Doing Science Is Fun PDF

DOING
SCIENCE
IS FUN
V.G. KULKARNI
R.M. BHAGWAT
V.G. GAMBHIR
Doing Science Is Fun
V.G. Kulkami, R.M. Bhagwat, V.G. Gambhir

Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education
Tata Institute of Fundamental Research
Bombay
Publications & Information Directorate (CSIR)

Dr K. S. Krishnan Marg
New Delhi 110 012
India
Doing Science Is Fun
V.G. Kulkarni, R.M. B h a g w a t V.G. Gambhir
© Publications & Information Directorate

First Edition : November 1993
Second Edition : September 1995
ISBN : 91-7236-082-57
Volume Editor : Dr(Ms) B.S. Mahajaa Dr Sukanya Datta

Ms Sudha Kannan
Cover Design : A.D. Ghaisas
Illustrations : A.D. Ghaisas, Pradeep Banerjee,
Neeru Sharma, P.R. Mehta, Sushila Vohra,
Neeru Vijan and Malkhan Singh
Production : Radhe Sham, Gopal Porel, Sudhir Mamgain,
Bachitter Singh, Maran Pandian and
Vinod Sharma
For sale in India only.
Designed, Printed and Published by

Publications & Information Directorate (CSIR)
Dr. K.S. Krishnan Marg, New Delhi 110012
India
Foreword
Experiments constitute a crucial component of learning
science. Our rich store of knowledge in science and technol-
ogy has been made possible by the brilliant experimental
investigations conducted by scientists in the past. In fact, the
only way to satisfy one's curiosity about nature is to inves-
tigate systematically into the how and why of natural
phenomena.
Unfortunately, developing skills to investigate and to explore
is largely ignored in our science curricula at all levels. Even
the scanty laboratory programmes that have survived in
schools and colleges are so heavily dominated by the need
to obtain the correct value of some physical entity that the
spirit of exploring is simply lost.
I am, therefore, delighted to write this foreword to "Doing
Science is Fun", produced by scientists at the Homi Bhabha
Centre for Science Education. The experiments suggested in
this book cut across artificial barriers like physics, chemistry or
biology, and deal with real situations encountered in daily
life. That is why these experiments deal with curiosities arising
out of common everyday observations. The aim is not to
convey information alone, but to help young minds to ex-
plore on their own. I am happy to note that these experiments
can be conducted using materials and implements readily
available even in rural areas.
I am sure that students will enjoy conducting investigations
along lines suggested in this book. They will also develop a
deep insight into science besides acquiring precious skills to
explore nature.
Chairman
Atomic Energy Commission
The Authors
V.G. Kulkarni (1932-)
Began his research career in 1953 as a physicist at the Tata
Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR). His interest in
science education led in 1974 to the establishment of the
Homi Bhabha Centre for Science Education at the TIFR. As
the Founder Director he has nurtured this institution to a status
of considerable reputqtion. His interests include, education
of the underprivileged, role of language in science educa-
tion and use of mass media. Was awarded the G.D. Parikh
Memorial Award in 1985 for his contributions to the education
of the underprivileged.
R.M. Bhagwat(1931 -)
Holds Masters degrees in mathematics and education.
Joined the Homi Bhabha Centre in 1975 with considerable
experience and reputation as a successful teacher. Clear
and lucid writing and a deep understanding of children's
difficulties are his fortes.
V.G. Gambhir (1948 -)
Holds a degree in geology and a Masters degree in
education. Joined the Homi Bhabha Centre in 1976 after a
brief but successful career as a teacher. His interests in
science cut across disciplines. A skilled experimenter he is
equally at ease in animal dissections, rock collections,
photography, printing technology and model building. Has
a wonderful rapport with children.
Preface
The experiments and activities described in the book cover

a wide range of topics in science and technology. Many of
these deal with experiences which a typical Indian child
encounters in daily life. However, the prescribed convention-
al textbooks constrained to present the formal structure of
science, can hardly discuss such experiences. It is, therefore,
necessary to bring out supplementary material to cater to
the natural inquisitiveness of young minds.
Conventional experiments for children are short and crisp, to

be finished in a few minutes. What is described in this book is
not a set of experiments, but an experimental investigation
which may involve a series of experiments. This choice is
deliberate. We hope that in a systematic investigation, where
the choice of the next step depends on the outcome of
previous steps, children will develop aspects like planning,
strategy, resourcefulness, and patience.
We have also made an effort to present the method of

science through activities. Careful observations leading to a
guess, further activities to test the validity of the guess, the
power of reasoning to establish causal relationships, and an
ability to isolate factors and test them one by one, are all
emphasized at appropriate places. Social aspects of science
have also been highlighted when relevant.
High technology is always dazzling, especially to a young

mind. The experiences provided in this book are expected to
reveal the connections between basic principles of science
and the processes used in laboratories and industry. At the
same time, the reader is encouraged to look for and under-
stand the differences between simple and pure experiences
in a well designed home experiment and the complex tech-
nology.
Obviously, a book of this type can hardly aim at complete-
ness. It can never be an exhaustive repertoire of all experi-
ments. It can only be a sample. Many more books on similar
lines would be needed to satisfy the truly enormous thirst of
children.
We have enjoyed performing these activities with children.
We have also enjoyed the task of writing this book. It is hoped
that children will enjoy conducting these investigations, ask
questions, and demand more information.
Acknowledgements
This book is based on field experiences gathered by research

scientists working at the Homi Bhabha Centre for Science
Education, (HBCSE). Their field-work enabled us to under-
stand the way a child thinks about natural phenomena, to
appreciate the typical questions that occur to a young mind
and the intellectual equipment and material resources avail-
able to children. Also, some of these experiments have been
tried out in rural areas in action research programmes under-
taken by the HBCSE. We are grateful to all our colleagues for
making this fund of information available to us.
We are grateful to Dr (Ms) Jayashree Ramadas for reading

the manuscript critically and for her valuable suggestions. It
is a pleasure to thank Dr (Ms) B.S. Mahajan for patiently
editing the book, incorporating several changes that kept
coming up till the end. Thanks are also due to Mr V.N. Purohit
for typing the manuscript.
The authors feel extremely obliged to Dr G.P. Phondke who

took a personal interest in the publications of HBCSE and
prompted us to try innovative formats for this book. The final
editing and formatting of the manuscript was done by the
ever willing staff of the Publication and Information Direc-
torate. Without the patient and meticulous work of Dr
Sukanya Datta and Ms Sudha Kannan, the book would not
have come out in this format.
V.G. Kulkarni would like to thank his wife, Vijaya, whose silent
support has contributed in no small measure to this en-
deavour.
VGK
RMB
VGG
Contents
Endpoint ... 1
Matchmaker ... 8
Natural gates ... 15
No noise is good noise ... 24
Short circuit ... 31
Your own spiderman ... 33
Sound's fun ... 45
Safety first ... 51
Not by hands alone ... 57
Floods and flows ... 63
A silver lining ... 74
Strings of music ... 83
Universal currency ... 88
Friend or foe ... 95
A lightning flash in your room ...101
Silence is golden ...107
Ready reference ...112
ENDPOINT
"Wash behind your ears", admonishes mum ever so

often. Wash your hands, wash your hanky, wash your
cup...the iist of things to wash seems endless and each
time you have to use a different soap.
There are many kinds of soaps in the market. There is
an entire range of pleasantly perfumed and coloured
toilet soaps. There are soaps for washing, for shaving
and even liquid soaps. These soaps differ in their colour,
smell, smoothness or texture and of course, in their price.
A really good toilet soap can cost many times more than
a cake of washing soap. But why should the prices vary
so much? Your hands can immediately tell you why, Just
lather a washing soap and use it for bathing. Your skin
will protest and show its irritation by feeling dry and
rough. So what is it that a toilet soap has, that makes it
softer on delicate skin? How does a toilet soap differ
from a washing soaps? Let's find out. For this we will need
two kinds of soap, one should be a bathing soap and
2 DOING SCIENCE IS FUN
The two cubes of soap should be of the same size
the other an inexpensive washing brand, two dishes, a

strainer, a dropper, a knife, a lemon, and some turmeric
powder.
Let's cut a small piece of about 3 gms from each cake

of soap or else we could cut pieces of equal size (say 1
cm long, 1 cm broad and 1 /2 cm thick) from each of
ENDPOINT 3
the two cakes and assume that their weights are the
same.
Now in two different clean dishes let us dissolve the
pieces separately. To each dish we will add equal
amounts of water, 5-7 teaspoons should be enough. This
means that we have two soap solutions with about the
same quantity of soap in them, We have to be very
careful at this stage and label the dishes, so that we
know which dish contains bathing soap and which one
the washing soap, Now we will add a pinch of turmeric
powder to each of the solution and see what happens!
The colour changes, doesn't it? Have you paid attention
to the delicate tints of the changed colour in both
solutions? If not, do it again, Which solution shows a
deeper tint?
For the next bit of the experiment, we will need lemon
juice so let's squeeze the lemon and filter the juice
through the strainer so that we get clear juice, This is the
juice that we will add drop by drop to the solution of
bathing soap,
There are many interesting details to observe in this
experiment. If you have been following the colour chan-
ges keenly you must have noticed that as soon as you
added a drop of lemon juice, the soap solution
changed colour locally. The solution around the drop
changed from red to yellow but the rest of the solution
remained red. When you stirred the solution, the yellow
colour readily disappeared. But as you went on adding
the lemon juice, drop by drop, it took longer and longer
for the yellow colour to disappear. Finally, the entire
solution turned yellow. It is a really colourful experiment
isn't it? So let, us do it again, this time with the dish
containing washing soap solution. What is your guess?
Will it require the same number of drops or a few more
to reach the yellow colour stage? Well, let's do it and
find out.
Beginning the colourful experiment
Now that the colourful experiments are over, there

may be many questions in your mind.
Why did turmeric become red when it was added to

the soap solution? How could the addition of lemon
ENDPOINT 5
Drop by drop
juice turn the turmeric to yellow again? Is there any

relation between the depth of the red tint of turmeric in
the soap solution and the quantity of lemon juice re-
quired to change the tint to yellow?
Can you recall a similar observation (changed colour
of a turmeric stain) from your experience? Think about
it. It's a common everyday affair. Questions such as

these also had the scientists scratching their heads till
they finally arrived at the answer.
Turmeric is yellow. However,the yellow colour of
turmeric changes to red if it is added to lime water,
slaked lime, washing soda solution, or to caustic soda
solution. Caustic soda, washing soda, lime water are
some of the substances called alkalis. The colour of
turmeric changes from yellow to red when it comes in
contact with an alkali. If the alkaline nature of the
solution is changed later and no more alkali is left in it,
the turmeric regains its original yellow colour.
Some other substances, too, change their colour

when they are transferred from an acidic solution to an
alkaline one. Such substances can, therefore, be used
to indicate the nature of the solution, These substances
are called indicators and are used regularly in the
chemistry laboratory. These tell-tale chemicals immedi-
ately signal by colour change if the solution is alkaline
or acidic.
Soap is formed when an alkali and a vegetable oil(or

fat) react with each other. Generally, non-edible oils,
like castor oil and alkali such as caustic soda or caustic
potash, are used in soap- making industry. In the process
of soap making, some excess, unreacted alkali may
remain in the soap. Removal of this excess alkali in the
soap involves further processing. This leads to further
expenditure and the soap becomes costly.
Now can you guess what happens with inexpensive

soap cakes? Since the expensive process of removing
excess alkali is not carried out, the alkali remains in the
soap. It is the unreacted extra alkali left in the soap that
affects our delicate skin. This alkali can cause irritation
and roughness of the skin. It is also responsible for the
changes in the colour of turmeric. Some alkalis are mild,
ENDPOINT 7
whereas others are strong. Lime water is a mild alkali as

compared to caustic soda. Usually caustic soda, a
strong alkali, is used to prepare washing soap.
You may wonder as to what happened to the alkali

in the soap solution on adding lemon juice? Lemon juice
contains an acid called citric acid. A neutral salt and
water are formed when an acid and an alkali react with
each other. This reaction is called neutralization. Both
salt and water are neutral. That is, salt and water are
neither acidic nor alkaline. For full neutralization of a
given quantity of acid, you will need a fixed quantity of
alkali. The exact quantities of these chemicals will
depend upon the relative strengths of the solutions.
While carrying out the neutralization, one must know
when to stop adding acid to the alkali. If you add more
acid the solution will not be neutral, it will be acidic.
Indicators help in indicating the state of neutralization
by signalling the end point when the solution is neither
acidic nor alkaline.
The technique of neutralization is used frequently in

