would take. I'm positive cavalry would become a thing, though it would probably take some time before acceptable levels of horsebreeding spread, so I'd give that half a century up to a full century before that became a thing again. I doubt we would ever have another industrial revolution, simply because a lot of the materials and resources used to fuel the first one no longer exist in the necessary quantities any longer. So, I don't imagine warfare progressing beyond perhaps Pike & Shot level again.

However, lets consider that guns vanish as a weapon, and are never remade, since of course, as I mentioned, electricity never returns. What would warfare look like then? Honestly, I guess my real question is, what kind of warfare would be fought in this new post-modern dark age? It may not be relevant to the question but if it is, but imagine a mixture of Republics and Monarchies forming at once, (though for every Republic, there are 2 or 3 Monarchies)

So, what do you guys think? What would warfare be like in this post-modern dark age?

There is a huge misconception here too. Vehicles, planes and motors do not need electricity.... You could just use gasoline/diesel.

 

[Deleted member 49654]

Not really. All you would need is a change in electromagnetism to enough of a degree that the coils in an electrical generator no longer get the resistance they need to generate electricity. That's how you generate electricity BTW. I don't know enough about the subject to speak on authority or give detail, but it is related somehow to spinning a magnetic coil and creating some kind of magnetic resistance. And, I don't know how, but that generates electricity. I like to imagine it as static electricity times hundreds of degrees of magnitude greater.

It might change the Earth's magnetic poles, which would definitely create some problems with the magnetosphere and subject us to more solar radiation and maybe throw off the ability of migratory birds to navigate, but it shouldn't be causing biological life to simply cease to function.

So, yeah, that one change would disrupt the creation of electricity at it's source. Thus, no more electricity.

There are different ways to generate or convert other types of energy to electricity. And even if we don't include that, our climate still has thunderstorms that can be used directly. Therefore if you want electricity to really cease to exist you need to have something changed on a fundamental level. The definition of electricity should change itself.

A basic definition of electricity is a form of energy that results from the flow of charged particles

I am not really knowledgeable in the physics field, but as I understand it, if you want electricity to really cease to exist, you will need:
1) the movement of charged particles to stop generating energy or
2) charged particles to cease to exist or
3) potential difference to cease to exist so there won't be a driving force for the movement of the charged particles

Simply said, you will need some kind of a change in the laws of physics and matter.

And if you ask why I think that complex biological life will cease to exist, the reason is simple. Complex life depends on electricity - the neural system's activity, the contraction of the muscles, etc. Maybe the only life left will be simple one-cell organisms.

 

[Jemini]

Magnets should be still able to generate electricity even if the earth had no magnetic poles.... the magnets are small poles themselves. I concur with what @Hyperwebster said, in the sense that if the fundamental laws of physics were to change, then humanity would have way worse problems than no electricity.

You seem to have somehow taken my words as exactly the opposite of how I meant them. I did not mean the magnetic poles would stop working and therefore magnets would stop working as well. I meant it exactly the opposite. Magnets would stop working, and therefore that would mean no electricity but it would also mean trouble for the magnetic poles.

Also, I did not specifically say "magnets" either. I said electromagnatism. As in, one of the 4 fundamental forces. (Gravity, Electromagnatism, Nuclear strong force (binding of protons and neutrons together,) and Nuclear weak force (binding of electrons to their energy levels in an atom.)

There are different ways to generate or convert other types of energy to electricity. And even if we don't include that, our climate still has thunderstorms that can be used directly. Therefore if you want electricity to really cease to exist you need to have something changed on a fundamental level. The definition of electricity should change itself.

I am not really knowledgeable in the physics field, but as I understand it, if you want electricity to really cease to exist, you will need:
1) the movement of charged particles to stop generating energy or
2) charged particles to cease to exist or
3) potential difference to cease to exist so there won't be a driving force for the movement of the charged particles

Simply said, you will need some kind of a change in the laws of physics and matter.

And if you ask why I think that complex biological life will cease to exist, the reason is simple. Complex life depends on electricity - the neural system's activity, the contraction of the muscles, etc. Maybe the only life left will be simple one-cell organisms.

Yeah, fair point. However, I still don't think it would be as big a problem on a biological level as you are thinking. All electrical potentials handled in the body, such as neurons and muscle twitch activities, are generated by sodium-potassium membrane differentials. Neurons do not have an actual electrical current flowing through them. Instead, they have ions with a different number of vailance electrons switch places with each other, and thus cause something of a pseudo-electrical current that looks the same as an electrical current but is, in effect, very different.

