Hooked on Science: Pick up pingpong ball with funnel

Learn how to pick up a pingpong ball from a table by using a funnel.

Materials

* Funnel

* Pingpong ball

Instructions

STEP 1: Place the funnel over the ball and blow through the stem of the funnel.

STEP 2: Continue to blow through the stem, lift the funnel, place your hand under the funnel, and then stop blowing.

Explanation

Once you stop blowing through the funnel the ball falls out into your hand. As you blow through the funnel you create a lower pressure inside the funnel, especially where the stem is attached to the cone of the funnel. At this spot the fastest flow of air occurs. Bernoulli's Principal says the faster the flow of air, the lower the pressure. This is the reason why the ball is sucked into the funnel.

Jason Lindsey is a science outreach educator with Hooked on Science. Check out his website www.hookedonscience.org for webcasts and experiments that might get you hooked on science.