hes@ecsvax.UUCP (Henry Schaffer) (11/26/85)
> Suppose a barge carrying a load of scrap iron is floating ... > [the crew] throw all the scrap metal overboard ... > > Does the water level in the lock (in relation to the sides of the lock)... > a) .....go up? > b) .....go down? > OR > c) .....stay the same? > > ---Larry Bruns, ihnp4!hpfcla!l_bruns or hplabs!hpcnof!lrb > When in the (floating) barge the iron causes the displacement of a volume of water equal to its weight. When overboard the iron causes the displacment of a volume of water equal to its volume. Therefore (assuming that the scrap iron is in a configuration with density greater than water) the water level will go down in the lock. (You've got to be careful with posting to this newsgroup. I'm sure that many people are going to consider the possibility that the scrap iron was in the form of intact barrels, or some other configuration which will float when thrown overboard!) --henry schaffer