Two parallel wires conduct equal currents in the same direction. (a) At a point in the plane of the wires midway between them, do the individual fields of the wires cancel or reinforce each other? (b) At a point far away from the wires, do their individual fields tend to cancel or reinforce each other?

To determine whether the individual magnetic fields of two parallel wires cancel or reinforce each other, we need to apply the right-hand rule and use the principles of magnetism.

a) At a point midway between the wires:

Using the right-hand rule, we can determine the direction of the magnetic field around each wire. If we consider the current flowing through the wires to be from left to right, the magnetic field created by each wire will form concentric circles around it.

At the midpoint, since the wires are parallel and the currents are in the same direction, the magnetic fields produced by both wires will have the same orientation. Therefore, they will reinforce each other, resulting in an increased magnetic field strength at the midpoint between the wires.

b) At a point far away from the wires:

As we move away from the wires, the magnetic field strength decreases significantly. This phenomenon is described by the inverse square law, which states that the strength of the magnetic field is inversely proportional to the square of the distance from the source.

At a far distance from the wires, the magnetic fields produced by each wire decrease in strength. However, since the wires are parallel and the currents are in the same direction, the fields will still reinforce each other, albeit with a reduced magnitude.

In summary, at a point midway between the wires, the magnetic fields of the wires reinforce each other. At a point far away from the wires, the individual fields tend to cancel each other out due to the decrease in magnitude with distance, but the combined field will still have a net positive strength.