Brain Teasers
An Egg
A science teacher told his after school class, "Whoever can get this egg into this smaller glass bottle will win no homework for a week! The rules are: the egg has to go into the bottle in one piece, and you can't break the bottle. You can also use anything in the science lab. So, do we have any volunteers?"
A boy raised his hand and the teacher pointed at him. The boy took the egg and looked around the science lab for the things he could use. He saw some writing paper, a pack of matches, some vinegar, a sink, and the glass bottle. By the end of the after school class, the boy had gotten the egg into the smaller bottle.
How did he do it?
Note that, without doing anything to the egg, the egg can't fit into the bottle.
A boy raised his hand and the teacher pointed at him. The boy took the egg and looked around the science lab for the things he could use. He saw some writing paper, a pack of matches, some vinegar, a sink, and the glass bottle. By the end of the after school class, the boy had gotten the egg into the smaller bottle.
How did he do it?
Note that, without doing anything to the egg, the egg can't fit into the bottle.
Answer
First, soak the egg in the vinegar which softens the shell without compromising the egg. Next, take some of the writing paper and shred it into pieces. Take the shredded pieces and put them into the glass bottle. Take a match and light a fire inside the bottle with the shredded paper. After, take the vinegar-soaked egg and put it on the top of the bottle so no oxygen can get into the bottle. The fire heats up the air inside the bottle and the air expands, pushing some of the air out. When the oxygen is used up, the fire dies and the air in the bottle begins to cool and contract. Since the egg is blocking the mouth, new air can't get in and a pressure difference is built up which eventually pushes the egg into the bottle. After a short while, the shell will harden and that's how the egg got into the bottle.Hide Answer Show Answer
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