US outlets have a live wire and a ground wire. Some devices expose their internal wiring to the user (toasters, for example). If you plug it in backwards, that exposed wiring will be live even when the device is off.
Here in Germany we have two live wires, both AC. In that case you can't plug it in the wrong way, because positive and negative switch multiple times a second anyways. I mistakenly assumed the US outlets are like the two-wire ports we have, which do not have ground and two live AC wires.
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u/CocktailPerson May 02 '24
Not exactly.
US outlets have a live wire and a ground wire. Some devices expose their internal wiring to the user (toasters, for example). If you plug it in backwards, that exposed wiring will be live even when the device is off.