Parallel and counter parallel

Parallel and counter parallel are two ways that people can arrange some objects, like magnets or resistors.

Imagine you have two bar magnets. You can hold one magnet with your left hand and the other magnet with your right hand. You can place them side by side, so the north pole of one magnet is near the south pole of the other magnet. This is called parallel arrangement, because both magnets are pointing in the same direction.

Now, you can try holding one magnet with your left hand and the other magnet with your right hand, and turn one magnet around so the north pole of one magnet is near the north pole of the other magnet. This is called counter parallel arrangement, because the magnets are pointing in opposite directions.

The same thing goes with resistors, which are objects that let electricity flow through them. You can connect two resistors side by side, so the electricity flows through both of them. This is called parallel arrangement.

Or, you can connect two resistors in a loop, so the electricity flows through one resistor, then goes back through the other resistor in the opposite direction. This is called counter parallel arrangement.

In summary, parallel and counter parallel are two different ways of arranging objects, where parallel means they are pointing in the same direction and counter parallel means they are pointing in opposite directions.