Experiment 4: Balloons and Rice Krispies!

In my fourth attempt to study static electricity, I will test it using a balloon and a pile of Rice Krispies. My hypothesis is that yes, the negatively-charged balloon will attract the cereal like it did with the Cheerios, BUT it will not be able to hold the cereal when the balloon is turned right-side up. Let’s investigate this problematic perplexity!

Materials:

   -     a balloon (preferably with a cute face drawn on)

   -       a pile of Rice Krispies

   -  a wool tuque (Or any piece of wool. I just chose a tuque because I’m Canadian.)

Procedure:

1. Blow up the balloon.

2. Rub the balloon vigorously on the wool tuque.

3. Turn the balloon upside down with the butt of the balloon facing up (this way we can tell what will happen when we flip the balloon to right-side up).

4. Slowly lower the balloon towards the cereal and watch what happens to the Rice Krispies!

5. Turn the balloon right-side up.

Okay, what?! The cereal stuck to the balloon, even when it was turned right-side up. How, how, how did this possibly occur?! You see, the attraction of the negative charge and the neutral object does not only apply to that one position. Even when the balloon is moved, and thus effected by gravity in different ways, it still maintains the attraction with the Rice Krispies. (Doesn’t the balloon look so cute now that it has some hair?! No need for that tuque anymore!)