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also an insulator, since it prevents the flow of electrical current at low temperatures, unless it is doped with atoms that release extra charges to carry the current). An electrical insulator may sometimes be known as a dielectric.
A perfect insulator is impossible to achieve due to the second law of thermodynamics. However, some materials (such as silicon dioxide) are very nearly perfect electrical insulators, which allows flash memory technology. A much larger class of materials, e.g. rubber and many plastics, are "good enough" insulators to be used for home and office wiring (into the hundreds of volts) without noticeable loss of safety or efficiency.
See also: insulation
Early telegraph, telephone, and electric lines were strung overhead on poles. Rather than an insulating covering, the lines were fastened to the poles with insulators made of glass.
Colors and design details varied widely because the insulators were made by small, local manufacturers. Clear and blue-green insulators are the most common. Most were abandoned when the lines were replaced with multipair cables, generally in the 1960s and 1970s. Some are now in the hands of collectors.
Similar insulators are used on overhead power lines, though most are made of porcelain rather than glass.