laboratories and in many industries. If the volume and
strength of one of the solutions is known, the strength of
the other can be calculated. To make such accurate
measurements, a specially prepared tube with a nozzle
and markings to measure volumes is used. Next time you
visit a laboratory, try to observe the many apparatus
such as burettes, pipettes and indicator bottles, as also
the technique of using these, but in the meantime have
fun changing the colour red to yellow but don't use up
all the soap at home! However, while doing these ex-
periments remember to use soaps only not detergents.
MATCHMAKER
^Wt-
Meet hydrogen peroxide. It is a colourless, odourless
liquid and looks like water. Hydrogen peroxide is stored
in coloured bottles which have tight caps. It does not
evaporate rapidly, nor is it flammable. Yet the bottles
are kept tightly corked. Why should this be so?
Doctors often use hydrogen peroxide to clean
wounds, people use it to bleach hair and it is also used
in rockets. You must be wondering about its versatility
and special properties that make it indispensable in so
many varied fiel.ds.
Shall we try to find out something about its properties?
Well then, we will need hydrogen peroxide of course. A
chemist or a beauty parlour will be able to provide it.
We will also need some test tubes or small bottles, and
a little bit of manganese dioxide for the first experiment.
Let's take some hydrogen peroxide in a clean test
tube or bottle. About two or three teaspoons should be
MATCHMAKER 9
Hot or not?
enough. You have noticed that the liquid is clear like

water. Now just add a pinch of the black manganese
dioxide powder and wait a minute or two. Do you see
the tiny bubbles rising in the liquid? The liquid seems to
be boiling slowly. But is it really boiling? You know what
happens when water boils. Touch the test tube to check
if it is hot or not. Also watch for any vapour rising from
the test tube! How is the powder in the test tube behav-
The apparatus must be correctly set up
ing? Are the particles darting about? Once the bub-

bling has stopped, look for changes in colour and par-
ticle size. Do you think some of the particles have
dissolved in hydrogen peroxide?
Now let's carry out a few more experiments and see
if we can learn more about this useful fluid.
For the second experiment, we will need a test tube
or a small bottle. It should have a tight fitting cork
through which we will fix a rubber tube. We will also need
a rubber tube, an injection syringe and lighted agarbat-
ti.
First we will fill three-fourth of the test tube with
hydrogen peroxide and add about 2 gms of man-
MATCHMAKER 11
ganese dioxide powder to it. Then we will cork the test

tube. We will attach the free end of the rubber tube to
an injection syringe.
As the hydrogen peroxide bubbles vigorously, the
plunger of the syringe is slowly pushed back. Let's wait
till the plunger is pushed back considerably, say upto
the 5 ml mark on the syringe. In the meanwhile, we could
note the time taken for the plunger to be pushed back
this far.
Now one of you take a glowing agarbaffi while your
friend releases the rubber tube from the syringe and
then pushes the plunger slowly, releasing the gas
towards the agarbaffi. Does this make a difference to
the intensity of the glowing tip? Of course, the agarbaffi
is now glowing more brightly. Now can you tell which
gas causes a glowing splinter to glow more brightly? Yes!
It is oxygen. But, where did it come from?
To get the answer let's have a variation of the second
experiment. This time we will also require a potato in
addition to the items we have already used. The potato
has to be cut into two small cubes each weighing about
2 gms. A cube 1 cm x 1 cm x 1 cm will approximately be
2 gms by weight.
This time we will repeat the experiment but with one
difference. We will add the potato cubes to hydrogen
peroxide instead of the manganese dioxide. And then
in another test tube we will add potato slices cut from
the other cube Have you taken note of the time taken
to push back the plunger to the 5 ml mark on the
syringe? Also take a look at the pieces of potato. Are
they changed in any way? Many questions will crowd
your mind but to some you have already noted the
answer.
With which of the two materials, manganese dioxide
or potato was the reaction faster? Were there any
Potato cubes or slices, with which is

the reaction faster?
changes noticed in manganese dioxide or in potato?
Slices of potato worked better than the cube even
though the weight was the same. Can you guess why?
The experiments have hinted at the nature of
hydrogen peroxide and the results become clear when
we learn that hydrogen peroxide is a compound of
hydrogen and oxygen. Water, too, is a compound of
hydrogen and oxygen. Chemically, water is H2O (that
is, hydrogen oxide). Hydrogen peroxide is H2O2. It is not
MATCHMAKER 13
as stable as water. It slowly releases oxygen leaving

behind water. The breaking up of hydrogen peroxide is
faster when it is warmed or exposed to light. That is why
it is kept in coloured bottles with a tight cap.
Why is hydrogen peroxide used in treating wounds?
You have seen that it gives off oxygen which is useful in
disinfecting the wound. Hydrogen peroxide is also used
in a rocket as a source of oxygen.
Breaking or splitting of hydrogen peroxide into
oxygen and water is a process of decomposition.
Hydrogen peroxide decomposes faster when it is in
contact with manganese dioxide. At the end of the
reaction, hydrogen peroxide changes into water and
oxygen.
Substances called catalysts affect the rate of reac-
tion. In the experiments we carried out, manganese
dioxide and potato (actually an enzyme present in
potato) acted as catalysts.
Can we show that the rate of the reaction really
changes when a piece of potato is added to hydrogen
peroxide? Let's take some hydrogen peroxide in a test
tube and dip into it a piece of potato tied to a string.
The liquid bubbles as soon as the potato is dipped into
it. Repeated lowering and raising the piece of potato
alters the rate of bubbling. You can also speed up the
bubbling by heating hydrogen peroxide. However, you
will need 'energy' to heat hydrogen peroxide. The
catalyst, in this case potato, has saved this energy. A
substance which functions as a catalyst in one reaction
may not act in a similar manner in other reactions. So
far, scientists have found quite a few catalysts for
specific chemical reactions.
Catalysts are used in industrial processes manufac-
ture of urea, sulphuric acid and refrigerants. Even the
simple process of converting an edible oil into a ghee-
Dip, dip, dip
like substance needs a catalyst. These processes will be

uneconomical without the use of catalysts.
The area of contact between the catalyst and the
reactants is an important factor in deciding the rate of
a chemical reaction. The effect is enhanced if the area
of contact is increased. Therefore, to increase the sur-
face area, catalysts are generally used in the form of a
fine powder or thin layers spread on some supporting
substahc^jke asbestos.
' The reactants and the products do not form stable
compounds with aaatalyst. Therefore, the catalyst can,
in principle; bfe usefd repeatedly." Sometimes, however,
other. substances''Involved in the reaction affect the
MATCHMAKER 15
action of the catalyst adversely. In such situations, the

catalyst becomes useless, it is called 'poisoning of the
catalyst'. While using the catalysts in industry, consider-
able care needs to be taken, especially to avoid
catalyst poisoning.
There are some other catalysts that slow down chemi-
cal reactions. They are called negative catalysts. A few
drops of ammonium hydroxide added to hydrogen
peroxide can slow down the decomposition of
hydrogen peroxide. We may wish to speed up some
reactions and slow down many others. Therefore, we
need both the positive and negative catalysts. Can you
think of some instances of each type?
NATURAL GATES
The doors that man has designed are simple. They are
opened when we wish to enter or leave a room. While
open, they allow other people to enter or leave at will.
They will also allow animals and dust to enter. They
cannot distinguish between the desirable elements and
the undesirable ones.
Nature, on the other hand, has sensitive doors. These
doors are selective. They may allow certain chemicals
to enter but not leave. With other chemicals they may
exercise the restriction in reverse. This means that the
doors will allow a chemical to leave but not allow it to
re-enter. Still other chemicals may be strictly forbidden
to enter into the cell. Sounds fun, doesn't it? But how do
these doors work? Can we see them?
Of course, these incredibly efficient doors are too tiny,
microscopic really, to be seen with the unaided eye. But
we can study the way they work. To do so, let's raid the
kitchen for a couple of raw potatoes, some sugar,
NATURAL GATES 17
Let's raid the kitchen
water, a knife, two dishes and, if available, any water

soluble colouring matter (potassium permanganate will
do fine or even some colours left over from Holi).
Let us take the potatoes and scoop them out so that

they resemble a cup. You may also have to cut a proper
base so that the cups will sit well on a dish. Then we will
dissolve 5 spoonfuls of sugar in a cup of water and pour
this carefully into the potato-cup so that it is half-full with
the concentrated sugar syrup. After that let's fill the dish
with water taking care that it does not overflow into the
potato-cup. Experiments become easy to observe if we
add a pinch of colour to the plain water in the dish.
Making the potato-cup
Now the experiment is set up and we are eager to

see if the doors work, But we must give the invisible doors
some time to operate smoothly and silently. So we will
wait for about fifteen minutes or so, before we check if
the doors are on their job.
In the meanwhile we can make waiting easy by

writing down our guesses about what might happen.
Then we could compare our notes with what we will see
in fifteen minutes time. Won't it be fun if we were right?
We could even try and find out how the doors worked.
For some extra fun while we are waiting, why don't

we reverse the experiment we have just set up? Let us
put plain water in the potato-cup this time and sugar
solution in the dish. This will be our second experiment.
NATURAL GATES 19
Invisible gates at work
For this experiment too, we will allow fifteen minutes for

the gates to operate.
The results are interesting because although ap-
parently it seems the flow of water in the two experi-
ments are opposite to each other, that is not the case.
If we look again, we see that in both, the movement of
water takes place towards the sugar solution. How did
this happen? How did water know which way to go?
And why did not sugar particles (molecules) also pass in
or out of the potato-cup? It would seem that water has
been selectively allowed to pass out but not sugar.
Scientists say that the potato-cup is made up of cells
and each cell has its boundary wall. These walls allow
only water to pass through them but do not allow sugar

particles to pass through. Such a screen that is selective
about the molecules, it allows to pass through is called
a semipermeable membrane. Parchment paper and
the membranous sac or the white thin membrane which
covers the inside of an egg are also semi permeable in
nature.
The name semipermeable membrane itself indicates
the nature of the membrane. If we make a solution, say,
of water and sugar (as we have just done), sugar which
dissolves is called the solute and the water or medium
in which it dissolves is called a solvent. Now, a semiper-
meable membrane will allow a solvent free passage
through it but will prevent or resist the passage of the
solute.
It has become clear that some of the water in the dish

has entered the potato-cup in the first experiment. In
the second experiment it is equally certain that water
from the potato-cup has entered the dish.
This process of selective passage of a solvent in
preference to the solute through a semipermeable
membrane is termed osmosis.
But for how long will the process continue? Will it go
on for ever? The answer is No, and we can see it oursel-
ves if we carry on the experiments for a sufficiently long
time. Why does this happen? Why does the movement
of solvent stop?
Scientists tell us that nothing is perfect, not even the

sensitive doors of nature. The semipermeable
membrane also allows a few solute molecules to pass
through. The entire process continues till concentration
of solutions on both sides becomes equal. At that point
there is equal number of solute and solvent molecules
on either side and osmosis stops.
NATURAL GATES 21
Making a semipermeable membrane
In all the cases, The tiny pores in the walls of the potato
worked as efficient doors. They allowed water to move
in or out depending on the location of the con-
centrated sugar solution.
Shall we try to get some other semipermeable

membrane? It's easy. All we need to do is to drain the
contents of an egg through a small hole at one end.
Then we will immerse the egg in dilute hydrochloric acid
which is available in any chemist's shop and which is
often used at home to clean sinks. In about 10 minutes,
the shell will be dissolved and the egg sac left behind.
This sac can be used as a semipermeable membrane.
Now that we have a semipermeable membrane, let

us try another experiment. For this we will need a thistle
funnel, which is a little like the funnel used at home to
pour kerosene or oil but with a longer stem. The school

science laboratory will surely have it. We will also need
concentrated sugar solution and a beaker filled with
water.
Let's fill the thistle funnel partly with concentrated
sugar solution and then close the mouth of the funnel
tightly, either with a piece of parchment paper or with
the egg sac. Invert the funnel and place it in a beaker
filled with water. Also mark the level of the sugar solution
in the stem of the funnel and closely observe over a
period of time the difference in the level of water in the
stem. Yes, of course, the level of water in the stem rises
with time.
Why don't we try out further experiments and see
what happens when we take some dry grapes (kismis)
and put them in water for some time? Or put some fresh
grapes in a concentrated solution of common salt and
note the results. Does repeating the potato-cup experi-
ment with concentrated solution of common salt in-
stead of sugar yield results similar to those we got during
the experiments we did using sugar solutions?
Why is salt added to the cucumber, onion, and
tomato salad only just before serving? What do you
think will happen if we add the salt beforehand and
keep for sometime prior to eating?
We have read that it is harmful to use fertilisers like
ammonium phosphate and urea indiscriminately. When
too much salt is put around the roots of a plant, water
from the cells of the roots comes out into the soil. Fer-
tilisers are added only at specific stages in the life of a
plant. Now we understand why gardeners and farmers
are advised to use the right concentration of fertilisers
and that too not frequently.
We know that plants and animals cannot live without
water. Plants and animals require many substances
NATURAL GATES 23
called nutrients for their growth. They can absorb

