Final answer:
The bleeder resistor in a voltage divider network is designed with much greater resistance than the load resistor to ensure that it discharges the capacitor slowly and safely without significantly affecting the circuit's normal operation.
Step-by-step explanation:
In a loaded voltage divider network, the bleeder resistor is often much greater in resistance compared to the load resistor to ensure that it does not significantly alter the normal operation of the circuit when it is used to bleed off excess charge from capacitors, especially after power is turned off. The higher resistance of the bleeder ensures a higher time constant for the discharging capacitor, which allows the voltage to decrease slowly and safely. An example to explain this concept is with voltmeters: if a voltmeter of resistance Rvoltmeter is in parallel with a device of resistance R and Rvoltmeter >> R, it does not significantly affect the resistance of the circuit. However, if Rvoltmeter equals R, the combined resistance is halved, significantly altering the circuit.