inertia ring experiment

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Easy Inertia Experiment

May 29, 2020 By Emma Vanstone Leave a Comment

This inertia experiment is super easy and a great fun science trick for kids and adults!

If you want to learn more about Isaac Newton’s Laws of Motion or forces in general I’ve got lots more forces and motion experiments you can try!

What is inertia?

Isaac Newton’s First Law states that an object stays still or keeps moving at the same speed and in a straight line unless it is acted upon by a force.

In simple terms that means if an object isn’t moving ( imagine a book on the floor ) it won’t start to move unless a force makes it move ( for example, if you push the book ).

Isaac Newton’s First Law is known as the Law of Inertia .

You’ll need:

Card folded into a triangle column and taped securely.

Piece of card – A5 size

Small object that is big enough to sit on top of the column.

Inertia Experiment Instructions

Place the A5 sheet of card on top of the pint glass.

Carefully put the triangular column on the card.

Balance the lemon on top of the column, it needs to be directly above the glass.

Hold the glass with one hand and then quickly pull the A5 card with the other hand.

The lemon should drop into the glass!

Why does this work?

The lemon is heavier than the cardboard column which means it doesn’t move as easily as the column when the cardboard is pulled from underneath.

There isn’t a sideways force acting on the lemon so it falls straight down because of gravity.

Newton’s First Law states that an object at rest remains at rest unless acted on by a force.

More Forces Experiments for Kids

Design, build and launch a water powered bottle rocket !

Learn about potential energy with a cotton reel car or make a balloon powered car .

Learn more about Newton’s Laws of Motion and how they apply to space travel in my book, This IS Rocket Science!

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Last Updated on May 29, 2020 by Emma Vanstone

Safety Notice

Science Sparks ( Wild Sparks Enterprises Ltd ) are not liable for the actions of activity of any person who uses the information in this resource or in any of the suggested further resources. Science Sparks assume no liability with regard to injuries or damage to property that may occur as a result of using the information and carrying out the practical activities contained in this resource or in any of the suggested further resources.

These activities are designed to be carried out by children working with a parent, guardian or other appropriate adult. The adult involved is fully responsible for ensuring that the activities are carried out safely.

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Newton’s Inertia Beads – The Chain Fountain

It's all about momentum and gravity working in concert as the beads siphon themselves from the container.

Print this Experiment

A long chain of beads appears to siphon itself from a container as the beads twist and turn in a most mesmerizing dance. As you’ll see, the chain fountain doesn’t merely spill over the edge… it lifts itself out of the container, forming loops that rise higher and higher before gracefully descending to the floor. Maybe we should have called this Newton’s Dance of the Beads.

Experiment Videos

Here's What You'll Need

Long strand of beads, large plastic or metal container, let's try it.

In this example, we’re using plastic “mardi gras” style beads from the craft store. However, “ball and chain” style beads from the hardware store also work well.

The key to creating the fountain of beads is to make sure the chain of beads are loaded into the container properly. It’s a good idea to wrap each end of the chain with a piece of brightly colored tape to make the ends easy to find.

Locate an end of the string of beads and lay it on the bottom of the container. Feed the beads into the container in circular layers, one after the other, one on top of the other. Don’t tangle or knot the strand as it’s loaded into the container.

It’s best to hold the container of beads as high as you can above the floor. The greater the distance between the container and the floor, the better the siphoning action will be.

Hold the container high with one hand and use the other to quickly toss the end of the string of beads up and over the edge of the container using a fast, pulling motion.

Instantly, the beads will start to climb up and over the side of the container and land on the floor (or into a second container if you’re really good). The weight of this starter section of beads will be enough to pull the rest of the beads out of the container completely.

Watch as the fountain of beads flows from the container to the floor. As the speed picks up, the string will even rise slightly above the rim of the container due to the inertia of the moving beads (more about this later). If you have the option, make a slow motion video of this so you can actually see it as it happens.

You guessed it… it’s time to load the bead back into the container and start all over again.

PRO TIP!   Take it from someone who has done this a thousand times, it’s best to reload the container by finding the end of the chain of beads from the pile on the floor (it should be sitting on the top of the pile) and start loading the beads into the container. NEVER pick up the pile of beads – this will result in a tangled mess!

How Does It Work

So, what’s the scientific secret behind this spectacle? It’s all about momentum and gravity working in concert. As gravity tugs the chain downward, it generates enough momentum to propel the chain upward and out of the jar. This creates a fascinating dynamic: the chain is simultaneously being pulled in two directions. The brief moment it takes for the chain to transition from ascending to descending is precisely what causes the loop to elevate and expand.

Let’s look at this phenomenon in terms of gravity, inertia, momentum and changing forms of energy. According to Newton, inertia is the tendency of all objects and matter in the universe to either remain motionless in the first place, or, if moving, to continue moving in the same direction and at the same speed unless acted on by some outside force that can slow them, stop them, or change their direction.

Lifting the container higher off the ground loaded potential energy  into the beads. The initial tug that you gave to start the beads flowing is all that was needed to turn the potential (or gravity-stored) energy into kinetic (or motion) energy .

As the speed of the flowing beads increased, you probably noticed that the string of beads actually lifted slightly above the rim of the container due to the inertia of the fast-moving beads. The arcing of the beads is caused by the downward force of gravity overcoming the upward inertia of the moving beads. Gravity finally wins and the beads inevitably curve downward and head for the ground.

Take It Further

• There’s a possibility that the beads may get snagged on the edge of the container. Solve the problem by placing a piece(s) of tape over the rim of the container under the beads. If you’d rather, simply switch to a container better suited for the demonstration. NOTE: Two large glass beakers work very well, look “science-y”, and make a cool sound as the beads flow out.
• Load the beads into containers of different sizes that are made out of different materials like glass or metal to create different sounds. This demonstration is often used by magicians to start a show because of its highly visual nature and the cool sound the beads make as they stream from the container.
• Use the Newton’s Beads demonstration to help explain and reinforce the science behind the Gravi-Goo effect, a chemical-based version of the same principle using a very long chain of polyethylene oxide molecules.
• You don’t need a container to start the visual effect. Use a large, smooth tabletop and lay the strand of beads in long sections on the table in a variety of shapes and designs. They can’t cross each other or you risk a snag and a quick stop to the action but you can make some cool moves as the beads slide off the table. You can see this in action by watching the end of the SICK Science video.

Steve Mould - The Chain Fountain

Steve Mould is a brilliant science communicator out of the UK who took the standard Newton’s Beads demonstration to a new level. During a Ted X talk, Steve was kind enough to credit is initial inspiration for his research to a Steve Spangler video he found online. His “deep dive” into the physics behind this phenomenon is so compelling that many have come to refer to Newton’s Beads as the Mould Effect.

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Rotational inertia.

The rotational inertia of an object is a measure of how hard it is to rotate the object. The purpose of this experiment is to find the rotational inertia of a ring and a disk experimentally and to verify that these values correspond to the calculated theoretical values. A known torque is applied to the pulley on the Rotary Motion Sensor, causing a disk and ring to rotate. The resulting angular acceleration is measured using the slope of a graph of angular velocity versus time.

Grade Level: College

Subject: Physics

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Rotational Inertia Experiment

The complete solution for determining the rotational inertia of a ring and a disk.

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