I can see one problem though if you are going to suggest changing electrical current to that degree though. Depending on the manner in which it changes, plasma could cease to exist. The sun is made of plasma. This could be a pretty big problem indeed.

I do believe it's possible to find a way to change the nature of electricity without endangering anything important though. The current running through copper wires is actually very different from bio-electric signals and I may be mistaken but I do believe it might also be different from thunder and plasma as well.

(Ironically, I know a decent amount of every form of natural electricity for a layman. However, the one form of electricity I do not know much about is the type that powers the lightbulbs in our houses. I get the feeling that the next response you are going to give me to this will require me to do some actual research in order to correct this gap in my knowledge.)

 

[Deleted member 49654]

Yeah, fair point. However, I still don't think it would be as big a problem on a biological level as you are thinking. All electrical potentials handled in the body, such as neurons and muscle twitch activities, are generated by sodium-potassium membrane differentials. Neurons do not have an actual electrical current flowing through them. Instead, they have ions with a different number of vailance electrons switch places with each other, and thus cause something of a pseudo-electrical current that looks the same as an electrical current but is, in effect, very different.

Yeah, I know this, but I still wouldn't call it pseudo-electrical. The nature of the bio-electrical currents is similar.

The lipid membrane isolates the cytoplasm from the tissue fluid and with the help of active sodium-potassium, calcium, and other pumps, both fluids have different ion compositions. When a stimulus is received above a certain threshold, the opening of ion transportation canals and the movement of the ions will generate an impulse. This impulse will then travel and hop between cells through their synaptic connection.

Why is this any different than the other electricity? It is an energy generated by the movement of charged particles. The only difference is that the bio-currents are a lot weaker.

1) the movement of charged particles to stop generating energy or
2) charged particles to cease to exist or
3) potential difference to cease to exist so there won't be a driving force for the movement of the charged particles

If any of these three requirements are met, then this should disrupt the generation of bio-electrical currents.

And even if you don't mind the neural system, think about the pace-maker system of the heart.

I can see one problem though if you are going to suggest changing electrical current to that degree though. Depending on the manner in which it changes, plasma could cease to exist. The sun is made of plasma. This could be a pretty big problem indeed.

I do believe it's possible to find a way to change the nature of electricity without endangering anything important though. The current running through copper wires is actually very different from bio-electric signals and I may be mistaken but I do believe it might also be different from thunder and plasma as well.

Nah, I am not really into physics so I wouldn't delve deeper into pure physical stuff. I can only talk about some things concerning biophysics or physiology.

 

[witch_sorrowful]

The Emberverse series - Wikipedia

There is an entire series of books about this premise. It's good. Although, to clarify, it assumes all forms of high density power to be lost. The series is long, but the first three books pack a punch. Eventually, after the chaos is settled, there is a development of neo-feudalism throughout.

 

[Jemini]

Yeah, I know this, but I still wouldn't call it pseudo-electrical. The nature of the bio-electrical currents is similar.

The lipid membrane isolates the cytoplasm from the tissue fluid and with the help of active sodium-potassium, calcium, and other pumps, both fluids have different ion compositions. When a stimulus is received above a certain threshold, the opening of ion transportation canals and the movement of the ions will generate an impulse. This impulse will then travel and hop between cells through their synaptic connection.

Why is this any different than the other electricity? It is an energy generated by the movement of charged particles. The only difference is that the bio-currents are a lot weaker.


If any of these three requirements are met, then this should disrupt the generation of bio-electrical currents.

And even if you don't mind the neural system, think about the pace-maker system of the heart.



Nah, I am not really into physics so I wouldn't delve deeper into pure physical stuff. I can only talk about some things concerning biophysics or physiology.

I am pretty sure that household electricity is unattached electrons, not ions. So, the way to disrupt electricity without shutting down bio-electricity is to just make it so electrons can no longer float free of a nucleus. That way, ions can still exist because ions are primarily created when one atom steals an electron from another.

Again, the big problem with this change to the way electricity would work is that it would literally snuff out the sun in an instant because the sun is made of plasma and plasma is unattached electrons. If the sun turned from plasma into just hot gas, it would not be able to last much longer after that and would become destabilized and dissipate. Or, even if it did stay together and stay ignited, the level of heat it put off would be reduced to less than 1/10 of it's current heat, and it would no longer be able to reach Earth.

Again though, if I looked into household/industrial electricity a little more then I am pretty sure I could find a way it could be disrupted without disrupting bio electricity or plasma. I think you are getting way too bogged down in the definition of electricity and not thinking enough about the manner in which electricity actually works right now. Try to think outside the box a bit and consider other solutions.