see if you get this one

B

Badgermoon

Guest

• Aug 6, 2003

• #1

Here's a question...

If you take a steel ball the size of a bowling ball and put it into a small boat, then row to the middle of a lake and throw it into the water. Will the level of the lake remain the same, rise, or go down?

 

radical_P

New member

• Aug 6, 2003

• #2

stay the same because the weight of the ball has already dispersed any of the water from being in the boat.

 

B

Badgermoon

Guest

• Aug 6, 2003

• #3

anyone else?

 

B

Badgermoon

Guest

• Aug 6, 2003

• #4

I'll try to get on and post the answer tomorrow. My dad's having surgery on Friday so I need to call him but I'll try to show up.

 

H

Harvey Balboner

Guest

• Aug 6, 2003

• #5

wouldn't it do all 3, when you first drop it the level would go down slightly, then the splash it would go up, then go back to normal, because a bowling ball wouldn't be near enough to permantly change a lakes water level

 

B

Badgermoon

Guest

• Aug 6, 2003

• #6

on a very minute scale it would... don't over think it.

 

Saks

New member

• Aug 6, 2003

• #7

why the fu(k would anyone try that?

is that the answer?

 

G

GAMMACRUSH

New member

• Aug 7, 2003

• #8

the water level would go down. Picture the boat, if you push down on the boat the water level rises... why? because the air is taking up space. now picture the boat being submerged into the water completely, now only the wood of the boat takes up space. The air in the boat has volume! The steel ball in the boat pushes the boat down, but the air in the boat also takes up space, so if you put the steel ball in the water the lake would go down b/c only the mass of the ball, and the boat would be on top of the water... rather than ball + boat + air volume.

 

Last edited: Aug 7, 2003

radical_P

New member

• Aug 7, 2003

• #9

GAMMACRUSH said:

the water level would go down. Picture the boat, if you push down on the boat the water level rises... why? because the air is taking up space. now picture the boat being submerged into the water completely, now only the wood of the boat takes up space. The air in the boat has volume! The steel ball in the boat pushes the boat down, but the air in the boat also takes up space, so if you put the steel ball in the water the lake would go down b/c only the mass of the ball, and the boat would be on top of the water... rather than ball + boat + air volume.

Click to expand...

mmmmm wrong......

Boyles law, remember.. V1xP1=V2xP2

 

B

Badgermoon

Guest

• Aug 7, 2003

• #10

The level of the lake would go down.

The boat is floating with the steel ball, therefore, displacing an amount of water equal to the weight of the steel ball.(we're not concerned with the boat because it will remain afloat and won't change) When you throw the steel ball into the lake, it now displaces water by volume, not equal weight. Since steel is so much heavier than water, to keep it afloat means it must displace more water than its volume.
This is why steel ships float.

I like Sak's answer. LOL

 

Saks

New member

• Aug 7, 2003

• #11

I like Saks answer too

 

footballcat

Hardly a Newbie

• Aug 7, 2003

• #12

im too dumb for this, yes i lift heavy weights

 

elemental

New member

• Aug 7, 2003

• #13

i drop plates on my head to see if my brain disperses.

 

1bigmus

New member

• Aug 7, 2003

• #14

This bring back nightmares of My Fluid Dynamics class in Engineering! run........