nutrients only when these are dissolved in water. That is
why animals and plants depend on water for their sur-
vival and growth.
The nutrients necessary for plants are present in the
soil in the form of salts. When we water a plant the salts
in the soil get dissolved in water. The roots of plants have
these interesting doors which allow food and water to
come in. These roots have minute root hairs made of
cells. The walls of these cells act as a semipermeable
membrane.
Does everything pass through this way? No, obviously
not. Otherwise the cells would also lose some important
molecules to the soil. Each membrane is a special one.
It decides what will go across and in which direction.
Thus, cell walls ensure that water and nutrients go into
the cells, but useful materials in the cell do not get out.
NO NOISE IS
GOOD NOISE
the last ball is about to be bowled and that will decide

the fate of the match. The commentator is about to
announce the events of the next few moments. Some-
one outside the house starts his motorcycle, precisely at
that moment. The loud noise of the motorcycle and also
the crackling disturbance over the radio! The voice of
the commentator is lost - irritating, isn't it?
But why blame the motorcycle alone? When some-
one rings the doorbell, switches the tube-light or puts the
mixie on, there is a simultaneous disturbance on our
television and radio sets. Why do you think this happens?
Let us try to deliberately cause such a disturbance
and check out when exactly the noise is created in the
radio. All we need for this is a dry cell from the flashlight
and also a wire. Switch the radio on, first. Then, hold one
end of the wire at the base of the cell, and with the other
end, scratch the upper end of the cell. We must do this
NO NOISE IS GOOD NOISE 25
Causing noise in the radio
near the radio. The voices on the radio are no longer

clear, but are disturbed by a simultaneous crackling
sound, right? The noise disappears the moment we stop
rubbing the wire. The scratching of the wire on the cell
leads to making or breaking of a circuit which causes
noise in the radio. Similar is the case with the doorbell.
The spring of the buzzer in the doorbell repeatedly
makes and breaks contacts. This causes the noise in the
radio. But, why should the electrical disturbance else-
where affect the radio at all?
The radio functions as a receiver of radio waves. If

there is any hindrance or interference in the waves
reaching the receiver, then we cannot hear the trans-
mission clearly. Electrical disturbances obviously send

out unwanted waves, and the radio receives them, in
addition to those sent out by the radio station.
We have noticed that when we are attempting to
tune in a particular station, we hear a continuous back-
ground noise. Where does this noise come from? Where
are these noise-producing radio waves generated?
Actually, electromagnetic radiation consists of
several different types of waves carrying different
amounts of energy across space. One such wave is the
radio wave.
The speciality of radio waves is that they can be used
to send messages between distant points, without any
wires to carry them. The first to succeed in this attempt
was a young Italian engineer, Guglielmo Marconi. After
some preliminary experiments, on December 12, 1901
he sent the first telegraphic code across the Atlantic
Ocean from England to Newfoundland. From this
humble beginning came such developments as
television radio broadcasting and RADAR.
In the case of radio wave transmission, electromag-
netic waves produced accidentally or unintentionally,
as in the case of the doorbell, interfere with the' main
transmission and produce hoise.
Noise of this kind can be eliminated if we prevent the
disturbing waves from interacting with the radio waves
coming from the radio station. In other words, we must
shield the radio from the disturbing waves.
A simple solution to the problem is covering the radio
with a metal can. Let us tune in the radio to its loudest,
and cover it with a can. Now, let's try ringing the bell.
There is no disturbance, is there?
Similarly, let's try covering the source of the distur-
bance - the electric bell. We will also need a metal can
and an insulated electric wire. Let's make a small hole
Enjoy the music
on one side of the can and pass an insulated electric

wire through it. Let us join this wire to the bell. We can
now keep the bell in the can and the can on the ground.
We now cover the can with the lid and ring the bell.
Does it create a disturbance in the radio? Remove the
lid and check again. What do you think happens when
the radio and the bell are covered with the metal can?
The electromagnetic waves generated by the bell

are received by the can. These waves produce a cur-
rent which travels to the ground via the can instead of
affecting the radio set. Thus a grounded metal cover
protects the radio from the noise. The metal acts as a
Does this work as well?
shield and hence this method is called 'shielding' the

apparatus from radio disturbance.
It is really not possible to cover our radio sets with this
kind of a shielding apparatus. It will make it very difficult
for us to listen to the radio. Generally, certain devices
installed in the radio set help decrease the noise. These
are in the form of circuits, and they suppress or filter out
the unwanted waves and allow only waves of desired
frequency to pass through them.
Cars too have radio sets. Can you guess how radio
noise is prevented in cars? Cars have a long wire-like
antenna fitted outside the car,, which receives the
broadcast. The body of the car acts as a shield and
prevents the disturbing waves from entering the car.

Moreover the spark-plug in the cars is also completely
covered with a metal casing. Now you can guess why
we cannot hear the radio clearly when we are in a
moving train or bus.
The study of radio-noise had an unexpected, but
extremely fruitful result. In 1932, Karl Jansky, an engineer
in Bell Telephone Company, USA, was trying to find out
how much noise he would receive from the atmosphere
in his short-wave radio receiver. He had built an aerial
which could locate the direction of the source of radio-
noise. He was trying to listen to the crackling noises from
distant thunderstorms. In addition to the expected
noises, he received a continuous noise from an un-
known source in the sky. Jansky found that the radio
noise was coming from the centre of the Milky Way. This
was the first detection of radio waves coming from a
source in outer space.
After several years of this discovery, Grote Reber, a

German scientist constructed a radio-telescope to
receive radio waves from stellar objects. The telescope
consisted of a large metal disc, shaped like a parabolic
mirror (like a mirror of a car lamp), with a sensitive radio
receiver at its focus. This telescope could receive faint
signals from galaxies and stars and could fix the direc-
tion of the source of radio waves.
Thus, the basic technique of Radio-Astronomy was

established. This field is now one of the most important
disciplines in the study of the universe. You might be
surprised to know that apart from visible light, stars emit
many other radiations like radio waves and X-rays. All
these are, of course, electromagnetic radiations. There
are some sources which emit mostly radio waves. These
would never be visible to the naked eye and can be
seen only by radio-telescopes.
Radio telescope
The biggest and the best radio-telescope is now in

operation at a site near Pune in Maharashtra.
Of course, the most familiar uses of radio waves are
in the fields of communication broadcasting, telecast-
ing, and radio telegraphy and telephony between ships
and across continents or oceans.
SHORT-CIRCUIT
So many of us have heard our grandparents speak of

their childhood. A childhood in a remote village where
the summer nights were spent without the luxury of even
a fan. The comfortable life we now live is mainly be-
cause of electricity, one of man's greatest discoveries
in the modern world. Elctricity is indeed responsible for
thousands of inventions and appliances that make life
in the twentieth century so comfortable.
Most of us probably think of electricity as a recent
discovery. But men experimented with it many centuries
ago. The word 'electricity' comes from the Greek word
electron which means 'amber'. Thales, a Greek
philosopher who lived in about 600 B.C. noticed a
strange effect when he rubbed a piece of amPer with
a woollen cloth. The amber, as a result of the friction,
became 'electrified'. The electric current which flows
through wires and reaches our homes is in fact, the
movement of electrons,
32 SHORT-CIRCUIT
Electricity is of tremendous use to man. But we all

know that it must be used extremely carefully. The con-
sequences of one careless step can be disastrous.
We hear of fires in peak summer. 'Must have been a
short-circuit', we hear people say. What is a short-cir-
cuit? How does it cause so much damage?
Let us see how a short-circuit occurs. All we need are
some electrical material we often have lying around at
home. To be precise, we will need two batteries of the
kind which we use in our torch lights, a bulb with the
holder, a switch, some copper wire, a dozen crocodile
clips and a thermocol sheet. We will use the sheet as the
base. Let us place the two batteries on one side and the
Lighting up the bulb

33 SHORT-CIRCUIT
bulb with its holder on the other. Let us then linkup the
wires with crocodile clips at both ends. We then con-
nect up all these. When we press the switch , the bulb
glows and when we switch it off, the bulb does not light
up. Thus for the bulb to glow, the electric current must
flow round and round continuously in the circuit. This is
a closed circuit. When the current path is broken at any
point, as when the switch is off, we have an open circuit.
When we switch off the circuit, no current is allowed to
flow.
What if we create some obstruction to the flow of
electric current in the circuit? A pencil refill made of
graphite will do. Let us connect it in the circuit. All we
have to do is link up the graphite refill in the circuit with
the help of wires and crocodile clips. Let us now put the
switch on. Do you think the bulb will glow more brightly,
less brightly or not glow at all?
Supposing we connect a wire across the circuit? Do
you think the bulb would still glow?
We realize now that the amount of current through
the circuit is not decided by the battery alone. It is the
components in the circuit which determine how much
current they will draw from a given battery. Some
materials allow larger current to flow through them. But
other materials do not. In other words, certain materials
offer more resistance to current than other. A substance
that has extremely high resistance will not allow
electricity to flow through. It is called an insulator.
Electric current takes the path of least resistance.
Thus, when we connected the graphite refill in the cir-
cuit, the current could have gone directly through the
wire or through the high resistance of the graphite. It
took the usual wire route and hence there was no
change in the gJowing of the bulb. This wire had ex-
tremely low resistance and the current took that path,
bypassing the bulb altogether. In other words, an easy

short-cut was available and the current took it.
In such a short-cut, the current meets little resistance.
Hence large amounts of current can flow. This leads to
considerable heating. If a contact at any point along
the circuit is loose or becomes loose due to heating, a
spark can occur.
In our experiment, we used a power source which
was very feeble. At home or in a factory, however,
considerable power is used,
Serious damage can occur if two points with little
resistance get connected accidentally. A minor spark
can lead to a major fire. Wires are often wrapped in
rubber, which is an insulator. What will happen if the
rubber on two wires fixed side by side wears off and the
two wires touch each other? In such cases a large
current will flow, and an inferno can result. Many
precautions and safety measures are taken to protect
the circuits against damage due to overloading or a
short-circuit. All wires used in an electric circuit are
coated with a layer of insulating material. In addition
they are covered by a rubber or plastic layer. As a result
ordinarily the wires do not come in direct contact.
The most important safety device used for protection
of electric circuits is the fuse, The fuse is a piece of wire
made of a material with a very low melting point. When
a high current flows through the circuit due to overload-
ing or a short-circuit, the fuse wire gets heated and
melts. As a result, the circuit is broken and current stops
flowing.
What is earthing of an electrical gadget?
It is yet another safety measure always used in electri-
cal appliances to prevent us from getting a shock.
Let us prepare a similar circuit as we did the first time,
Then let us connect the bulb holder to the base of a
35 SHORT-CIRCUIT
Earthing electrical gadgets
metal can. We must take care that the wires of the

circuit do not touch the can anywhere. What must we
do for this? Yes, we should use an insulator such as an
adhesive tape between the wires and the can. Now
let's switch the circuit on. The lamp glows!
What if the wires touch the metal can? Will the lamp
glow? Why not? The current is in fact flowing through
the can.
What will happen if we provide an easy path for the
current from the can to the earth? We can easily do that
by attaching two crocodile clips to a long flexible wire.
One clip can be attached to the can and the other to
a nearby pipe.
Now we can guess why electrical gadgets have a

three-pin plug. The third pin is connected to the ground.
Normally, the body of the gadget does not get any
current, but should the wires inside it ever accidentally
touch such a gadget, it can give us a shock. Thus when
we touch it, the current has two options, to flow through
our body to the earth, or to flow through the wire con-
nected to the earth. The resistance of our body being
much higher than that of the wire, the current chooses
to flow through the wire. The earthing of instruments thus
saves us from shock.
Can you recollect, the 'tester' an electrician uses
when we complain about the refrigerator or iron giving
a shock? How about trying to make one?
YOUR OWN
SPIDERMAN
Just mentioning the word 'spider' often makes many

of us look for the cobweb duster. But have you ever
stopped to admire the delicate web the spider weaves
in the garden? Transparent, lightweight yet strong, sticky
enough to trap flies and other prey, yet allowing the
spider to swing merrily like a trapeze artist in the circus.
The web is made up of threads spun by the spider itself.
The thread is strong enough to hold the spider's weight
and this factor is, of course, vitally important from the
view point of safety.
In fact, the same factor operates when commandos
carry out risky rescue operations. They airlift stranded
people using a wire or rope that is lowered from the
helicopter. The wire or rope used in such rescue opera-
tions is always manufactured to meet precise specifica-
tions so that we know how much weight it can support.
It is also rigorously tested before use so that it does not
suddenly snap in mid air.
When does it snap?
But how c$in the strength of thread and rope or even

wire be studffed? It's rather fun and simple as well, All we
need Jor that, are equal lengths of strings of various
types, ohail on the wall, a hook and some weights.
We will tie the hook to one end of the string which
should be about 50 cm long and the other end we will
tie to a strong nail on the wall. But we must be careful
that when we tie the hook to the string, the thread
should remain taut. Placing a meter scale behind the
thread will allow us to know the length of the thread or
string. Let's then attach a small weight to the hook on
the thread. This will stretch the thread and by reading its
length against the meter scale, we can see that the
thread is elongated. If the addition of the weight does
not cause the string to break, -we can go on adding
extra weights till at last the thread snaps as soon as we
YOUR OWN SPIDERMAN 39
add more weight, If we record the weights needed to

break the different types of threads, we can easily
estimate the materials able to withstand extra weight
and those that cannot.
In fact, an index of this can also be prepared from the
way the string elongates, Let's note the length of the
string each time a new weight is attached and the
thread comes to a steady position after elongation. We
can get an idea about the elasticity of the string if we
record the length of the string just before it breaks. If we
prepare a systematic table like the one shown, the
results will be obvious at a glance.
Material Original Length at Increase Breaking

