Magnetic Hoop
Magnetic breakfast!?
My son asked a question this morning that I can not answer! I was eating a bowl of grain and wondered multiple rings by what seemed to be attracted to each other in an almost magnetic. Even if only a couple left in the dish, which still seemed to be drawn together through the sea of milk! Can someone please help me explain why this happens? Thanks.
Your son is very observant. Maybe become a great scientist or engineer. Since milk is mostly water with a little fat, it has surface tension like water. The rings float in the liquid but some of the milk soaks it to the edges of the surface. This is like the meniscus of water when it rises in a glass tube. It also helps explain capillary. Because ties are floating in little crevices in the milk when they happen near the surface tension that gathers in a single indentation. The images in the link should help see the notches.
