The most common question for a newcomer in circuit theory is "assert Kirchhoff’s current law." Kirchhoff's first law, often known as Kirchhoff's current rule, asserts that within a node, no charge is lost. As a result, the charge entering the node, or current incoming, is equal to the charge exiting the same node, or current outgoing. When several conductor branches intersect at a node, the total sum of charge or current surrounding the node is zero. A sign convention is usually followed during a circuit analysis.