# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
PAPER vs LOCK! What can you cut with paper? #2

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Using Paper to Cut (Acrylic, Plastic, Wood)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Denser Than You Think - Science Experiment

# data[].attributes.body
air pressu

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
...with your foot, in your hands, on your head. But nothing compares to the fun you'll have doing the soda can implosion experiment. Just wait until the can goes "POP!" Then you'll see who has nerves of steel.

Experiment

How Does It Work

Here's the real scoop on the science of the imploding can. Before heating, the can is filled with water and air. By boiling the water, the water changes states from a liquid to a gas. This gas is called water vapor. The water vapor pushes the air that was originally inside the can out into the atmosphere. When the can is turned upside down and placed in the water, the mouth of the can forms an airtight seal against the surface of the water in the bowl. In just a split second, all of the water vapor that pushed the air out of the can and filled up the inside of the can turns into only a drop or two of liquid, which takes up much less space. This small amount of condensed water cannot exert much pressure on the inside walls of the can, and none of the outside air can get back into the can. The result is the pressure of the air pushing from the outside of the can is great enough to crush it.
The sudden collapsing of an object toward its center is called an implosion. Nature wants things to be in a state of equilibrium or balance. To make the internal pressure of the can balance with the external pressure on the can, the can implodes. That's right, air pressure is powerful!

One more thing . . . you probably noticed that the can was filled with water after it imploded. This is a great illustration of how air is pushing all around us. Specifically, the outside air pressure was pushing downward on the surface of the water. Since the air pressure inside the can was less than the pressure outside the can, water from the bowl was literally pushed up and into the can.

This action is similar to what happens when you drink from a straw. Though we say we are "sucking" liquid up through the straw, we really aren't. To put it simply, science doesn't suck . . . it just pushes and pulls. Outside air pressure is pushing down on the surface of the liquid. When you reduce the pressure in your mouth (that sucking action) the outside pressure is greater than the pressure inside your mouth and the soda shoots up through the straw and into your mouth. The same thing is true with the can. The outside air pressure pushing downward on the surface of the water is greater than the force inside the can and the water gets pushed up into the can.

Safety Information

WARNING! IMPORTANT SAFETY RULES
This experiment requires the use of a burner on a stove to heat some water. Children should not perform this experiment without adult supervision. Adults shouldn't do it either unless a really smart kid is watching over their shoulder.

Check out the video from the Ellen Show

Crushing soda cans is fun, but I invited some people to help me take this experiment to a whole new level. In place of a soda can, we used a steel 55-gallon drum, a propane camping stove, and a kid's swimming pool filled with ice water. Ellen Show

Additional videos with Steve on Ellen
Additional Ellen Videos

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Air Pressure Can Crusher | Science Experiment

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
with your foot, in your hands, on your head. But nothing compares to the fun you'll have doing the soda can implosion experiment. Just wait until the can goes "POP!" Then you'll see who has nerves of steel. Experiment Here's the real scoop on the science of the imploding can.

# data[].attributes.body
Water cup trick
Aryen, Aditya and Jack pan

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Awesome Sugar Water Density - Science Experiment

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The real meaning of MPH- The Original- TCHappenings

# data[].attributes.body
Egg Example:

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Is it possible to crush an egg by pressing it with hands?