Did you know that water can drip UP instead of down? It’s true! Okay, okay- it’s a bit of an optical illusion, but one that’s mesmerizing no less, and it’s one that is especially awe-inspiring for kids. As [Science Buddies] explains in the video below the break, it’s also achievable for anyone with some basic supplies.
On first glance, the “water dripping upward” illusion looks like it must be extremely complicated with precisely timed drops, and perfectly triggered strobing lights and the like- right? Well, not so much. [Science Buddies] demonstrates a highly simplified experiment using only an aquarium pump, a basic frame, a smart phone with a strobing app, and naturally, water. The experiment is presented in a simple manner that would allow a young person to replicate it without too much adult intervention.
The video goes into such concepts as frequency, duty cycle (pulse width modulation), and other basic engineering principles. The experiment can be completed for just a few dollars for the pump and tubing, and the rest can be improvised. What a great way to get a young one started on their way to engineering!
If you’d like to see a more fleshed out version of a similar machine, check out this gravity defying dripper we featured a few years ago.
A Kelvin water dropper is the logical next step, necessarily.
Great project! One small typo in the write up: principal -> principle
That’s such an excellent video to get kids interested in simple, achievable projects, yet with detailed explanations of the fundamentals, so you’re not just blindly following a recipe, you understand what’s happening. kudos!
Thanks! We specialize in experiments kids can reasonably do at home with an age-appropriate explanation of the science behind the activity (I am the author who made the video and wrote the project for Science Buddies).
“We just want to pump you up!”
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=7Mk1nykjnYA
Would you get an improved result by having a reserve tank above that feeds the dripper instead of the pump feeding the dripper directly?
That might help get a more constant drip rate. We found that some of the pumps vibrate a lot, those vibrations travel through the tubing and make the water drops irregular.