Name: ______________________________________ Date: ________________________

Student Exploration: Density Laboratory

Vocabulary: buoyancy, density, graduated cylinder, mass, matter, scale, volume

Prior Knowledge Questions (Do these BEFORE using the Gizmo.)

1. Of the objects below, circle the ones you think would float in water.

2. Why do some objects float, while others sink? __An object floats when the weight of the
liquid it displaces is equal to the weight of the object. Objects sink when they are heavier
than the equivalent volume of liquid. This also means that objects sink when they are denser
than the liquid.__________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

Gizmo Warm-up
The Density Laboratory Gizmo allows you to measure a variety of objects,
then drop them in water (or other liquid) to see if they sink or float.

1. An object’s mass is the amount of matter it contains. Mass can be

measured with a calibrated scale like the one shown in the Gizmo.
Drag the first object onto the Scale. (This is object 1.)

What is the mass of object 1? 19.5 grams

2. An object’s volume is the amount of space it takes up. The volume of an irregular object
can be measured by how much water it displaces in a graduated cylinder.

A. What is the initial volume of water in the cylinder? 400.0 mL

B. Place object 1 into the cylinder. What is the volume in the cylinder now? Sink

C. What is the volume of the object? 14.2 cm^3

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Note: While milliliters (mL) are used to measure liquid volumes, the equivalent unit cubic
centimeters (cm3) are used for solids. Therefore, write the volume of object 1 in cm3.

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 Get the Gizmo ready:
Activity A:
 Drag object 1 back to the shelf.
Float or sink?
 Check that Liquid density is set to 1.0 g/mL.

Question: How can you predict whether an object will float or sink?

1. Observe: Experiment with the different objects in the Gizmo. Observe the mass and volume
each object, then drag it into the Beaker of liquid to see if it floats or sinks. (Notice a pin
holds objects in the graduated cylinder, whether they sink or float.) Try to determine what
the floating objects have in common and what the sinking objects have in common.

2. Form hypothesis: Compare the floating objects, then do the same for the sinking objects.

A. What do the floating objects have in common? _ All of the floating objects have a
density less than 1.0 g/cm^3. _____________________________

___________________________________________________________________

B. What do the sinking objects have in common? __ All of the sinking objects have a
density more than 1.0 g/cm^3.____________________________

___________________________________________________________________

3. Collect data: Measure the mass and volume of objects 1 through 12, and record whether
they float or sink in the table below. Leave the last column blank for now.

Object Mass (g) Volume (cm3) Float or sink?

1 19.5 g 14.0 ml sink
2 11.0 g 9.0 ml sink
3 4.0 g 5.0 ml float
4 135.0 g 7.0 ml sink
5 4.0 g 3.5 ml sink
6 78.0 g 29.0 ml sink
7 2.0 g 21.0 ml float
8 24.0 g 26.0 ml float
9 99.0 g 44.0 ml sink
10 42.0 g 61.0 ml float
11 65.0 g 40.0 ml sink
12 104.0 g 114.0 ml float

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(Activity A continued on next page)

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Activity A (continued from previous page)

4. Analyze: Look carefully for patterns in your data.

A. Does mass alone determine whether an object will float or sink? _____
___________

Explain: __ No, not necessarily, because the volume effects if it will sink or float.
__________________________________________________________

B. Does volume alone determine whether an object will float or sink? ______________

Explain: __Yes, because it can tell you how much is packed inside the object which
impacts the mass.
__________________________________________________________

C. Compare the mass and volume of each object. What is true of the mass and volume

of all the floating objects? ___The amount does not exceed the limit of less than 2

and greater than 114. ___________________________________________

D. What is true of the mass and volume of all the sinking objects? __The amount does
not exceed the limit of less than 3.5 and greater than 135. _______________

___________________________________________________________________

5. Calculate: The density of an object is its mass per unit of volume. Dense objects feel very
heavy for their size, while objects with low density feel very light for their size.

To calculate density, divide the mass by volume: D = m/V. If mass is measured in grams
and volume in cubic centimeters, the unit of density is grams per cubic centimeter (g/cm3).

