What happens if you only touch one meter test probe to one end of a battery?

How
does the meter have to connect to the battery in order to provide an indication? What
does this tell us about voltmeter use and the nature of voltage? Is there such a thing as
voltage "at" a single point?
Be sure to measure more than one size of battery, and learn how to select the best
voltage range on the multimeter to give you maximum indication without overranging.
Now switch your multimeter to the lowest DC voltage range available, and touch the
meter's test probes to the terminals (wire leads) of the light-emitting diode (LED). An
LED is designed to produce light when powered by a small amount of electricity, but
LEDs also happen to generate DC voltage when exposed to light, somewhat like a
solar cell. Point the LED toward a bright source of light with your multimeter
connected to it, and note the meter's indication:

Batteries develop electrical voltage through chemical reactions. When a battery

"dies," it has exhausted its original store of chemical "fuel." The LED, however, does
not rely on an internal "fuel" to generate voltage; rather, it converts optical energy into
electrical energy. So long as there is light to illuminate the LED, it will produce
voltage.
Another source of voltage through energy conversion a generator. The small electric
motor specified in the "Parts and Materials" list functions as an electrical generator if
its shaft is turned by a mechanical force. Connect your voltmeter (your multimeter, set
to the "volt" function) to the motor's terminals just as you connected it to the LED's
terminals, and spin the shaft with your fingers. The meter should indicate voltage by
means of needle deflection (analog) or numerical readout (digital).
If you find it difficult to maintain both meter test probes in connection with the
motor's terminals while simultaneously spinning the shaft with your fingers, you may
use alligator clip "jumper" wires like this:

Determine the relationship between voltage and generator shaft speed? Reverse the
generator's direction of rotation and note the change in meter indication. When you
reverse shaft rotation, you change the polarity of the voltage created by the generator.
The voltmeter indicates polarity by direction of needle direction (analog) or sign of
numerical indication (digital). When the red test lead is positive (+) and the black test
lead negative (-), the meter will register voltage in the normal direction. If the applied
voltage is of the reverse polarity (negative on red and positive on black), the meter
will indicate "backwards."

Ohmmeter usage
PARTS AND MATERIALS

Multimeter, digital or analog

Assorted resistors (Radio Shack catalog # 271-312 is a 500-piece assortment)
Rectifying diode (1N4001 or equivalent; Radio Shack catalog # 276-1101)
Cadmium Sulphide photocell (Radio Shack catalog # 276-1657)
Breadboard (Radio Shack catalog # 276-174 or equivalent)
Jumper wires
Paper
Pencil
Glass of water
Table salt

This experiment describes how to measure the electrical resistance of several objects.
You need not possess all items listed above in order to effectively learn about
resistance. Conversely, you need not limit your experiments to these items. However,
be sure to never measure the resistance of any electrically "live" object or circuit. In

other words, do not attempt to measure the resistance of a battery or any other source
of substantial voltage using a multimeter set to the resistance ("ohms") function.
Failing to heed this warning will likely result in meter damage and even personal
injury.

CROSS-REFERENCES
Lessons In Electric Circuits, Volume 1, chapter 1: "Basic Concepts of Electricity"
Lessons In Electric Circuits, Volume 1, chapter 8: "DC Metering Circuits"

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

Determination and comprehension of "electrical continuity"

Determination and comprehension of "electrically common points"
How to measure resistance
Characteristics of resistance: existing between two points
Selection of proper meter range
Relative conductivity of various components and materials

ILLUSTRATION

INSTRUCTIONS
Resistance is the measure of electrical "friction" as electrons move through a
conductor. It is measured in the unit of the "Ohm," that unit symbolized by the capital
Greek letter omega ().
Set your multimeter to the highest resistance range available. The resistance function
is usually denoted by the unit symbol for resistance: the Greek letter omega (), or
sometimes by the word "ohms." Touch the two test probes of your meter together.

When you do, the meter should register 0 ohms of resistance. If you are using an
analog meter, you will notice the needle deflect full-scale when the probes are
touched together, and return to its resting position when the probes are pulled apart.
The resistance scale on an analog multimeter is reverse-printed from the other scales:
zero resistance in indicated at the far right-hand side of the scale, and infinite
resistance is indicated at the far left-hand side. There should also be a small
adjustment knob or "wheel" on the analog multimeter to calibrate it for "zero" ohms
of resistance. Touch the test probes together and move this adjustment until the needle
exactly points to zero at the right-hand end of the scale.
Although your multimeter is capable of providing quantitative values of measured
resistance, it is also useful for qualitative tests of continuity: whether or not there is a
continuous electrical connection from one point to another. You can, for instance, test
the continuity of a piece of wire by connecting the meter probes to opposite ends of
the wire and checking to see the the needle moves full-scale. What would we say
about a piece of wire if the ohmmeter needle didn't move at all when the probes were
connected to opposite ends?
Digital multimeters set to the "resistance" mode indicate non-continuity by displaying
some non-numerical indication on the display. Some models say "OL" (Open-Loop),
while others display dashed lines.
Use your meter to determine continuity between the holes on a breadboard: a device
used for temporary construction of circuits, where component terminals are inserted
into holes on a plastic grid, metal spring clips underneath each hole connecting certain
holes to others. Use small pieces of 22-gauge solid copper wire, inserted into the holes
of the breadboard, to connect the meter to these spring clips so that you can test for
continuity: