Question

drawing conclusions
suppose you take a short piece of wire that is not attached to anything and move it up and down in a magnetic field. explain whether or not a current will be induced, and why.

Explanation:

According to Faraday's law of electromagnetic induction, for an induced current to exist, there must be a closed circuit. Here, the wire is not part of a closed circuit. Even though the wire is moving in a magnetic field (so there is a change in magnetic flux through the "loop" that would be formed if it were part of a closed - circuit), without a complete circuit, there is no path for the charges to flow continuously.

Answer:

No current will be induced. A closed circuit is required for an induced current (by Faraday's law of electromagnetic induction), and the given wire is not part of a closed circuit.