Length Breaking in Length Point
Weight
Cotton
Silk
Wool
This table will readily reveal which thread is the

strongest. But what makes it strong? Is it the thickness
that determines the strength of the thread? To confirm
our guess, we can repeat this experiment using threads
of the same material but with different thicknesses. Does
thickness really make a difference to the weight the
thread can support before snapping?
When we observe a cotton thread closely, we realize

that it is not really a single strand of cotton. The thread
is made up of a number of strands or yarns spun into one
thread. What do we find if we compare the number of
strands in two different threads of the same material?

There are many different kinds of cotton threads. A thin
thread of fine cotton may even be stronger than a
thickerthread of coarse cotton. Interesting, isn't it? If you
obtain and test the strengths of a single strand of each
kind of thread, you might be surprised at your findings.
Apart from the common choice of cotton, silk and
wool, we could also try threads obtained from plants like
hemp. We could also jute, etc. Metal wires would also
be suitable for our experiments. Iron, brass, copper and
aluminium wires are easily available. We could also use
man-made fibres like rayon and nylon and, of course,
there is the spider's fragile looking thread!
Scientists have found that the thread of a spider's
web is not weak. It is, in fact, stronger than a steel strand
of the same thickness.
To compare different types of threads for their
strength, we should find the thickness of the thread and
the weight that is necessary to break the thread. From
these two, we can obtain a single number by dividing
the break-weight by the thickness of the thread. This will
give us the comparison of the strength of different
threads, as if all of them are of the same thickness. But
with the material and equipment that is available to us,
it will be difficult to test the strength of very thin threads.
This can be done only in technical laboratories.
But that does not mean we cannot measure the
thickness of threads at all.
To measure the thickness of threads, we can use
different methods, depending on the material of the
thread, and the measuring apparatus that is available
to us.
The best method is to use a special kind of micro-
scope which is used in the laboratory for this purpose.
The thread is held fast on a slide under the lens of the
microscope. The thickness is measured with the help of

the scale attached to the microscope.
Another method is to use a micrometer screw. Per-
haps it is available in the school laboratory. It is used in
engineering workshops. To measure the thickness of
your thread, take a rod, or a pencil, and wind two or
three turns of the thread around the rod, taking care
that the threads do not overlap one another. Now the
diameter of the rod with the threads is measured. Then
the diameter of the rod only is measured. The difference
gives us double the thickness of the thread. From this we
can get the thickness of a single thread.
If we do not have any instruments like a microscope
or a micrometer screw, we may use a graph paper for-
measuring the thickness of a thread. Let's take a few
threads (say four) together and stretch them between
our fingers and hold them on the graph paper while
taking care that no gap is left between the two ad-
jacent strands. Now the thickness of the four threads is
easily measured. Dividing this by the number of threads
taken, will give us the thickness of each thread. For
example, if the thickness of the four threads together is
equal to 2 mm,, then each thread is 0.5 mm thick, This is
usually the thickness of thread used in sewing.
But what if we do not have graph paper? Never mind,
we can measure the thickness of a thread even if we
do not have a graph paper. Let's wind the thread on a
thin pencil (so that we will get many turns), such that
there is no gap between turns. With an ordinary ruler, we
can measure the total thickness of (say) ten turns. Now
we can estimate the thickness of one turn easily.
The threads that we use are seldom single stranded.
They are formed by spinning several threads together.
How does this affect the strength of the thread? Let's
find out.
Measuring thickn'ess
For this, we have to take two single strands of nylon.

We will test their strengths by attaching a weight to the
first strand and then testing the strength of this thread. Is
it different from the strength of two single threads taken
together?
A striking example of how a rope of twisted strands
may be made quite strong merely by twisting together
the many individual strands can be seen here. Ordinary
grass is too flimsy to make strong ropes. But thick ropes
of grass are strong enough to tie an elephant and were
used not long ago for this purpose. "United we stand
divided we fall' — the old saying seems to have a
scientific application! Talking about strength reminds us
of the heavy cranes that lift loads, The maximum load
which can be handled by a crane is marked on it. But
on what does it depend? The steel cables of a crane
consist of a number of wires twisted together. Why are
these wires twisted together to form a single cable? Why
are not the same number of wires used separately?
Strings in the form of threads, ropes, wires, or cables
have been used from ancient times for a number of
purposes. We have seen pictures of workers carrying
heavy stones to build a pyramid. From their experience
(or perhaps by experiment also), they must have judged
(or measured) the strength of the ropes,
Strong ropes have many uses. Steel cables are used
to tow ships, These are carefully tested to ensure that
they are strong enough to withstand the pull of the ship.lt
is not enough to simply ensure the strength of the towing
cable. The hooks to which the cables are attached must
also be strong enough to withstand the pull.
There is a considerable difference in the thickness of
the rope used to tie the ships to the capstan in a
harbour, and a steel cable used on a crane. Why do
you think there is so much difference in their sizes?
More recently, fibres are being used to strengthen

other materials. Plastics, metals, and other materials
become extremely strong when they are impregnated
with fibres of various materials, like nylon, rayon, glass,
carbon, etc. By this method, it is possible to obtain light
yet strong materials, so necessary in building air-crafts
and space-crafts where both strength and low weight
are necessary. Glass fibres are extensively used in
various industries.
sound's fun
Isn't it irritating when the chatter in the next room or

the shrieks of the neighbourhood children disturb us just
when we are enjoying an interesting novel? How nice it
would be, if we could read in peace. Or, even have
secret talks with our friends without an inquisitive ear
getting to know about it.
There must be some way to stop the sound from
outside coming in or the sounds of our whispers going
out.
Do you know that scientists have studied sound and
ways to adjust sound levels to our convenience? But
what exactly is sound? Say a tree crashes to the ground.
As it topples, it produces disturbances in the air. These
disturbances give rise to waves. These waves are,in fact,
vibrations or movements back and forth, of the air. They
travel out in all directions. Some of these strike our
eardrums and the message is signalled to and recorded
by the brain as sound.
If we could redirect these sound waves occurring
outside our room in another direction or let them be
DOING SCIENCE IS FUN
40
SOUND'S FUN 47
absorbed en route so that they never reach us, we

could have a sound-proof room! Similarly, if we direct all
the waves in one direction (without letting them scat-
ter), to a destination of our choice, we would again
have a sound-proof system.
Remember when you made phones out of tin cans
and a twine, for secret talks with your friend? When we
speak into the tin can, and our friend has the other tin
against his ear, the sound waves are carried through the
twine to our friend's ears.
There is an easy way to study the behaviour of sound.
All we need are a mirror, two hollow cylindrical tubes
about 30 cm long, and a clock that ticks.
Let us place the mirror vertically on a table. It would
be easier to place it against the wall. We will now
partition the mirror into two halves by placing a
cardboard in the middle. Then we will place two-tubes
on either side of the cardboard making the same angle
with the cardboard. This is easy. All we have to do is to
place one tube at an angle and look through the mirror
on the other side of the cardboard. We will see an
image of this tube in the mirror. We can keep the second
tube in line with this image.
Now, place the clock at the mouth of one tube and
your ear at the mouth of the other. Can you hear the
steady ticking of the clock?
Do you think the ticking would be as clearly audible
if the tubes were not kept at the same angle to the
mirror? Try shifting the tubes and then listen to the ticking.
Let us now replace the mirror with an uneven surface.
The pressure waves emanating from the ticking clock
are channelled in the tube, and hit the surface of the
mirror placed on the other end. They are then reflected
back. When the tubes are kept at the same angle, we
hear the loudest ticking, right? The smooth, polished
Tick-tock
surface of the mirror directly reflects the sound waves

into the other tube.
The uneven surface, on the other hand, reflects the
sound in all directipns and only a small portion of it
comes through the tube.
This is exactly what happens, when we talk or sing in
a room. The sound that we produce hits the walls of the
room and is bounced back in all directions.
SOUND'S FUN 49
Can you recall the booming sound you hear when

you speak in a room devoid of any furniture? We don't
hear it in a room full of furniture, do we? Curtains and
upholestry absorb part of the sound wave9.
Now, let us do another experiment which will give us

a clue as to how we can soundproof our room. Let us
place the mirror and tubes as before. Now cover the
mirror with a piece of felt, thick cloth or a woollen
blanket with lots of folds.
We can easily guess that the ticking sound is hardly

audible. Why is that so? The folds of the woollen blanket
absorb the sound waves and don't reflect them back
as the mirror does.
How about trying to make our rooms sound-proof?
Let us line the walls with soft porous material, cover

the walls, doors and windows with thick curtains, Even
tiny cracks can allow sound to pass through . So let us
make sure to cover the entire edge of the door with a
lining of cloth or paper and last, but not the least, take
care to close the windows and doors. We have a sound-
proof room ready!
Can you name a few places where a lot of care

needs to be taken regarding damping of sound? A
broadcasting studio is one of them. The studio needs to
be totally sound-proof in order to allow good quality
sound recording. The walls of studios are covered with
boards with a number of holes. Sometimes an additional
layer of felt is fitted behind the boards. A gap of air
between the two layers helps still more in absorbing
sound, In certain broadcasting studios,the walls and
ceilings are provided with curved surfaces. The floors are
left flat. In these studios, sound is so perfectly diffused
that microphones can be set almost anywhere!
Audiotoriums must have good acoustics
Next time you visit an auditorium try to find out the

precautions taken to allow the audience to hear the
clear, crisp notes from the stage.
SAFETY FIRST
Nature is beautiful. But nature can also be very

frightening. Have you ever been caught in a
thunderstorm while travelling in a car or a bus? Wasn't
the experience frightening? The bright flashes of lightn-
ing, the heavy rumble of thunder and the dark clouds
must have made everyone uneasy. But what did they
do? Did they sit quietly in the bus or did they run out into
the open to shelter under trees?
Yes, of course everyone sat nice and dry in the car
while the storm lashed everything and the lightning lit
up the sky. Lightning is usually not dangerous but it does
sometimes strike tall buildings or trees with devastating
results. Even running or walking in the open is likely to
attract lightning while sheltering under a tree is equally
dangerous. But it is relatively safer inside a closed car.
This is because the metallic body of the car safely carries
the charge to the ground. In fact, the car acts as a shield
and protects the passengers.
Safety first
SAFETY FIRST 53
But what happens to an aeroplane that encounters

a thunderstorm? When lightning strikes a plane, the
charge spreads over the metal body of the plane and
passes to the surrounding air through pointed conduc-
tors. These conductors are specially provided on the
wings and the rudder of the plane, and are pointed in
shape so that the charges pass out easily and so the
passengers are not harmed. Very tall buildings also have
special lightning conductors on the roofs to safely con-
duct lightning to the ground such that the building and
its inhabitants remain secure.
Many places, including laboratories also need spe-
cial shielding from electrostatic charges. Some electri-
cal instruments may show wrong measurements or
readings when affected by external electrical charges.
Such instruments are shielded by grounded metal
enclosures or wire-cages.
It is necessary to shield electronic equipment, electri-
cal instrument and telephone cables from electrical
and magnetic disturbances which may be present all
around us. These instruments are shielded in well-
grounded enclosures of metals, usually made of copper
or aluminum. Telephone cables are enclosed in metal
sheaths. The sheath is grounded in many places to
obtain effective electrical shielding.
Although a direct lightning hit can be dangerous, we
can perform a few simple experiments to learn more
about the principles that protect us from it. The experi-
ments are not dangerous and are easy to perform.
For the first experiment we will need a small round
metal pot, an insulating base like, a wooden block, a
thick sheet of plastic or a glass piece, two pieces of string
or thread and a clamp system. Let's put the metal pot
on the insulating base and attach the two strings from
the clamp rod in such a way that the first string hangs
Duplicating the effects of a lightning strike
free outside the pot while the second string dangles

inside it.
Now we will duplicate the effects of a lightning strike
but on a very low level by charging the pot with a plastic
strip or a glass rod. Immediately the string outside the
pot is attracted towards it and moves till it touches the
pot. The string inside the pot does not move at all. This
shows that all the charge given to the pot spreads over
the outer surface of the pot. The inside of the pot is
completely free from any charge. This experiment shows
that electrostatic charge always stays on the outer
surface of a conductor, That is why you are safe from
lightning if you stay inside the car and do not touch any
metal parts, The charge from the lightning spreads over
the metal body of the car and jumps to the ground from
SAFETY FIRST 65
Magnetic shield
its lower parts. Some of the charge may also pass

through the tyres, especially when they are wet.
The second experiment that we will perform will give

us more information about magnetic shielding.
Let's make a ring from a tin can, of course, a tin can

is usually an iron can plated with tin. Or else we can
make a ring by bending a piece of soft iron. Let's make
a nice wide ring so that we have more space to play in.
Once the ring is made we will place a magnet inside
the ring and sprinkle iron filings around the magnet. So
now both the magnet and the filings are inside the ring,
we may even tap the arrangement gently until the
filings arrange themselves. What will happen if we bring
another magnet near the first one? Interestingly the iron
filings do not move as long as the other magnet is
outside the ring. We can even repeat the experiment
using a magnetic needle and the results are the same.
The iron ring acts as a magnetic shield. The needle will

only move if we lift the ring. What happens when we put
the ring back? What happens when we put the ring
around the second magnet? Let's try out all the com-
binations! What is the ultimate result?
From our observations we see that the iron ring also
protects the outside region from the field of the magnet
inside the ring. Thus a proper shield is needed to provide
protection from both electrical and magnetic energies.
NOT BY
HANDS ALONE
In the early morning while hurrying to go to school we

switch on the electric iron to press our uniforms. A tiny
light on the iron starts glowing. A little later, the light stops
glowing and we know that the iron in hot enough for us
to go ahead with the ironing. Soon after we start ironing,
the light begins to glow again. How does the light go on
and off automatically? The light on the iron is actually
an indicator. Actually, glowing light is an indication that
the iron is getting heated up. The light going off is an
automatic switching off of the heating system within the
iron. It ensures that the iron does not get overheated.
The automatic switching on or off of a machine is called
automation.
Automation has become part of so many aspects of
our daily lives. We generally do not notice it. Elevators,
central-heating and air-conditioning, refrigerator, the
direct-dial telephone system — all involve automation.
Automation is a part of life

NOT BY HANDS ALONE 59
M - Magnet
S - Switch
S'-Strip
B - Battery
Simple automation at work
In large scale production of many goods, from canned

food to cars, automation is used widely.
But, how exactly does simple automation work?
Wouldn't you like to find out? This time we need a
U-shaped piece, and also a tiny straight strip of soft iron,
some insulated wires, a battery and a wooden board.
Let us wind insulated wires around the arms of the
U-shaped piece of soft iron. But, we must remember that
the direction of the winding on one arm should be
opposite to that on the other arm. Do you know that soft
iron becomes a magnet, if you connect the two ends
of the wires wound around it to a battery? Indeed, we
can pick up nails and pins and other light iron objects
with this magnet. This is what is called an electromagnet.
The moment we break the connection, the iron loses its
magnetism and the nails fall off.
We will now make an electric circuit on the wooden
board. First, we will fix up the electromagnet along with
T,
>>
•n
\ 1
Green
M
Red
M~ Magnet
S - Switch
S' - Strip
B - Batten
Red to Green in seconds
the battery to the wooden board. Then we link up the

circuit with a switch. Opposite to the U ends of the
electromagnet, we place the small movable strip of soft
iron at a distance of 2 to 3 mm. We now fix two metal
screws between the strip and the magnet. We link up
the metal screws in another circuit with a battery and
small bulb.
Now begins the experiment. As soon as the switch of

the first circuit is switched on, the magnet is activated.
It pulls the soft iron strip. The strip moves forward and
touches the two screws. The second circuit is now com-
plete and the bulb lights up.
Just pause and think how the traffic signal changes

from red to green and vice versa at periodic intervals.
Do you think we can build up a circuit to do this at
home?
NOT BY HANDS ALONE 61
Make your own Thermostat
We will use the same circuit except now we will use

two bulbs, a green bulb and a red one. They will be
linked up to the second circuit in such a way that when
the electromagnet is not active, the soft strip will close
the circuit of the green lamp. Whien the magnet is
activated, it pulls the strip which breaks the circuit of the
green lamp and completes that of the red lamp.
Automatic processes to control temperature levels in
electronic devices are called thermostats. Electric irons,
refrigerators, geysers, all have thermostats. Thermostats
consist of a thin strip of two different metals welded
together to form a bimetallic strip. The metals used are
usually copper and steel. When heated, the two metals
expand to different lengths. The strip bends on the side
of the metal which expands less. Thus a bimetallic strip
of copper and steel will bend on the side of steel.
Why not try this out in our circuit? Two thin strips of
copper and iron will be required. They have to be
welded together, We could get it done at a welding

workshop. If we fix it to a wooden stand and gently heat
it using a candle flame, we can see how the strip bends
as temperature increases.
This bimetallic strip can work as a switch in our circuit.
As temperature increases, it will bend and touch the
wire when a certain temperature is reached. This will
complete the circuit. As the temperature decreases,
the strip will bend backwards and the circuit will open
again.
Don't you think this will be very useful in an alarm
system in case there is a fire? Where else do you think
such automatic mechanisms will be of use?
There is really no magic in automation, is there?
FLOODS
AND FLOWS
The kitchen is such a nice place. Tasty things like jams,

murambas, gulab jamuns and jaleebes are made
there. But the cook is always so busy and does not like
to be disturbed, He takes a drop of the syrupy solution
and tests it between his fingers. He tries to judge the
stickiness of the solution before deciding if the fruits or
the fried jamuns should be added.
The painter who comes to paint the house also does
something similar. He opens the lid of the tin, stirs the
contents with a brush and watches as the paint drips off
it. Then he adds a thinner to the paint, stirs it and closely
studies the flow of the paint down the brush, He frowns
and may add a little thinner once again, This time he is
happy. The consistency is just right so he paints a strip on
the wall and observes the movement of the paint as it
flows down.
The cook and the painter — what were they looking
for? They were both examining a basic property of
64 •• DOING SCIENCE IS FUN
Judging viscosity is an everyday affair

FLOODS AND FLOWS 65
Drop by drop
liquids, All liquids flow, but not at the same speed, Some,
like water, flow readily, Others, like honey, flow ever so
slowly, This property of flowing is called fluidity, Liquids
that do not flow well, or flow slowly and sluggishly, are
called viscous. Viscosity is the technical term for this
condition. It is the opposite of fluidity.
Viscous liquids offer considerable resistance to flow
and so their rate of movement is slow.
Viscosity is an important property of liquid; several

other properties of liquids are related to the rate of flow.
In fact the difference in the rate of flow can provide
some fun.
For this we will need a ring stand, a funnel, a vessel,

some water and other liquids like castor oil, honey and
gum. We wiil also need a stop-watch, or else a digital
watch, or a watch with a seconds hand.
Setting up this experiment is easy. Just fixing a funnel

to the ring stand is ail that you have to do. See that the
funnel is large. Also don't forget to place the beaker just
under the funnel or else you will get wet and it won't be
fun. Ask your friend to block the outlet of the funnel while
you fill the funnel with water. Now ask another friend to
give a signal. As soon as the signal is heard, your friend
has to remove the finger from the outlet stem and let
the water flow while everyone else times the event.
Water flows very fast, and so maybe you and your
friends will have some difficulty in timing it. But never
mind, this time we will do it with gum or honey and we
will have enough time to measure the flow accurately.
This is because honey, gum and castor oil flow slowly.
In fact, this easy experiment can be repeated with

other liquids with which we are familiar. We can try it with
milk, cooking oil and kerosene. Comparing the time
taken by each of these liquids to empty the funnel gives
us an idea about their viscosity. The viscosity of a liquid
is high if it takes a long time to empty the funnel. Thus we
can assert with confidence that cooking oil is more
viscous than water.
In fact, we can even assign numbers to denote the

viscosity of each liquid. We can maintain an index with
the most fluid liquid at the top and the most viscous
liquid at the end. To do so, let's take the viscosity of
water to be 1. We can then find the ratio of time taken
by a liquid to flow out completely to the time taken by
water. This number gives us the viscosity of the liquid as
compared to water.
There are other ways, too, by which we can measure

the difference in viscosity between two or more liquids.
For this we will need a tall, narrow, glass tumbler or
bottle. We will also need a small heavy steel ball like a
ball bearing in the wheels of a bicycle.
FLOODS AND FLOWS 67
Reaching the bottom
We will at first fill the tumbler with water and then

gently release the ball so that it sinks. Timing the event
may be difficult as the ball sinks almost instantly, but if
we repeat the experiment a few times we will surely be
able to time it correctly. Now we will fill the tumbler with
a different liquid. Maybe we could fill it with cooking oil
this time. We can then record how long it takes for the
ball to sink this time.
But to carry out the experiment successfully we have

to take care about certain things. The ball should be
heavy enough to sink completely even in very viscous

and sticky liquids like gum. That is why we used a ball
bearing. The liquid should be transparent or else we will
not be able to see the ball move through the liquid. Also,
when dropping the ball in the liquid, we have to be
careful about releasing it slowly without splashing the
liquid. And it would also help if we could position the
tumbler in a way that light falls on it from one side. This
would help us to see the ball properly, especially in
semi-transparent liquids.
For another experiment of a similar nature, let's fill a
bottle half-way with some liquid and then close the
mouth of the bottle tightly. At first we will hold the bottle
in a vertical position with its mouth up and then we will
quickly turn it to the horizontal position. As we do so the
liquid in the bottle also gets repositioned. With water, as
usual, this change is very quick. But what happens when
we use gum or honey?
To make the experiment more interesting, we can fill
the bottle almost completely with a liquid before cork-
ing it. Now, when the bottle is turned upside down very
quickly, we see the movement of the air bubble, This air
bubble always stays at top when the bottle is erect.
When the bottle is turned upside down, the bubble
moves accordingly. This movement of the bubble can
be timed. However, as expected it differs from liquid to
liquid. Can you now guess why the air bubble always
moves to the top?
Let us go back to the painter and the cook who
encouraged us to launch our experiments. Do you know
that when we use oil-bound paints to colour doors and
windows, the viscosity of the paint has to be checked
extremely carefully. This is because if the paint is too
thick, it would be difficult to spread the paint evenly over
the surface, On the other hand, it it is too thin, it will not
give a good coat. Therefore, we use a thinner, usually
FLOODS AND FLOWS 69
Cars use many kinds of oils
turpentine, to make the paint thin enough to flow

properly and give a good coat of paint. In other words,
we adjust the viscosity of the paint by using a thinner.
The manufacturers of paints test the quality of different
paints by measuring their viscosities. For this purpose,
special standard cup, with a hole is used. The time taken
for the cup to become empty is taken as the measure
of viscosity of a paint.
Cars and some other machines need to use different
oils. Viscosity of these oils is one of the critical
properties deciding their quality and specific use. Also
crude oil and several other products obtained by refin-
ing the crude oil have to be transported over long
distances. They are usually pumped through pipes. The

rate of flow, as well as the power required to pump the
liquid flow are dependent on the viscosity of the liquid.
Walking down the road is an everyday affair for most
of us and it is a pleasure to walk down a newly surfaced
road. Tar is used for surfacing roads. It is a thick black
sticky substance. But its viscosity can be easily changed.
Have you ever looked closely at what is done to the tar
prior to using it to surface the road?
We can also do something similar. We can also ex-
perimentally change the viscosity of a substance. Let's
take castor oil in a small bottle so that it is half full. Now
let's close the mouth of the bottle tightly. If now we turn
the bottle sideways, it will take some time for the oil to
adjust to the new horizontal position. This time span is
sufficiently long for us to measure. The second time
around, let's repeat the experiment but with a dif-
ference. Let's hold the bottle in hot water for some time
before carrying out the experiment. Doesn't the castor
oil flow more readily now?
Viscosity depends upon temperature and liquids flow
more readily when they are heated. But fluidity is not the
property of liquids alone. There are many solids which
flow, although the rate of flow may be very very sluggish
indeed and the process may have to be carried out
under pressure. These substances are called 'plastic
substances'. The dough made with flour and water, and
plasticine are two common examples. It sounds unreal
doesn't it?So why don't we check it out?
Let's take some plasticine or dough and make a thick
rectangular block from it. Let's also measure its dimen-
sions which means that we now know its length, breadth
and height. Now we will place a flat weight on the
plasticine block. A big fat book will suffice as the weight.
We will measure the dimensions of the block every hour.
FLOODS AND FLOWS 71
Plasticity can be easily demonstratea

