eli5 How does an Electric Eel shock you? Don’t you need to complete a circuit for the current to flow through you?

Question

If the Eel is the positive terminal, where’s the negative terminal? If you’re grounded by the water, would that mean the Eel can only shock you if you are in the water too? If the water is the final destination, why wouldn’t the current directly go from the Eel to the water? Why would it take a high resistance path through your body?

In: Physics

Answer 1

Electricity flows from places of high potential (high electron density) to places, of low potential (low electron density). Those places don’t need to be connected through a loop, for electricity to flow.