What can cause the total resistance in a parallel circuit to decrease?

In a parallel circuit, each additional resistor provides an alternative path for current to flow. When more resistors are added in parallel, the overall combined resistance decreases because the total current can increase while the voltage remains constant. The formula for total resistance in a parallel circuit is given by the reciprocal of the sum of the reciprocals of each individual resistance.

For example, if you have two resistors in parallel, the total resistance (R_total) can be calculated as:

1/R_total = 1/R1 + 1/R2

When a third resistor is added in parallel, it provides yet another pathway for current, resulting in:

1/R_total = 1/R1 + 1/R2 + 1/R3

As you can see, adding more resistors increases the total number of current paths, which leads to a decrease in total resistance. This is a fundamental property of parallel circuits and helps explain why adding resistors in parallel is a common method used to achieve lower resistance values in electrical circuits.

The other options do not contribute to decreasing total resistance in a parallel configuration; for instance, adding resistors in series increases total resistance, and removing a branch would reduce the pathways available for current, thereby increasing resistance. Using higher