From the observation, we get on idea about how slowly

the flow has taken place. Which flows faster — the
plasticine or the dough? We can also do something
similar with sealing wax. It is hard at room temperature
and does not easily show any plasticity. But when we
warm it a little and press a coin on the heated sealing
wax, the impression of the coin is left behind on it. This
shows that the viscosity of sealing wax changes as we
warm it. You can all guess now, why it is called sealing
wax.
The fact that many materials become plastic at high
temperatures is taken advantage of by many manufac-
turers.
Plastic toys, utensils, boxes, etc., are manufactured by

taking advantage of the plasticity of the material con-
cerned at high temperatures. Coloured sealing wax is
used to colour wooden toys. The wax is held firmly
against the toy which rotates with great speed. The heat
of the friction is enough to melt the wax which then sticks
to the object.
Even in nature, examples of various viscous materials

abound.
When a volcano erupts, it throws out molten lava

which flows for some distance. The distance covered by
the lava-flow depends on the viscosity of the lava. Some
lavas are more viscous than others and hence do not
flow over long distances. Rocks under the earth's crust
also provide an interesting example of plasticity. You
know that as you go deep into the earth, the interior of
the earth becomes increasingly hot. The deep layers of
rocks under the crust become plastic due to the heat
and flow under the pressure of the upper layers. In fact,
the continental land masses are-virtually floating on the
plastic layers of rocks under the crust.
FLOODS AND FLOWS 73
Now we know that liquids and some solids flow under

pressure. What about gases? Of course, gases also flow.
They flow many times faster than the liquids. This proper-
ty is something that we have to be careful about in the
kitchen — especially if using LPG for fuel.
A SILVER LINING
cloud has a silver lining. What they mean is that no

matter how dark and unhappy the situation, there is
always a ray of hope. But literally speaking too, clouds
sometimes seem to be fringed with a silver streak. Often
on a rainy day, dark clouds gather on the horizon. As
the sun sets behind them, many clouds acquire a bright
silvery edge. Can we demosntrate this at home? Can
we pretend we hold the clouds in our hands? Why, of
course we can! For this we will need a lump of cotton
wool, a lamp and a few friends.
Hold the cotton between the lighted lamp and your
friend and then ask him what he sees. You can even
reverse positions and take a look for yourself too.
The cotton lump appears like a dark cloud with bright
edges. At the same time, to the person holding the lamp
on the other side, it appears white. We know that when
light falls on an object, it can either be reflected, ab-
A SILVER LINING 75
Creating the silver lining at home
sorbed or can even go through the object. Most of the

light falling on a mirror is reflected, while that falling on
a transparent piece of glass passes through it.
Let's observe the cotton wool closely. Most of it is

white and opaque. But the lump of cotton does not
have any sharp edges like those of a disc of wood or
metal. Light that falls on the main mass of the cotton
gets reflected backk. To the person who receives this

reflected light, the lump appears bright and white.
But not all the light falling on the cotton is reflected.
A small part of the light falling on the cotton is also
absorbed, while light falling on the very edges of the
cotton has another fate. It simply goes through the
openings in the edge to reach the viewer's eye. Thus
the edges of the lump of cotton appear to be bright.
They almost look like the brightly edged clouds in the
sky.
What do you think would happen if we took a bit of
wet cotton instead of dry cotton? The margins of wet
cotton are not fluffy. They are firm. So now can you guess
if the wet cotton shows a bright edge or not? Lets try out
our experiment with wet cotton again, shall we?
Rain clouds have water droplets and dust particles.
These make the clouds opaque. But there are also
clouds of ice crystals which look white and appear thin
and transparent. You must have seen these white
ciuuas;i5<3 they have bright edges? To check it let's go
outHnf^','mfe4ields and scan the skies for suitable clouds.
,, Jn.the,me'©ftA/hile, we can also check out some other
things. cqmpare our reflection in a mirror or looking
glass ta-thqt formed on the still waters of a pond. Which
. is'brfghTeVp'df course, the image formed in the mirror is
"brighter by far. If fact, you had known that it would be
so. This is because some surface reflect light better than
other surfaces, It is fun to play with different surfaces and
to find out the ones which are good reflectors and those
that are poor reflectors.
The best way to find this out is to fix a piece of white
paper on a piece of cardboard. This will serve as a
screen on which we will reflect light from different sur-
faces. Let's bounce the sunrays off a mirror and onto the
screen. It's a dazzling shine. Let's do it with aluminium or
A SILVER LINING 77
Dazzling shine
stainless steel plates. Aren't even these very bright!

Which is the brightest of them all? In fact if the screen is
large enough, we can reflect the light off the mirror and
the metal plates such that they fall side by side. This will
make the task of comparison easier.
In a parallel experiment we could use white glossy

paper or art paper (used to print fine covers of
magazines), white silk or even the still surfaces of liquids
such as water and oil. Not all surfaces will give reflections
of similar brightness and the comparison of the bright-
ness of reflection in each case will allow us to grade the
materials according to their brightness. Of all rhe
materials tested, it is obvious isn't it, that the metals are
the best reflectors.
But what about the surface used? We can have a
variety of surfaces. For example we can use very smooth
surfaces of different colours or else we can use all types
of white surfaces. If we grade the materials according
to their toughness and also their reflectivity, we have a
surprising finding. Do.you think these qualities are corre-
lated? Let's repeat the experiments just to make sure.
So why does a rough surface make a poor mirror and
why does a good mirror always have a smooth surface.
All we have to do to find out, is to follow some clues and
arrive at an answer.
Let's take a piece of ordinary white paper and a
piece of glossy art paper and put a white screen near
a wall. Then we will shine sunlight on both the pieces of
paper and try to get two reflected areas side by side on
the screen. The reflection from the art paper appears as
a bright spot on the screen. The reflection from the
ordinary paper forms a dull spot on the screen, though
it illuminates a large area.
Now let's take three pieces of white art paper. We will
crumple one of the pieces, make corrugations on the
other by folding it several times and keep the third as it
is. Then we will try to find out which of them forms a bright
spot. You now tell the difference between a smooth and
a rough surfaces. Can you tell why we can see our face
better in a new stainless steel dish than in a used one?
What makes the used dish rough?
For any surface to be useful as-a plane mirror, all the
rays of light falling at a given angle on different parts of
A SILVER LINING 79
the surface must be reflected back at the same angle.

This condition is met if the surface is plane. However, if
you shine a beam of light on a rough surface, many rays
will meet the surface at different angles. A beam is then
reflected back, not as a beam, but as diffused light.
Even if a rough surface reflects most of the light falling
on it, you may not be able to use it as a mirror.
For the next experiment we will place a piece of white
paper on the table and throw a beam of light on it. We
will vary the angle of the beam and observe if this makes
any difference to the reflection, Yes! The reflection is
weak when the beam makes a right angle with the
paper but better when the beam falls on the paper from
the side. The reflection is better if this angle is increased.
When the beam meets the paper at a grazing angle,
the reflection becomes very bright. It can be fun repeat-
ing the experiment by using a piece of black paper
instead of white. Maybe now you will be able to say why
some students in a class complain about a glare on the
black-board while others do not have any problem.
Maybe you could also explain why the reflection of a
setting sun in a pond is always very bright.
Mirrors have been used since ages. It is said that
Archimedes used huge mirrors to focus the heat of the
sun's rays on to the enemy ships to burn them. Today we
use the same principle in solar cookers, where mirrors
are used to reflect and focus the sun's rays on to a
cooking vessel. Astronomers use huge concave mirrors
to focus starlight. The mirrors used in telescopes are
polished by giving a thin coat of silver or aluminium to
the glass. You know now that highly polished metal
surfaces reflect most of the light falling on them.
Aluminium is one of the best reflectors.
With the telescopes astronomers can see the
heavenly bodies but even without the telescopes we
can see the moon. A full moon shining overhead is a
Bright cresent
beautiful sight. But it is also a puzzle because if the sun

and the moon both give the same (sun)light why is
moonlight more pleasant?
The reason is that the moon reflects very little sunlight,

in fact, only seven per cent of the light that it receives.
The earth reflects about half of the radiation that it
receives from the sun, Can you imagine how bright the
earth must be looking from the moon? You can even
read a book on the moon in the earth- light. However,
you do not have to travel all the way to the moon to
realise how strong the earth light is! Have you observed
the crescent of the moon soon after the new moon ?
The bright crescent is illuminated by the sun. You can
also see the rest of the moon, though faintly. This part is
illuminated by earth- light. In other words, the light
reflected by the earth is falling onihe moon. This is being
reflected back to us and is strong enough to show the
A SILVER LINING 81
Earth seen from the moon
moon faintly. As the crescent increases in size, this effect

disappears.
Fresh snow is the best reflector in nature. The bright

light reflected by it can dazzle and harm your eyes. Now
you will understand why mountaineers use dark glasses.
Some substances reflect light, while some others ab-

sorb light. Both are useful to us in different situations. A
photographer uses reflectors when he takes a
photograph in his studio. He uses black colour in his
dark-room to absorb light. Fuel tanks are painted white
to reflect light, while solar heaters are painted black to
absorb as much radiation as possible.
Today we have reached a stage in human evolution
where the human race has become highly capable of
exploiting the different properties of a substance to its
advantage. Due to the patience and diligence of
scientists, through the process of trial and error, and
repeated experiments, properties of hundreds of sub-
stances are being studied in the many laboratories of
the world. These efforts are constantly leading to the
discovery of new materials and to many new uses of old
materials. A new discipline called Material Science is an
extremely active area of research. We have many ac-
tive groups of scientists working on this discipline in India
too.
STRINGS
OF MUSIC
The spider's web and the rescue rcope from a helicop-

ter may seem to have little in comimon with musical
instruments such as the violin, mandolin, guitar, sitar and
sarod. But these are just some instruiments where man
has made clever use of strings.
In the hands of expert musicians,, some of the most
beautiful musical sounds can be obtained from these
instruments. When the musician pluciks one of the strings
or uses his bow on them, the strings vibrate and produce
the desired musical notes. But before the musician can
get the right note, he has to tune his instrument. He does
this by means of the knobs and screws present on the
instrument. This produces the required tension on the
strings which is necessary to produce the musical notes
he wants to play.
But how much tension is necessary to produce a
certain note from a string? And can we measure this
tension on a string? These questions arise in our minds
Stringed Instruments
whenever we see a stringed instrument. A few simple

and enjoyable experiments can give us the answers.
For the first experiment, we will need many par-

ticipants. Let's ask all those who have a keen ear to help
us with this experiment. Then, we will need to fix a
wooden plank about one metre long, on a table. We
will also need to attach a hook at one end of the plank.
We will also fix two pulleys to each end of the plank. Then
we will attach one end of a thin steel wire (about a
metre long) to the hook. To the free end of the wire we
will attach a pan on which we will place some weights.
To begin with, we place a 1 kg weight on the pan. The
wire is now taut due to the weight stretching it and the
stage is all set for the experiment.
STRINGS OF MUSIC 85
Setting the stage for the experiment
Let's gather around and pay close attention when

one of us plucks the wire and makes the string vibrate.
There is a sharp sound. Let's pluck the string again and
again so that the sound becomes familiar to us. We can
repeat this as often as we want so that we can recog-
nize the note the next time we hear it.
Now we shall add a half kg weight to the pan and

pluck the string again. This time too there is a distinct
sound. But is it the same note as before? What is the
difference between the two notes? Let's all try to
describe the difference. Its not easy but discussing with
friends will allow us to reach an agreement.
Let's repeat the experiment by changing the weights

in the pan. Don't the notes change with the change in
weight on the pan? Of course they do! The note
produced by plucking the wire depends on the weight,

