Friday, July 11, 2014

Going down the drain....

My name is Sonja Jasinski, and I am super excited to be in this class!! My fascination with water started when I was a little kid...growing up playing in the caverns of Hermit Island, exploring in the tide pools up and down the east coast, and spending my summers on boats. Since then, I have lived in several seacoast towns, most recently in Newburyport. I spend my free time doing anything water related I can, surfing, paddle boarding, kayaking, rafting, boating and fishing. Bring on the new knowledge, I am ready, willing and able!

Today we watched water go down the drain in a sink. I believe what I saw was the water circling the drain in a clockwise motion. I am basing this on the fact that I was paying attention more to the ripples that the water caused than the "cyclone" center itself.

Rod (source 1) said that there can not be an absolute direction, because the body of water is too small to expect the Coriolis Effect to happen. He said you also have to figure in the level of the sink, and the design of the basin. The esteemed professors interviewed by Scientific American agree with Rod. You would need a specially designed tub or sink to create a consistent effect. Again, Snopes confirms where I was incorrect in class, stating that the body of water in question is not large enough for the Coriolis Effect to have an impact

http://www.scientificamerican.com/article/can-somebody-finally-sett/
http://www.snopes.com/science/coriolis.asp
Rodman Chase

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