Answer to Question 1
As was discussed in the answer to question 26, the output current would be less
than the input current in order to maintain the same magnetic field in the piece of iron (the
iron core) in the transformer. Alternatively, we noted in this chapter that
(VI)output = (VI)input.
Therefore, an increased output voltage (compared to the input voltage) means a reduced
output current (compared to the input current) in order to keep the product the same.
Answer to Question 2
The answer to this question depends on individual and political will. As a matter
of possibility, it is certainly possible to remove most lead from the environment. It becomes
a cost-benefit question.
It is very costly to remove lead-based paint from the environment because of the hazardous
nature of the material and the cost of wages of workers, and as of the present this relic of the
past is the primary cause of lead poisoning. Epidemiological studies of the effects of lead
seem uniformly to indicate it is less costly to remediate than to allow continued exposure of
children especially to lead's effects.
The United States mustered the political will in the mid-1980s to eliminate lead from
gasoline, and environmental concentrations declined. Europe followed suit, though much
later. In both cases, elimination of lead was delayed by the cost of the measures.
If there is a will to reduce the health costs of lead exposure (and every new study indicates
more deleterious effects of lead exposure), the elimination can be accomplished. Because
there are always competing priorities, accomplishing the cleanup will take concerted political
action and close attention to costs and benefits in making the arguments.