Materials-Adult Supervision
-A non-bendy Straw
-1 Potato or Apple
Procedure
- Place or hold the potato or apple in your hand.
- Grasp the straw and stab the potato or apple.
What Happened?
Most likely the straw collapsed! Was the experiment a failure? No, you just need to know how to prevent the straw from collapsing.
- Get a new straw.
- Grasp the straw in your hand, and this time put your thump across the top of the straw.
- With your empty hand pick up the apple or potato.
- Now stab the potato or apple with the straw.
What happened?
This time around the straw should have pierced through the potato or apple. The difference maker this time around was you placing your thumb over the opening of the straw. By closing off the top of the straw you trap air inside. The trapped air creates extra support for the walls of the straw, which in turn prevents the straw from collapsing.