that is, on the tension or tautness of the string.
Now let's modify our experiment by placing two tri-
angular wooden blocks under the wire. These should be
inserted under the wire as supports. The blocks should
be big enough to lift the wire by about 5 mm. Now when
we pluck the wire, the entire string does not vibrate. Only
the wire between the two blocks vibrates.
To begin with, we keep the supports well separated
so that we have a long vibrating string. Then we pluck
the string repeatedly and note the sound. Once familiar
with the sound, we could produce other notes on the
string by moving one of the supports, by say 5 cm. This
means that we have shortened the length of the string.
Now when we pluck the string, it is clear that the sound
produced this time is different from that produced pre-
viously. Everytime we change the length of the string,
the sound produced by it also changes. Let's talk about
this with our friends and try to reach an agreement
about how the notes change when the length of the
wire is changed.
These two experiments have many similarities but
they also have two important differences. In the first
activity, the length of the wire was held constant and
the tension on the string was changed. We then found
that the note produced depended on the tension of
the string, In the second activity, the weight and there-
fore, the tension was kept constant, and the length of
the vibrating string was changed using supports. We
then found that the note, changed according to the
length of the vibrating strings. Thus, we studied the
properties of a vibrating string, changing only one
property (parameter) at a time. This method is used
commonly in science. This method helps scientists to
pinpoint the factor(s) responsible for a particular
change or situation, especially when there are more
STRINGS OF MUSIC 87
than one factors operating simultaneously, By changing

only one varying factor at a time it becomes easy to
pinpoint the factor responsible for the change.
We can think of several properties of a string. The
thickness, length and also the material from which it is
made are its properties. It will be difficult to get metal
wires of different thicknesses, but strings of cotton, nylon
or silk are available more easily. We can obtain strings
of different materials, but of the same thickness and
repeat the previously performed activities. Then strings
of the same material, but of different thicknesses can be
taken and the experiment repeated. We will find that
the note produced depends on all these properties.
If we use a hollow wooden box to fix the pulleys we
immediately notice the difference between the quality
of the sound produced by plucking the string. The sound
becomes considerably louder because the air in the
hollow box also vibrates with the string and enhances
the sound.
All these facts make us think — What is the use of the
knobs of a violin or a guitar? Is plucking the only method
of vibrating a string? Can we use a bow to do the same
job?
A violin player produces different notes by moving
the bow on strings and at the same time he presses his
fingers at different places on the strings. How do these
movements help in producing different notes? To
answer all these questions we have to observe as many
string- instruments as we can and see if we can identify
the mechanisms for changing the tension on the string
and for adjusting the length of the vibrating wire.
THE UNIVERSAL
CURRENCY
BANK OF e n e r g y
iliOj-TOPA^
V- 1 "-THE BEARER
> "<
' U " Th& Sum or
• • » ' TEM WAITS
54*7601•^^M^OAM
I am very tired, I don't have the 'energy' to do any

more work. We often say such things, don't we? The
word energy, generally suggests motion, vitality and
strength. The limitless amount of radiant energy from the
sun is captured by green plants. This provides food for
all. We are told that food with 'high energy content'
should be part of our daily diet. The food we eat gives
us energy for our day to day activities. Man has learnt
to use the energy available in nature. Petroleum, 'the
high energy fuel' helps drive vehicles. Electricity,
another form of energy, plays a major role in our day to
day activities. Strolling down the roadside, you see so
many stones. Do you think this stone has energy? Let us
find out. Let us drop a stone from a height on to a mud
ground. What do we see? We hear a typical 'thud' and
the stone leaves an impression on the ground.
Let us be a little more systematic in our experiment.
Let us go out into the park, Let us dig a pit, say one metre
THE UNIVERSAL CURRENCY 89
Let's dig a pit
long, one metre wide and about two centimetres deep

into the ground. We will then fill up this pit with fine sand.
Let us hunt around for a big stone, it must weigh at least
about one kg. Hold the stone over the centre of the pit,
ask one of your friends to measure the height of the
stone from the ground. Now release the stone. The stone
will drop to the ground with a thud, and as it hits the
ground, sand will be thrown out, all around the stone.
The Quebec Crater Lakes (Canada)
Carefully, without disturbing the sand, let us lift the stone.

What do we see? Isn't there a deep depression, where
the stone fell? Now, let us measure the diameter and
depth of this depression. Do you think this will differ,
depending on the height from which the stone is
released? How about trying it out?
If you cannot go out into the park and play in the sand
you can modify the experiment and carry it out at
home. For this you will need some flour (atta, maida or
even besan will be fine). Just pile the flour into a nice,
smooth rectangle. This is the substitute for the pit you
would have dug in the sand. Now drop a marble or a
similar object on it and measure the depression created.
Such depression on land caused by the impact of a

falling object, is called a crater. Remember reading
about the craters on the surface of the moon? Craters

on the moon are really big. Some such craters are even
seen on the earth's surface. These occur when huge
meteorites hit the earth's surface.
If you don't feel like going out into the sun, would you
like to try out some similar experiment in your room? Let
us take a sheet of paper and fill an ink dropper with ink.
Just allow a drop of ink to fall on the centre of the sheet.
As the ink drop hits the sheet of paper, it will splash
around and create a star-like figure. Measure the
diameter of the star. Try dropping the ink from different
heights. What difference do you find in the diameters?
What does all this have to do with energy, you may
ask. Indeed, even the piece of stone has energy, as
does the drop of ink. The falling stone had the energy to
displace sand from the pit. Stone falling from greater
heights moves more sand. Now we know, how a
meteorite creates such a huge crater.
Experimenting with ink

An object at a height acquires energy because of

the earth's pull or gravity. The object released from a
higher position falls towards the earth and as the height
increases, so does the speed with which it hits the
ground and hence acquired more energy. The ancient
scientist Gottfried W. von Leibnitz described this energy
as vis viva meaning living force. The word 'energy' first
entered the technical vocabulary of science in 1807.
Energy due to motion is called 'kinetic energy' Kinetic
simply means 'due to motion'.
Would you like to study some more forms of energy?
Can you try and obtain a convex lens from your school
laboratory? Try holding this convex lens in the sun and
focussing the rays on a piece of paper. We must be very
careful doing this. The paper will catch fire. We are
capturing and concentrating so much of the sun's heat
energy at one place, that (the paper) gets heated
enough to catch fire.
Would you like to have some more fun? Let us make
a hollow tube about 5 cm wide with a cardboard. Let
us cover one end of the tube with a piece of thin paper.
Then, we fix a small piece of mirror to the centre of the
paper. Using a torch we flash a beam of light on the
mirror and get a reflection on a wall or a screen. Now,
comes the fun part. Ask one of your friends to speak into
the other end of the tube. What do you see? The
reflected light dances on the walls, doesn't it? Sound
too, is a form of energy. This energy is transferred to the
paper which moves, The movement or vibrations of this
paper, cause the reflection to dance around.
Energy thus manifests itself in many forms. There are
at least five major forms of energy, heat, light, chemical,
electrical and nuclear energy. Energy can be con-
verted from one form to another. The water of lakes and
oceans evaporates due to the heat produced by the
radiant energy of the sun. Water vapour collects as
Energy manifests itself in many ways
clouds, then falls as rain. Flowing downhill, it turns the

generators of power houses. The current generated
may flow through a wire to light a bulb, heat houses or
charge a chemical storage battery.
Striking a match or lighting a candle, are all examples

of the conversion of one form of energy into another.
Look around you. Can you explain the energy conver-
sions taking place around you? Whenever you see ener-

gy being used, try to trace its source.
While, in principle, energy in any form can be con-
verted into another form, in practice, we convert it into
a form which suits our needs. For example, the wind that
blows in our fields can do useful work for us when it is
made to drive a windmill.
However, when we change the form of energy, all of
the energy is not converted into the desired form. For
example, when we strike a match, we convert the
chemical energy into usable heat. The energy spent in
producing the sound and in heating the side of the
match box are examples of wasted energy.
The energy stored in petrol and coal, was made by
nature over millions of years. Nature will not make this
energy for us in a hurry. We must make an effort to
prevent wastage of energy.
FRIEND OR FOE
Have you ever wondered why a carrom coin stops

just before the pocket even when it is aimed to reach
it? Or why a cricket ball stops after travelling some
distance? Scientists say that the ground surface op-
poses the moving ball and the board opposes the
motion of the coin. Such opposing force is called fric-
tion. Friction tends to stop two surfaces moving over
each other. It is greater for some surfaces than for others.
When we slide two glass strips over each other, don't
they slide smoothly? The same is not the case when we
rub together blotting or sand paper. What is the dif-
ference between the two surfaces? Now you can guess
why the cricket ball moves faster and over a longer
distance on a smoother surface. Yes, you guessed it
right. A carrom coin, too, moves more smoothly when
the board is sprinkled with powder. Friction is usually
greater between two rough surfaces than between two
smooth ones.
Demonstrating friction
We could check this out using different surfaces. We

need a flat board and a coin. Besides, we shall also
need sheets of glass, polythene, wood and a cotton
cloth. Let us place the coin on the board, and raise the
board carefully from one side. As we raise the board, at
one point the coin starts sliding down the board. The
coin starts sliding down only when a particular angle is
reached. Let us measure this angle. We can repeat the
process after fixing a polythene sheet, glass, wood or
cotton on the board. In each case, the coin starts sliding
down at a different angle.
The object starts sliding only when the downward pull

along the surface overcomes the force of friction be-
tween the coin and the surface of the board.
FRIEND OR FOE 97
Hold fast
Now, a large number of questions are answered. Can

we play tennis with greasy hands? What would happen
if the knobs of a guitar or violin do not hold fast in the
desired position? Can you now explain why we can hold
objects firmly in our hands?
Have you ever wondered as to why fishermen always
make two to three turns with their ropes around a hook
and then release the sails of their boats?
A rope can hold large weights with a few turns around
a rod. The friction of the rope with the rod contributes a
large part of the force required to hold the weight. This
is the trick used to sail boats. The rope holding the sail is
just passed around a hook, a couple of times.
Overcoming friction
Friction stops the cricket bail from crossing the bound-

ary, spoils the game of carrom, and forces us to pedal
our bicycles. No wonder, we are constantly making
efforts to reduce friction one way or the other.
Ball bearings and roller bearings are used everywhere

in factories, vehicles and in machinery for smooth mo-
tion. The discovery that a rolling object has to overcome
less friction is one of the breakthroughs achieved by
pre-historic man. Roller bearings in the form of logs were
used in ancient times to move heavy stones for building
monuments like big temples and pyramids.
A bicycle ride is perfect for studying friction. Ride your

bicycle and pedal hard till you reach good speed. Then
stop pedalling and see how far the bicycle will take you.
We can do the same on various roads: on a good
FRIEND OR FOE 99
Testing the power of friction
surface, a hard stony road, a dust tract. What difference

will we find?
Let us try another experiment. Let us keep the bicycle

upside down, and rotate the rear wheel using a pedal.
Let us then hold a ball of crumpled paper hard against
the rim of the wheel. Quite obviously the speed of the
wheel is reduced until it stops. The friction of the paper
with the rim reduces the speed. The ball of paper on the
other hand is worn out by friction.
The brakes of the bicycle are made of hard rubber
and this rubber does not wear out easily when it rubs
against the rim of the wheel. But prolonged use of the
bicycle does wear out the rubber pads.
Ancient men used to start fires by rubbing dry sticks of
wood together. Nowadays we make a flame by striking
a match. Does that mean, heat is produced due to
friction? Quite right. The ancient method of making fire
was to produce enough heat to produce a flame.
Similarly, rubbing the match on a rough surface gives
enough heat to set fire to the chemicals at the end of
the match. We rub our hands together on cold winter
evenings, and the hands begin to get comfortably
warm.
Sometimes, the heat generated by friction can be
inconvenient. When a spacecraft re-enters the earth's
atmosphere there is friction between the air and the
surface of the spacecraft. This produces a lot of heat. A
special heat shield has to be fitted around the craft to
protect the astronauts.
When a motor car engine is running there are many
moving metal surfaces, These would cause a lot of
friction if they are rubbed together. So, oil is used in the
engine. The oil forms a film between the metal surfaces
so that they do not rub together. This prevents the
engine from getting too hot. Do you know that the bone
joints in our body have some arrangement to protect
them from rubbing against surrounding parts and to
prevent the wearing caused by this?
Be it, our friend or foe, next time we take the first step
to walk, we must remember that if there were no friction
••
' between the soles of our shoes and the ground, we
would" soon as we tried to walk.
A LIGHTNING FLASH
IN YOUR ROOM
A brilliant flash of lightning followed by the deafening

