From: Raleigh McLemore (raleighmclemore@yahoo.com)
Date: Sun Sep 17 2000 - 20:23:33 PDT
Message-ID: <20000918032333.16848.qmail@web311.mail.yahoo.com> Date: Sun, 17 Sep 2000 20:23:33 -0700 (PDT) From: Raleigh McLemore <raleighmclemore@yahoo.com> Subject: floating
I teach at an Oakland elementary school. Last friday I
mangaged to talk the Goodyear blimp into flying over
to our school and going as low as FAA allows for our
students while circling. It was so cool you could
hang meat on it. We had a storm of excellent
questions and I'm a little worried over how to handle
some of them.
After a brief discussion of displacement with a fourth
grader she asked if we were "Floating on the floor?"
Another student was concerned that "If air has weight
(she's done an experiment to find this out)then how do
you weigh helium?"
The blimp has created quite a few interested
scientists in my school and I'm looking forward to the
next few weeks of "blimp energy".
Here's a couple of my questions.
What does it mean to float? If a submarine is at
neutral buoyancy is it floating? Are we "floating" on
the floor. Is floating when your average density in
equal or less than that of the substance beneath you?
How can I explain "weight" of helium to a fourth
grader? First the distinction between mass and weight.
Perhaps I should compare weight of things in a bathtub
with weight of things in air and ask the kids what
makes the difference?
I know most of you reading this are high and
middle-school teachers, but I'm curious how you
explain these concepts.
With firm handshake,
Raleigh
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