Archimedes' Principle Man in boat (Rosalyn Montgomery)

Author

Rosalyn Montgomery, Emerson Community Charter Middle School

Principle(s) Illustrated

• Archimedes' Principle states that the upward buoyant force that is exerted on a body immersed in a fluid, whether fully or partially submerged, is equal to the weight of the fluid that the body displaces and acts in the upward direction at the center of mass of the displaced fluid.

Standards

• NGSS Science & engineering standards

  • MS-ETS1-1. Define the criteria and constraints of a design problem with sufficient precision to ensure a successful solution, taking into account relevant scientific principles and potential impacts on people and the natural environment that may limit possible solutions.

  • MS-ETS1-4. Develop a model to generate data for iterative testing and modification of a proposed object, tool, or process such that an optimal design can be achieved.

  • Planning and Carrying Out an Investigation

• NGSS Cross-cutting concept standards

• NGSS Disciplinary core idea standards

Questioning Script

Prior knowledge & experience:

The density of an object is determined by dividing the mass by the volume.

The displacement method can be used to measure the volume of an object.

Root question:

There is a swimming pool. In the swimming pool is a man floating in a boat filled with large rocks. The man picks up the large rocks, and carefully drops them into the pool. What happens to the water level in the pool?

Target response:

What is the correct answer

Common Misconceptions:

When an object is submerged in an fluid, it displaces more water than when it is floating.

Photographs and Movies

References

References (give the title of the page and insert a link. Don't just paste a URL)