roll of thunder, is indeed one of nature's most awe-in-
spiring displays. Ancient Greeks believed that thunder-
bolts were actually hurled by Zeus, the father of gods.
Today, even though we hold lightning in awe, and
may be even a bit of fear, we know there is nothing
supernatural about it. It is simply a rapid discharge of
electric charges which have accumulated on the
thunder clouds. This landmark discovery was made by
the famous American scientist, Benjamin Franklin in
1752.
But what exactly is an electric charge? Remember

the crackle we hear when our nylon clothes rub against
our woollens in winter? The crackle, too, is because of
an electrical charge, except that it is on a much smaller
scale compared to the one in thunder cloyd^
Commonplace example of electric charge
Let us try rubbing a handkerchief on a polythene

plastic sheet. We will realize the presence of a charge,
the moment we take the rubbed polythene sheet near
tiny bits of paper. The paper pieces are instantly at-
tracted to the sheet and cling to it atleast for a short
period of time. Do you think we will feel the presence of
the charge when we don't rub the plastic sheet and the
kerchief? Let's try that too.
Scientists pondered over what actually brought
about this kind of an attraction, and why it happened
only when two substances were rubbed against each
other. The answer to this came when the structure of the
atom, the fundamental unit of ail matter, was un-
raveled.
Typically on atom has a nucleus, or centre, contain-
ing positively charged particles — protons — and
neutral or uncharged particles — neutrons. Negatively
charged particles known as electrons revolve around
A LIGHTNING FLASH IN YOUR ROOM 103
Let's puzzle our friends
the nucleus. Ordinarily, there are as many protons as

there are electrons in an atom. But when an atom either
gains or loses electrons, a charge is acquired. The atom
becomes negatively charged when electrons are
gained; it gets positively charged if electrons are lost.
Now can you guess what happens when we rub the
polythene sheet with the handkerchief? The friction
between the two surfaces removes some of the
electrons from one material to the other. One surface
acquires more negative charge on it. The other surface
loses electrons and gets positively charged. Thus these
surfaces become 'electrically charged' when rubbed
together. An electrically charged object attracts other
light objects. That explains why the tiny bits of paper are
attracted to the plastic sheet, doesn't it?
Wouldn't it be nice if we could puzzle our friends with
some tricks for which we have an explanation and they
don't? Let us tie a thin cotton or silk thread to a support
from where it hangs down, Supposing we take one of

our plastic scales, rub it on a piece of nylon cloth and
bring it near the free end of the hanging thread, what
do you think will happen? The thread is attracted to the
plastic, isn't it? Not only does the thread move, it also
becomes taut. The latter happens when the charge on
the plastic is more. We could try it out with other
materials also. Isn't it an easy way to test whether an
object is electrically charged or not?
Do you think if we touched the charged portion of
the plastic scale with our fingers, it would still attract the
thread? Let's try it.
An electric charge on one object can be easily trans-

ferred to other objects just by contact. If a charged rod
touches another object, the charges on the rod are
transferred to that object.
Would you like to try creating a lightning-like spark in

your room? Let us take a glass or plastic tumber. We
cover the lower half of the tumbler both from inside and
outside with a thin metal foil. We then fix a copper wire
to the outside of the tumbler and allow it to touch the
ground. We will take a long key chain and pass it
through a small hole in a piece of cardboard. We only
need to take care that when we place the cardboard
on the tumbler, the chain should touch the bottom of
the tumbler. The upper end of the chain with the key
ring must remain above the piece of cardboard.
Now comes the most exciting part. We will switch off

the light and charge the key ring just the way we have
done before, After we feel that enough charges have
accumulated, we touch the ring with a finger. In that
darkness, we will actually see a spark. Indeed, a bright
spark will jump from the ring to the finger, along with a
crackling sound. Don't worry, it is all perfectly harmless.
A LIGHTNING FLASH IN YOUR ROOM 105
Lightning flashes made to order
The lightning flash we see in the sky is a very large

amount of charge (compared to the ones we just
created) which are discharged through the air. A
thunder cloud is formed when the water droplets are
pulled up vigorously by extremely fast winds. A turbulent
cloud gets charged due to friction. The large number of
negative charges on the base of the cloud induces
positive charges on the earth below. The charges leak
when the system builds more charges than it can hold,
We cannot see the electrons themselves. What we see
in air is the glow by the passage of these charged
particles.
Scientists call this accumulation of charges, static

electricity. Static electricity has been exploited for
several uses. Understanding static electricity and its role
in causing lightning has helped us to make a device that
protects tall structures from being hit by lightning. In-
vented by Benjamin Franklin, it is a rod made of copper
Lightning conducters protect tall buildings

with pointed ends. It is fixed near the top of the high
structure. This rod is connected by a cable to another
rod buried in the ground. Lightning is safely conducted
into the ground when it strikes the rod on tall structures.
Have you ever noticed that these lightning rods are
prominently found on wooden and non-metallic struc-
tures, while metallic structures do not have these rods?
This is because the metallic frame itself provides a path
for the lightning to reach the ground.
Did you know that even a photocopier we make use

of static charges? These charges allow the carbon pow-
der to cling to the paper on which the copy is to be
made. Can you think of any other uses of static
electricity?
SILENCE IS GOLDEN
Have you ever wondered why a balloon makes so

much of noise when it bursts? When a car or a motor-
cycle starts, then too, it makes a lot of noise. A gun
makes an explosive noise when a bullet is fired. What do
you think creates this noise?
The answer to all these questions lies jn the speed of
air. When a balloon bursts, air within it, which was main-
tained under a great deal of pressure, is instantly
released with great speed. Similarly noise is created
when exhaust gases coming out of the car engine hit
the air with great speed. The sharp report of a gun is due
to the exhaust gases that follow the bullet with great
speed. As the gases come out of the muzzle of the gun,
a loud noise is created.
Noise is not always bad. We make noise to chase
away wild animals, Here we are talking about noise that
hurts us.
Does the paper strip move?
If if is the speed of air that causes such a lot of noise,

there must be some way to reduce the speed of air, if
only to ensure silence. Let us see how this can be done.
Let us find (or make) a hollow cardboard tube, about

5cm wide and 30cm long. Now, hold a tiny strip of paper
near one end of the tube and blow air through the other
end. The strip will obviously move depending on the
speed of air. We could try this out with air blowing at
varying speeds. How about calling some friends over?
Each of them would blow air at a different speed.
in the second step, let us try and get two plastic

funnels, Let us join their broad rims using an adhesive
tape. Now, we will hold the same.strip of paper at one
end and blow through the other, There will be a definite
SILENCE IS GOLDEN 109
Drilling holes into the pipe needs care
difference in the movement of the strip. Will the strip

move faster or will it not move at all?
Yes, the strip hardly moves. The bulge in the middle
has reduced the speed of air considerably. When the
air enters the bulge, it expands and its speed is reduced.
Can you try and get a plastic tube about a metre long
from somewhere? Even an old pipe, lying around the
house will do. We will drill some holes into this tube. Tiny
ones, not more than half a centimetre wide. If you can
find a screw, just heat it up and pierce the tube with it,
Let us place this tube in a cardboard box, about 30
cm long.
- How far does the paper strip move?
instead of blowing air through the tube, let us use a

table fan as the air source. If this air is channelized
through a big cardboard funnel, fitted to the tube, the
speed will be sufficiently high. As before, let us hold a
strip of paper at the other end, and then switch on the
fan. What do we see? Despite such a fast speed of air,
the strip is not really blowing away, is it? The air, in fact,
expands as it enters the tube. This reduces the speed of
the air before it comes out at the other end of the tube.
Aptly called the silencer, a device quite similar to

what we just constructed, is attached to cars, to stop
them from making too much noise. The car silencer is
made up of a wide cylinder around a narrow perforated
tube. A perforated metal plate is fixed in front of the
tube. The exhaust gases which come out of the narrow
tube are obstructed by the plate. The gases bounce
back and expand in the cylinder. Finally, they can move
SILENCE IS GOLDEN 111
A car silencer
out only through the perforations in the metal plate, and

are no longer at a fast speed.
Silencers are sometimes used in guns as well. This
silencer is also a long tube fitted with a number of thin
plates. Each plate has a hole at the centre through
which the bullet passes. The exhaust gases expand in
the space between the thin plates. At each step the
speed of the exhaust gases is reduced, Ultimately, when
the gases come out of the silencer tube, their speed is
not sufficient to create the loud report.
Aircraft models are tested in tunnels where air is blown
with tremendous speed. This can create deafening
noise and disturb the surroundings. This will need large
silencers to minimize this noise.
Where else, do you think silencers can be used?
Ready Reference
Acid 1-7 Material science 74-82

Alkali 1-7 Music 83-87
Automation 57-62 Neutalization 1-7
Catalyst 8-14 Neutron 101-106
Circuit 31-36 Noise 24-30,45-50,107-111
Decomposition 8-14 Osmosis 15-23
Earthing 31-36 Plasticity 63-73,101-106
Endpoint 1-7 Radio telescope 24-30
Elastic limit 37-44 Reflection 74-82
Elasticity 37-44 Resistance 31-36
Electricity 31-36, 101-106 Semipermeable membrane
Electromagnet 51-56 15-23
Electromagnetic shielding 51-56 Short circuit 31-36
Electron 31-36, 101,106 Silencer 107-111
Energy 88-94 Sound 24-30
Fluidity 63-73 Soundproof room 45-50
Friction 95-100 Sound waves 45-50
Indicator 1-7 Static electricity 101 -106
Insulator 31-36 Tensile strength 37-44
Light 74-82 Thermostat 57-62
Lightning conductors 51-56 Viscosity 63-73
"The experiments suggested in this book cut across artificial
barriers like physics, chemistry or biology, and deal with real
situations.encountered in daily life. That is why these experi-
ments deal with curiosities arising out of common everyday
observations. The aim is not to convey information alone, but
to help young minds to explore on their own. Moreover, these
experiments can be conducted using materials and imple-
ments readily available even in rural areas".
ISBN : 81-7236-082-7

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DOING

V.G. Kulkami, R.M. Bhagwat, V.G. Gambhir

Publications & Information Directorate (CSIR)

© Publications & Information Directorate

Volume Editor : Dr(Ms) B.S. Mahajaa Dr Sukanya Datta

For sale in India only.

Designed, Printed and Published by

The experiments and activities described in the book cover

Conventional experiments for children are short and crisp, to

We have also made an effort to present the method of

High technology is always dazzling, especially to a young

This book is based on field experiences gathered by research

We are grateful to Dr (Ms) Jayashree Ramadas for reading

The authors feel extremely obliged to Dr G.P. Phondke who

"Wash behind your ears", admonishes mum ever so

The two cubes of soap should be of the same size

the other an inexpensive washing brand, two dishes, a

Let's cut a small piece of about 3 gms from each cake

Now that the colourful experiments are over, there

Why did turmeric become red when it was added to

juice turn the turmeric to yellow again? Is there any

it. It's a common everyday affair. Questions such as

Some other substances, too, change their colour

Soap is formed when an alkali and a vegetable oil(or

Now can you guess what happens with inexpensive

whereas others are strong. Lime water is a mild alkali as

You may wonder as to what happened to the alkali

The technique of neutralization is used frequently in

enough. You have noticed that the liquid is clear like

The apparatus must be correctly set up

ing? Are the particles darting about? Once the bub-

ganese dioxide powder to it. Then we will cork the test

Potato cubes or slices, with which is

as stable as water. It slowly releases oxygen leaving

Dip, dip, dip

like substance needs a catalyst. These processes will be

action of the catalyst adversely. In such situations, the

Let's raid the kitchen

water, a knife, two dishes and, if available, any water

Let us take the potatoes and scoop them out so that

Making the potato-cup

Now the experiment is set up and we are eager to

In the meanwhile we can make waiting easy by

For some extra fun while we are waiting, why don't

Invisible gates at work

For this experiment too, we will allow fifteen minutes for

only water to pass through them but do not allow sugar

It has become clear that some of the water in the dish

Scientists tell us that nothing is perfect, not even the

Making a semipermeable membrane

Shall we try to get some other semipermeable

Now that we have a semipermeable membrane, let

pour kerosene or oil but with a longer stem. The school

called nutrients for their growth. They can absorb

the last ball is about to be bowled and that will decide

Causing noise in the radio

near the radio. The voices on the radio are no longer

The radio functions as a receiver of radio waves. If

mission clearly. Electrical disturbances obviously send

Enjoy the music

on one side of the can and pass an insulated electric

The electromagnetic waves generated by the bell

Does this work as well?