Hey Ray! Experimenting With Gravity
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Gravity is the force that attracts things toward other things that have mass.
More simply, it is the force that draws things on Earth toward the center of Earth.
When you feel something's weight, you are actually feeling gravity's downward force on that object.
For this Hey Ray, we are going to have a little fun with gravity, and how it pulls on solids and liquids.
When you hold a bottle of water, you are preventing the water and the bottle holding it from falling to the ground.
If I poke a hole in the bottle, gravity will pull the liquid out.
I am sure you expected this, so let's set up an experiment that causes the water to act differently than you may expect.
First, you will need a bottle or cup.
We are going to use a bottle with a hole in it.
You may remember this from a previous experiment.
We are reusing this bottle because it is important to reuse and recylce.
Fill the container up with water.
While filling it, cover the hole with your thumb to stop the water from spilling out of the hole.
When you remove your thump, the water will come out of the container.
Now drop it. You will notice that the water stops spilling out of the hole.
So, what is happening?
When you are holding the bottle, you are strong enough to overcome the gravitational pull on the bottle.
The liquid, however, is still being pulled on by the gravity.
Since water likes to find the easiest path the ground, it still flows through the hole, being pulled by gravity.
When you drop the bottle, though, gravity is pulling down on the bottle and the water at the same rate.
This creates a situation where the water stays in the bottle because it is already on the easiest path to the ground.
Once the bottle stops, the water will continue to flow out of the bottle and on to the lowest point.
All of this happens, thanks to gravity.
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