One afternoon while getting lost in the largest market in
We received our receipt and I noticed the arch it made on
the table, like a little bridge or tunnel. My mind quickly jumped back many
years to 8th grade science class and a lesson on air pressure.
When you place a piece of paper under your bottom lip and
blow across the top of the paper, the paper does not go down as many people
would first think- but rather goes up because the air pressure is moved by your
breath, but the air pressure below the paper says the same- pushing the paper
up.
Pretty simple lesson, but I obviously never forgot it.
As we sat tired and quiet I picked up the receipt and
excitedly got him interested in my cool trick.
I explained with my hands the invisible air pressure pushing
equally on both dies of the receipt- and explained to the 4 ½ year old mind
that I was going to blow those invisible pressures away! Just watch! They
cannot press on the paper any more! So guess what happens when you blow the
ones on the top away? The ones on the bottom still push! And look- the top ones
cannot push back!
He actually got it pretty quickly and was eager to try
himself. Many months later he will still pick up a rolled receipt and try this
“trick” so the lesson must have stuck.
It is my hope in the near future to incorporate this lesson
into some lessons on weather.
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