Calculate the density of each object, and record the answers in the last column of your data
table. Label this column “Density (g/cm3).”

6. Analyze: Compare the density of each object to the density of the liquid, 1.0 g/mL. This is
the density of water.

A. What do you notice about the density of the floating objects? _It is less than 1.
__________________

___________________________________________________________________

B. What do you notice about the density of the sinking objects? __It is greater than 1.
_________________

___________________________________________________________________

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7. Draw conclusions: If you know the mass and volume of an object, how can you predict
whether it will float or sink in water?

_____ One can predict whether an object will float or sink in water by calculating its density
by dividing the mass of the object by the volume of the object. If the density is more than
one, the object will sink in water, but if the density is less than one, it will float.
____________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

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 Get the Gizmo ready:
Activity B:
 Drag all the objects back onto the shelf.
Liquid density
 Check that the Liquid density is still 1.0 g/mL.

Question: How does liquid density affect whether objects float or sink?

1. Observe: Place object 1 into the Beaker of liquid. Slowly move the Liquid density slider

back and forth. What do you notice? __ The higher the density in the liquid, the object

seemed to have floated and the more density it had, the quicker it rose to the top of the

liquid. ________________________________________

________________________________________________________________________

2. Form a hypothesis: Buoyancy is the tendency to float. How do you think the liquid density

affects the buoyancy of objects placed in the liquid? __For a floating object, the buoyancy

force is equal to the gravity force on the object. The buoyancy force doesn't change with a

denser fluid. _____________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

3. Predict: In the table below, write the density of each object. Then predict whether the object
will float or sink in each of the fluids. Write “Float” or “Sink” in each empty box of the table.

Liquid density
Object Object density
0.5 g/mL 1.0 g/mL 2.0 g/mL
1 1.1 sink sink float
2 1.4 sink sink float
3 0.8 sink float float
4 17.3 sink sink sink
5 1.1 sink sink float

4. Test: Test your predictions using the Gizmo. Place a checkmark (\/) next to each correct
prediction, and an “X” next to each incorrect prediction.

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5. Draw conclusions: What is the relationship between the object density, the liquid density,

and the tendency of the object to float? __If the object density is greater than the liquid

density than it will float. If the liquid density is greater than it will sink.

________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

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 Extension: Get the Gizmo ready:
King Hieron’s  Drag all the objects back onto the shelf.
crown  Set the Liquid density to 1.0 g/mL.

Introduction: In the third century B.C., King Hieron of Syracuse asked the famous
mathematician Archimedes to determine if his crown was made of pure gold. This was a
puzzling problem for Archimedes—he knew how to measure the weight of the crown, but how
could he measure the volume?

Archimedes solved the problem when he got into his bath and noticed the water spilling over the
sides of the tub. He realized that the volume of the displaced water must be equal to the volume
of the object placed into the water. Archimedes was so excited by his discovery that he jumped
out of the bath and ran through the streets shouting “Eureka!”

Question: How can you tell if a crown is made of solid gold?

1. Think about it: Gold is one of the densest substances known, with a density of 19.3 g/cm3. If
the gold in the crown was mixed with a less-valuable metal like bronze or copper, how would
that affect its density?

______ By making it weigh even more and if it weighs more than it has less of chance to
float. ___________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

2. Observe: Drag each of the crowns into the liquid. Based on what you see, which crown do
you think is densest? Explain why you think so.

___B is the densest because when you adjust the density bar, it only stays down for
B.______________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

3. Measure: Find the mass, volume, and density of each of the three crowns.

Crown Mass (g) Volume (cm3) Density (g/cm3)

A 325.0 62.5 5.00
B 1255.0 65.5 19.3
C 306.0 61.6 4.71

4. Draw conclusions: Which of the three crowns was made of gold? ___

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Explain: ___ Crown B. Gold is the densest substance known, which makes it heavier. It sank
deeper than all the others. It must be the one made of Gold.
_______________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________________

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