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Experiment No. 12

Water Surface Tension 3

Experiment: To make a mini microscope using a single drop of water.

Materials:

You will need:

Book with fairly small print
Jar of water
Small piece of clear plastic
Eyedropper

Method:

1) Place the clear plastic over the print in a book - we used an Irish reader! The plastic is to protect the book.

2) Using an eye dropper, place a single drop on to the plastic.

3) Move it about your book and observe what happens. Raise the plastic over the print and see what happens.

Result: The print is bigger when seen through the drop of water. Why?

Conclusion: Firstly, the water stays as a drop thanks to our old friend - surface tension. Now, light from the book passes through the drop but as it hits the water, it slows down and therefore is bent. As it bends, it forms a lens and the words in the book appear bigger.

Fourth Class Experiments