Download An Introduction to Archimedes Principles - Experiment | PHYS 0004A and more Exams Physics in PDF only on Docsity! Dominic Calabrese 12/03/20 Archimedes’ Principle Introduction There is a story that is told about Archimedes (287-212b.c.) that occurred when he was commissioned by King Hiero II to determine whether the royal crown was made of pure gold. The king did not trust the goldsmith, and he worried that some silver (alloyed with gold) may have been used rather than the pure gold the King paid for. This request of Archimedes was difficult at the time because the only known way to take a piece of the crown material and chemically test it. This was strictly forbidden, so the problem Archimedes faced was how to determine the crown’s composition without altering it in any way. As the story goes (according to Syracuse), one day Archimedes was seen running naked down a street in central Athens screaming “Eureka! Eureka!” (L: “I’ve found it!). What he had found was a way to solve the crown problem, and this was not just coincidence. What followed were Archimedes’ famous principle and the death of the dishonest goldsmith. In this experiment, you will find out how to measure the density of irregularly shaped objects and more using this principle. 1 Experiment 9 Physics 2A Apparatus Zero Adjustment 0 Wood Brass Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure3 Procedure 1. Carefully zero the balance. 2. Attach the iron (Fe) cube to the bottom loop 2 - of string, bring to balance and record its mass in Table 1. 3. Add some water to the beaker and carefully place the suspended Fe inside (See Figure 1). This initial water is to protect the beaker in case the Fe mass detaches from the string. 4. Add more water to the beaker to bring its level just above the Fe as shown in figure 1. 5. Balance and record the buoyant mass of Fe in Table 1. 6. Repeat steps 1 through 4 for the brass cube, bolt and unknown. Be sure to clean up any water spills. Place wet objects on a paper towel to dry. 7. Attach the wood block to the upper loop of string and the brass cube to the bottom of the wood, and carefully lower the blocks into the beaker as instructed in step 3. 8. Now add water and fill the beaker to the level shown in figure 2, balance and record this mass as “reading #1” in Table 1. 9. Add more water until the level is as shown in figure 3, balance and record this mass as “reading #2” in Table 1. 10. Measure and record the mass of the wood block (in air) in the space below Table 1. 11. Finally, repeat 3, 4, and 5 using NaCl (aq.) in place of the water. Be particularly careful with the NaCl (aq.). Save the NaCl (aq.) in its original container and rinse everything completely with water to remove the salt residue. 2
